PETE: Worried about Iowa State’s recent ball-handling? Geez, how’d ya like to be a Kansas fan right now?

Temporarily concerned about Iowa State’s increasing turnovers and decreasing assists? You’re probably not alone, but at least the Cyclones don’t share Kansas’ problems.

The Jayhawks, right now, are broken. Toast. Or as Bill Self said on radio after a Saturday loss at Utah during which his team never led:

“We were awful.”

Let us not forget that Kansas was the nation’s pre-season No. 1. The Jayhawks have lost 14 conference games the last two seasons. They’ve already lost six times in the Big 12 -- with a remaining six-pack that includes Texas Tech, Houston and Arizona. The last time they lost more than eight conference games? That’d be Ted Owens’ 1982-83 team that went 4-10. Yes, that’s four-plus decades ago.

And you think Iowa State’s playing some sloppy ball right now?

You’re right – but it’s not thaaaaaat bad.

“I’ve obviously done a (bad) job getting these guys to understand the way we have to play in order to give us a chance to win,” Self said, not really using the word “bad.”

While Kansas’ poor play trend is gradually moving it away from a coveted top four Big 12 Conference finish, Iowa State has been good enough in other areas to offset its recent sloppy ball-handling.

The Cyclones aren’t playing great currently – yet they’re winning. Some others?

Houston, Arizona, Texas Tech and the Cyclones are at least two games up where it counts – in the conference tournament’s important double-bye category. That’s heading into the next round of games that include Iowa State hosting finally-a-winner Colorado, Houston at Arizona State, Arizona at Baylor, Texas Tech at TCU and Kansas at BYU.

And don’t @me for writing what you’re thinking. Now that Iowa State’s three-game lull through all teams go, is history, it’s time to play the kind of near-brilliant ball it played while winning 15 of the first 16 games – and losing only by a walk-off putback against Auburn.

Despite Iowa State’s 11-point win Saturday against Cincinnati at Hilton Coliseum, and despite the Cyclones being No. 9 overall and a 3-seed on the official peek into the minds of the NCAA Tournament’s selection committee . . .

Something seems a bit out of skew.

I’m usually the glass-mostly-full person in the room, but it’s getting to the point of the season where enough’s enough.

I mean, 81 turnovers the past six games, during which T.J. Otzelberger’s better-than-it’s-playing team is just 3-3?

That might be all right during Tuesday’s home game against Colorado, which finally broke into the Big 12 victory column against also-bad UCF Saturday, but . . .

Do think another bout of sloppy ball-handling will cut it at first-place Houston next Saturday?

No freaking way.

Coach Kelvin Sampson’s team has the nation’s third-best adjusted defense efficiency, per KenPom, and the No. 10 adjusted offense. Mistakes with the ball could turn into slam dunks, or worse – transition three-point baskets.

"We’ve just got to do a better job making simple plays,” Otzelberger said after Saturday’s game. “Sometimes, we're trying to almost be stubborn -- like this guy is kind of fouling me, so I'm going to try and force it through his body and make the ref call it.”

That’s where Iowa State’s 23-9 second-half rebounding advantage (and 13-2 second-chance-points domination that went with it), came in handy. Ditto a 15-point advantage from the free throw line, after the score was tied 39-all at the break.

No one is implying Iowa State has something broken. It’s just that after committing only five turnovers at Kansas, and just eight against the nation’s best team (Auburn) – everyone knows this team can do better.

They’ve been there. They’ve done it.

And they can do it again.

(Randy Peterson can be, and has been, reached at randypete4846@gmail.com or at any Okoboji-area beverage/food establishment between the hours of open and close)