Additional inspired performances could save OSU’s basketball season
It’s hard to believe that the legendary Eddie Sutton has now been out of Oklahoma State’s basketball program for longer — 17 seasons — than he coached the Cowboys.
During Sutton’s 16-season run, there were 13 NCAA Tournament appearances, 22 NCAA Tournament wins and two Final Four runs.
If you’re too young to have lived through the Eddie vs. Kelvin Sampson era of the OU-OSU basketball series, this epitomizes what makes Bedlam so appealing. Their teams were generally nationally relevant.
For Eddie-Kelvin games played at Stillwater, there was always a packed Gallagher-Iba Arena crowd of 6,381 before the renovation and 13,611 after.
In this week’s episode, Bill chats with Bixby High School football coach Loren Montgomery. What happens during the high school football offseason? How did the Spartans program approach the move to 6AI prior to last season (where they finally won the state championship)? What does he think is the best way to maximize Braylin Presley’s potential at TU? What do Coach Montgomery and his players take away from the 58-game winning streak?
Since Sutton’s last season in 2005-06, Oklahoma State fans have been forced to adapt to a different basketball experience. With Sean Sutton, Travis Ford and Mike Boynton coaching the Cowboys, the program is 5-7 in the NCAA Tournament. Winning percentages 2006-2023: 0.565 overall and 0.432 in the Big 12.
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Because the Big 12 standings had OU in seventh place and OSU in eighth place, Wednesday’s Bedlam meeting wasn’t quite up to the level of Eddie-Kelvin rivalry intensity. It did, however, generate a pleasantly surprising level of heat and drew Gallagher-Iba Arena to a crowd of 10,789 – respectable by today’s attendance standards.
While the Sooners and Cowboys entered with combined records of 20-14 overall and 3-7 in the Big 12, this game was televised not on ESPN but on ESPNU. Not on the main stage of sports television, but on an auxiliary stage.
It was a national platform nonetheless, and it ended up being a 2 1/2 hour statement regarding the quality of Tulsa Public Schools basketball.
As the Cowboys rallied from a six-point halftime deficit to win 72-56, the OSU MVPs were a former Booker T. Washington Hornet (Bryce Thompson) and a former Memorial Charger. (Kalib Boone).
Connecting on each of his three 3-point attempts, totaling 19 points and playing a season-high 37 minutes, Thompson stepped up his offense. It was a beautifully timed step as Thompson matched his goal production from his previous three games combined on Wednesday.
When Boone signed with Oklahoma, Memorial coach Bobby Allison shared a prediction: “Kalib will develop over time as an offensive player at this level, but I think he’ll be a defenseman. elite and a shot blocker. It’s not a good shot blocker. It’s a big.
The 6-foot-9 Boone was a disruptive force against the Sooners. In his 105th college game, he blocked five shots and disturbed the shooters on several occasions.
Mike Boynton’s sixth-team Oklahoma State is among the best in the nation on defense, but there are too many disjointed possessions. It’s not uncommon for spacing to be a mess and for the shot clock to tick when nothing happens that leads to a real offense.
However, everything looks better when the shots are converted, and Thompson, Boone and Woody Newton were combined 18 of 29 on their field attempts. Their teammates were 9 of 34 overall and 2 of 11 of three, but OSU snapped its three-game losing streak by outscoring the Sooners 48-26 after halftime.
“An inspired performance,” said ESPNU play-by-play voice Ted Emrich as Cowboy players and fans celebrated their conquest of Bedlam.
Eighteen years ago this week, Eddie Sutton’s Cowboys were 13-2 overall and 5-1 in the Big 12. They were ranked 24th nationally. A few weeks later they were No. 6. A few weeks later they were in the Final Four.
Thirty-one years ago this week, Sutton’s second OSU team was 15-0 and ranked third in the nation.
The 2022-23 Cowboys are 10-8 overall and 2-4 in the conference. When big man Moussa Cisse returns from an ankle injury, Oklahoma State will be fully loaded as it continues its run through the deep Big 12. In this week’s Associated Press poll, five of the top 14 teams represent the Big 12.
OSU showed Kansas and during Wednesday’s second half that it had the ability to play special basketball. If the Cowboys can pile on several more inspired performances, they have a chance to salvage their season.
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