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Ames, Iowa ? Jake Sullivan scored 18 of his season-high 23 points in the first half, as Iowa State withstood a Husker comeback before pulling away in a 89-74 victory Saturday night at Hilton Coliseum.

Sullivan, a 6-1, 195-pound guard, hit 8-of-15 shots from the floor, including 7-of-11 from 3-point range, as the Cyclones (9-2, 2-0 Big 12) snapped Nebraska’s five-game winning streak.

Sullivan, who hit six consecutive three-pointers during one stretch, topped his previous season high of 16 in a loss to Virginia last month. ISU was 11-of-20 from long range as a team.

The Huskers trailed by 13 points in the early stages of the second half, at 48-35, before mounting a furious comeback. Jake Muhleisen’s two three-pointers and a three-pointer by Andrew Drevo sparked a 14-1 Husker run. NU eventually tied the score at 49 on a Muhleisen putback with 14:53 remaining. Nebraska, which never led after intermission, stayed within striking distance before ISU took command midway through the half.

Nebraska (10-2, 0-1 Big 12) closed to within 62-59 after a Jason Dourisseau basket with 10:36 left, but the Cyclones stormed back with a run of their own. ISU scored nine straight points over the next 2:08, beginning a 17-3 spurt that put the game out of reach.

Sullivan led five Cyclones in double figures, as Curtis Stinson and Jackson Vroman finished with 15 points apiece.

Nebraska, behind the play of senior Nate Johnson, led for much of the first half, as Johnson came off the bench to spark an 11-0 run. NU led by as many as five and was up 29-25 after a Drevo basket with 5:49 remaining in the half.

Johnson led three Huskers in double figures with a team-high 23 points on 9-of-15 shooting, while chipping in five rebounds and four assists. Muhleisen finished with a season-high 16 points, including 4-of-7 from 3-point range, while Drevo added 10 points.

Sullivan then got on fire, hitting four three-pointers during a 21-6 run to end the first half. Sullivan,who was 6-of-8 from three-point range in the half, hit a pair of long-range shots in a 10-0 ISU run that erased the Husker lead. NU, which went nearly four minutes without a basket, was unable to answer, as Craig Stinson scored five straight points to end the half, including a 35-footer to beat the halftime buzzer that gave ISU a 46-35 halftime margin.

Sullivan helped ISU connect on 9-of-14 three-pointers in the first half, as the Cyclones built an 11-point halftime lead.

The Huskers return to action on Wednesday, Jan. 14, when they take on Colorado. The game will tip off at 7:05 p.m. at the Bob Devaney Sports Center.

Nebraska postgame notes
** Nate Johnson came off the bench to lead the Huskers in scoring for the third straight game, hitting 9-of-15 shots for a team-high 23 points. Johnson has averaged 22.3 points over the past three contests.

** Jake Muhleisen scorched the nets from long range, hitting four three-pointers while recording a season-high 16 points. His four treys were one off his career high of five against Alaska-Fairbanks in the second game of the 2001-02 season.

** Nebraska continued to see its offense improve, as the Huskers topped the 70-point plateau for the sixth straight game, and eighth time this season. NU reached 70 points just six times all last season. The last time Nebraska scored at least 70 points in seven straight games came in 1996-97.

** The Huskes outrebounded the Cyclones, 34-33. It marked the 10th time in 12 games this season NU had held a rebounding advantage. The Huskers own a plus-8.6 rebounding advantage this season, one of the top marks in the nation.

** Iowa State hit an opponent season high 11 three-pointers on the night, while recording opponent highs in assists (22) and blocks (10).

** ISU outshot the Huskers, 51.7 percent to 46.0 percent, just the third time this season NU shot less than its opponent. The game marked the fifth straight game NU hit better than 45.0 percent from the floor, and 10th time overall this season.

** Nebraska's three steals were a season low, while ISU committed an opponent season low eight turnovers.

** Freshman Charles Richardson Jr. recorded three assists with no turnovers in his first career Big 12 contest. Richardson leads NU with 38 assists against just 18 turnovers, and has had 12 assists and no turnovers in the past three games combined.