AMES, Iowa -- At one time, Oklahomas early November trip to Iowa State might have looked like a potential upset that could turn the playoff picture upside down.The Sooners will need to do a lot more than beat the lowly Cyclones on Thursday night to even think they can reach footballs Final Four.But a loss would put No. 12 Oklahomas only realistic remaining goal, a Big 12 title, in serious jeopardy.The Sooners (6-2, 5-0 Big 12, No. 14 CFP ) have recovered well enough for an ugly 1-2 start to put themselves in position to win yet another league title.And while visiting Ames to play Iowa State (1-7, 0-5) still looks somewhat dangerous on paper, the reasons why Cyclones havent beaten Oklahoma at home in decades remain in play.Iowa State has talent at the skill positions and in the secondary. But the Cyclones have yet to learn how to win under first-year coach Matt Campbell.Iowa State has led at halftime in three of its five Big 12 games. It has also been within seven points three times in the conference, but its inability to close teams out has doomed the Cyclones to a seventh straight losing season.Theyre a team that plays hard, Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops said. Weve got to be at our best here on a short week.Here are some of the keys to consider as Oklahoma goes on the road in search of its sixth straight win:MISSING MIXONThe Sooners will head to Ames short-handed in the running game. Samaje Perine is expected to miss the trip with a pulled leg muscle, and Joe Mixon was suspended for the game after violating team rules. Those two have combined for 1,188 yards and 11 touchdowns this season. Freshman Abdul Adams, who had 91 yards in a 56-3 blowout of Kansas on Saturday, will likely get the start for Oklahoma.LANNING OR PARK?Quarterback Jacob Park got the majority of the snaps for Iowa State in last weekends 31-26 home loss to Kansas State . But Joel Lanning is expected to make the start yet again for the Cyclones. Park threw for 301 yards against the Wildcats, but Iowa State put itself in a 21-point hole it couldnt escape from. The toughest part of that to swallow is the consistency of play thats needed to win football games. I put that on myself, our coaches, Campbell said.ON THE DEFENSIVEOklahomas defense is 93rd nationally with 437.5 yards allowed per game. But after allowing 854 yards in a win over Texas Tech, the Sooners allowed just 170 on 65 plays against the Jayhawks. Much different than the week before in our ability to make competitive plays, challenge passes, Stoops said.CYCLONES DIowa States scoring defense (32.4 points per game) is actually lower than Oklahomas by a tenth of a point. But the Cyclones are last in the Big 12 in rushing defense at 233.6 yards per game, so if theres one game the Sooners can afford to be without Perine and Mixon it might be this one.BIG 12 RACEWith Baylor and West Virginia up next, Oklahoma could possibly lock up the Big 12s last title without a championship game a full two weeks before facing rival Oklahoma State at home. The Cowboys are 4-1 in the league and their next three opponents; Kansas State, Texas Tech and TCU, are just a combined 13-11.---More college football at www.collegefootball.ap.org Fake Hurricanes Jerseys . Any real chance at payback wont come until the playoff. Still, Pittsburgh knows its taut 3-2 win over the Bruins on Wednesday night is a pretty good place to start laying the groundwork. "They are a very good defensive team," Penguins forward Brandon Sutter said. Wholesale Hurricanes Jerseys . -- Team after team passed on Andre Ellington in the draft. https://www.cheaphurricanes.com/ . -- Derrick Rose shook off poor shooting early to hit clutch shots late and Carlos Boozer had 20 points and 13 rebounds to lead the Chicago Bulls to a 104-95 preseason victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday night. Carolina Hurricanes Pro Shop . Westbrook has missed 27 games since having a procedure on Dec. 27 to deal with swelling in his injured right knee — the third operation on the knee in nine months. Hurricanes Jerseys China . In Europe, top teams seem to be largely happy with their squads after spending nearly $1 billion in the off-season. And although English league clubs are unlikely to splash cash in January, Arsenal and Chelsea could be tempted to strengthen their squads with new strikers. The Illawarra Hawks survived a stirring Brisbane Bullets fightback to secure a 91-85 overtime win in the NBL on Monday night.Brisbane rallied from 17 points down midway through the third quarter to tie the game at 77-77 with 11 seconds remaining in regulation time.The Hawks opened up an early four-point buffer during overtime and held their nerve in the dying minutes to win by six points and cement third place on the ladder.The Bullets were dealt an injury blow during overtime with Cameron Bairstow crashing to the Brisbane Convention Centre floor as his left knee buckled underneath him during a routine layup.The initial diagnosis doesnt look good for the former NBA forward who will have scans on Tuesday morning.Brisbanes Torrey Craig led all scorers with 21 points, while Nicholas Kay (14 points, six rebounds) top-scored for the Hawks who had seven players score 10 points or more.Hawks coach Rob Beveridge was relieved that his side held on to win after dominating for large periods of what was a scrappy contest.I felt we ccontrolled the game and if we lost that wed be devastated, Beveridge said.ddddddddddddThe way we fought together in overtime was pretty special and I think these guys can start to believe they are a pretty good team.The Hawks edged a tight first quarter 18-17 and flew out to an early lead in the second as 13 first-half turnovers hampered Brisbane on the offensive end.Illawarra held an eight-point lead at the main break and soon extended their advantage to double digits as the Bullets also struggled with poor shooting from the field.Down by 17 midway through the third term, Brisbane rallied to cut the deficit to 10 at three-quarter time and then to five points inside the final two minutes.Brisbanes tenacity paid dividends as they forced the match into overtime with only seconds to spare, but the Hawks were the hungrier side during the extra minutes as they notched their ninth win of the season. ' ' '