Oklahoma State University Athletics
Cowboys Set To Host Northwestern State
December 07, 2002 | Cowboy Basketball
Oklahoma State Cowboys
(4-1 overall) hosts the Northwestern State Demons (0-3)
in Gallagher-Iba Arena
Sunday, Dec. 8, 2002 * 3 p.m. (CST)
Gallagher-Iba Arena [13,611] * Stillwater, Okla.
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Oklahoma State Cowboys
Probable Starters
Name Ht. Wt. Yr. PPG RPG F 23 Ivan McFarlin 6-8 237 Jr. 10.4 8.0 F 40 Andre Williams 6-8 225 Sr. 5.2 7.2 G 5 Victor Williams 5-10 187 Sr. 8.8 4.0 ^ G 24 Tony Allen 6-4 205 Jr. 15.4 5.0 G 34 Melvin Sanders 6-5 210 Sr. 14.4 4.4
Off the Bench
Name Ht. Wt. Yr. PPG RPG C 4 Frans Steyn 7-2 306 So. 0.7 2.0 G 25 Janavor Weatherspoon 6-1 165 Jr. 5.4 1.4 G 30 Cheyne Gadson 6-3 190 Sr. 5.6 4.2 ^ F 33 Jason Miller 6-9 245 Jr. 4.6 3.6
Northwestern State Demons
Probable Starters
Name Ht. Wt. Yr. PPG RPG F 1 Jermaine Spence 6-7 200 Fr. 10.0 7.3 C 2 Byron Allen 6-7 270 Fr. 9.7 5.3 G 3 Tyronn Mitchell 6-1 178 Fr. 6.0 4.3 ^ G 4 Stephen Burch 6-2 165 Fr. 5.7 1.0 F 30 Clifton Lee 6-7 195 Fr. 9.7 5.7^ denotes assists per game
Quickly
Oklahoma State will host the Northwestern State Demons on Sunday, Dec. 8, at 3 p.m. in Gallagher-Iba Arena. OSU is 4-1 this season and coming off a sub-par performance against Hartford Thursday night. The Cowboys won, 65-52. NSU is 0-3 this season and playing the Wichita State Shockers Saturday night in Wichita.
Last Time Out For OSU
Oklahoma State's Tony Allen scored 18 points, while Melvin Sanders added 14 in just 19 minutes, as the Cowboys outlasted Hartford, 65-52, here Thursday night in Gallagher-Iba Arena. The OSU defense played well, limiting the Hawks to just 28.3 percent shooting for the game, including 19.4 percent in the first half when the Cowboys took a 33-18 lead into the lockerroom. However, Hartford came out firing in the second half, outscoring Oklahoma State, 34-32. Allen added six rebounds, three assists, two blocks and a steal to his all-around game, while Sanders scored his 14 points in just 19 minutes, playing just four in the second period. Victor Williams chipped in 11 points for the Cowboys, while Andre Williams added nine and six boards. The Cowboy defense had 13 blocks in the game, three shy of the school record set in 1989 and the third most in a game in school history. However, the undersized Hawks were able to outrebound the tall Cowboys, 43-39.
About Northwestern State
Northwestern State is 0-3 this season, with a game at Wichita State on Saturday night. The Demons are in their fourth season under Head Coach Mike McConathy, who is 49-47 overall and at the school. NSU lost all five starters from a year ago, and has 11 freshman listed on its roster. In fact, five freshman started the game vs. Centenary last week. Northwestern State has one senior in B.J. Netterville who has played only three minutes. Junior Michael Edwards is the Demons top returning player, and four sophomores complete the roster. Jermaine Spence is the leading scorer and rebounder on the squad, averaging 10 and 7.3, respectively. Byron Allen and Clifton Lee are both averaging 9.7 points per game, while Tyronn Mitchell leads the team in assists with 13 in three games. All four of those players are freshmen.
Non-Conference Record in Gallagher-Iba
Oklahoma State has won 102 of its last 103 non-conference games held in Gallagher-Iba Arena since Jan. 7, 1987. The only loss during that span was an 83-81 loss to Florida Atlantic on Dec. 1, 1998, when the Cowboys were ranked 11th in the nation. That loss broke a string of 79-consecutive home non-league wins for OSU. Dating back to 1981, Oklahoma State is 131-7 (.949) in those types of games. The Cowboys have not allowed more than 66 points in their last 19 home non-conference contests.
Up Next: Fresno State
Following a week off for finals, Oklahoma State will return to the court on Sunday, Dec. 15, for a game with the Fresno State Bulldogs. Tipoff is set for 1 p.m. The Cowboys will be looking to avenge a 58-52 setback last year in Fresno.
Tickets Available
There are a limited number of tickets available for Oklahoma State's three home games over the holiday break. Tickets for the games vs. UMKC on Dec. 18, vs. Arkansas on Dec. 30 and vs. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Jan. 8 are available for purchase. For more information, fans should contact the OSU Athletics Ticket Office at 1-877-ALL-4-OSU.
Brief OSU Basketball History
Oklahoma State is in its 94th season of basketball with an all-time record of 1,321 wins and 953 losses, a .581 winning percentage. The Cowboys have won two national championships (1945-46), appeared in five Final Fours, and made 19 appearances in the NCAA Tournament, including 10 in the Sutton era. In fact, Coach Sutton has more wins (275) in his 12-plus years as the OSU head coach than the previous five coaches had (242) in a combined 20 seasons.
