No. 15 Arizona State battling No. 16 Iowa State, leads 24-10 at halftime of Big 12 title game

We're halfway through the Big 12 conference championship game and it's been a predictably tight battle between No. 15 Arizona State and No. 16 Iowa State. With an automatic bid to the first ever 12-team College Football Playoff, the Sun Devils are hanging on to a narrow 24-10 at halftime.

The game has unfolded pretty much as you'd expect thus far. Arizona State is riding superstar running back Cam Skattebo, while Iowa State is stringing together methodical drive after methodical drive to hang tight in the game.

The Sun Devils started with the ball, and Skattebo immediately took advanage of this much-maligned Cyclones run defense. His first carry of the game went for 28 yards, and the Sun Devils reached scoring position quickly. Quarterback Sam Leavitt just missed Xavier Guillory on a would-be touchdown pass, which forced the Sun Devils to settle for a field goal.

The Cyclones then did what they do best: throw a ton of different formations at the Arizona State defense and play mistake-free football. They went 75 yards down the field over 11 plays on a drive that lasted five and a half minutes before running back Carson Hansen caught a three-yard touchdown from quarterback Rocco Becht.

Arizona State took the field again, looking to ride Skattebo down the field, but they got stopped short on third down. Head coach Kenny Dillingham opted to go for it, and the Sun Devils ripped off a huge play for the conversion:

That set up first and goal for the Sun Devils, and Leavitt ran in for a touchdown on third down. Following that, the Arizona State defense managed to limit the Cyclones' efficient and steady offense to two straight field goal attempts, though they shanked the second attempt.

In between those two drives from Iowa State was another classic Skattebo drive. The star runner ripped off a 47 yard run to start the drive and finished it off with a three yard touchdown run. When Arizona State led 17-10 after the missed field goal, the defense forced its first punt of the game with just over two minutes left to go.

Arizona State then strung together a quick two minute drill series that started with another big run, this time with Skattebo going for 53 yards. In total, the drive lasted just four plays and Skattebo ran in for his second score of the day. He's already at 140 rushing yards and crossed the 2,000 scrimmage yard mark, becoming just the hundredth player in college football history to do so.

The Cyclones will get the ball to start the second half, which is why it was so crucial that Arizona State managed to score right before halftime. They have a two-score cushion right now, but their defense has struggled to get off the field. Can the Sun Devils hang on and punch their ticket to the playoff?