Transfers, Jucos Dot Cowboy Roster
Eight newcomers are listed on the Oklahoma State roster, including three transfers that will have to sit out the 2002-03 season. Tony Allen, a junior-college player from Wabash Valley Community College, and Janavor Weatherspoon, a juco transfer from Odessa College, should make an immediate impact. Freshmen Ross DeRogatis, Onye Ibekwe and Julian Richardson could also see playing time. Daniel Bobik and the twins, Joey and Stevie Graham, will have to sit out a year after transferring from BYU and Central Florida. All three, however are allowed to practice with the team. Other players that are not new to the program but will see their first action in a Cowboy uniform this season are Frans Steyn and Jason Miller. Steyn came to OSU a year ago and sat out as a true freshman. Miller, who transferred to Oklahoma State a year ago, had to sit out due to NCAA transfer guidelines.
Four Seniors Return For Final Season
Four Cowboys enter the 2002-03 season as seniors. Andre Williams, a senior from Kansas City, Kan., is the lone four-year senior on the squad. Victor Williams, Kansas City, Kan., and Melvin Sanders, Liberal, Kan., are both entering their third year of play at Oklahoma State. Cheyne Gadson, a senior from Jamaica, N.Y., transferred to OSU last season for his junior year.
Sanders, McFarlin Earn All-Tournament Honors
Senior guard Melvin Sanders and junior forward Ivan McFarlin were both named to the Great Alaska Shootout all-tournament team. Sanders, while only shooting 37.8, did average 13.3 points and four rebounds per game. He also had 11 assists and seven steals in the two games. McFarlin averaged a double-double with 11.3 points and 10 rebounds per contest. He shot 54.5 percent from the field and 76.9 percent (10-of-13) from the free-throw line. Ivan also had five blocked shots.
Allen Has All-Around Performance at Shootout
Junior transfer Tony Allen had a great all-around performance at the Great Alaska Shootout. While leading the team in points scored, averaging 16 per contest, he also shot 51.7 percent from his guard spot and was 2-of-5 from beyond the arc. He connected on 16-of-20 shots from the charity stripe, good for 80 percent. Tony had seven assists, two steals and three blocks, including one in the waning seconds of the Michigan State game that sealed the win.
Cowboys Host Block Party
As a team, Oklahoma State blocked 18 shots during the three-game tournament, an average of six per contest. Senior forward Andre Williams led the party with eight blocked shots, while Ivan McFarlin had five in the three games. Tony Allen had three, while Melvin Sanders and Jason Miller each had one. OSU blocked 13 shots vs. Hartford on Thursday night, the third-most deflections in a game in school history. For the season, the Cowboys have blocked 39 shots in five games, an average of 7.8 per contest.
Williams Ranks Among Elite Shot Blockers
Forward Andre Williams leads the team with 17 blocked shots so far this season, and is just 22 away from moving past Leroy Combs and into fourth place on the all-time OSU career blocked shots list. Andre had five blocks in the season opener vs. Yale, and had three vs. Alaska-Anchorage. He added three more vs. the College of Charleston, and had two vs. Michigan State. His four vs. Hartford led a team total of 13. Williams is currently averaging 3.4 blocks per game this season. Byron Houston is the all-time Cowboy shot blocker with 223.
Andre Grabs His 500th Rebound
With four rebounds vs. the College of Charleston in the Great Alaska Shootout, senior Andre Williams achieved a major milestone by reaching 500 career rebounds. He joined an elite group of just 18 Cowboys that have achieved that milestone. He currently has 517 caroms, and ranks 15th all-time in the OSU record books. He needs 46 boards to move past Lafayette Threatt and into 14th place.
Vic Nears 800
With 11 points vs. Hartford, senior Victor Williams now has 808 points in his OSU career, making him the 38th player in school history to reach 800 points in a Cowboy uniform. Victor has 1,053 points in his career at the Division I level, including 245 his freshman season at Illinois State.
Williams Ranks in Top 15
Victor Williams has 256 assists in his two-plus year career at Oklahoma State. That ranks him 14th among all-time OSU career assist leaders. With five assists vs. Yale in the season opener, Williams surpassed Randy Rutherford, who had 239 dishes from 1993-95. Vic needs nine more assists to move past Eddie Hannon, who had 264 from 1981-82. Vic has 359 career assists, including a game-high nine vs. Texas A&M on Feb. 21, 2001, and a season-high 126 last season.
Sanders Has String of Starts
Cowboy senior Melvin Sanders has started every game of his Cowboy career, and has tied Fredrik J?nz?n for the fifth-most consecutive starts in school history. Sanders needs one more start to take over sole possession of fifth place, and an additional 20 starts to move past Bryant Reeves, who started 87 consecutive contests from 1993-95.
Head Coach Eddie Sutton
Coach Eddie Sutton enters his 13th season at Oklahoma State and his 33rd season overall. He brings with him an all-time record of 706-279, including a 276-115 mark at OSU. Last season, Coach Sutton was nominated for induction into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame. He currently ranks as the 14th-winningest coach in NCAA Division I history, and is the fifth-winningest active coach in the Division I ranks. Coach Sutton returned to his alma mater in 1990, and has since brought the Cowboys back to basketball prominence. He has four times taken the Pokes to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament, and twice gone to the Elite Eight. In 1995, he guided the Cowboys to the Final Four and a No. 4 national ranking according to the Coaches' Poll. OSU has finished in the top three of the conference on eight occasions since his return, and has finished in the top five in all but one of his OSU seasons. Coach Sutton is a four-time National Coach of the Year, and was the first coach in NCAA history to lead four different schools to the Big Dance. Only Bob Knight ranks higher in both winning percentage and victories for an active coach that Coach Sutton, and only Dean Smith won more games in his first 32 years as a head coach.
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