Oklahoma State University Athletics
Cowboy Basketball Announces 2002-03 Schedule
August 28, 2002 | Cowboy Basketball
Aug. 28, 2002
2002-03 Schedule in PDF Format
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Oklahoma State's Cowboy Basketball team announced its 2002-03 schedule today, highlighted by a trip to the Great Alaska Shootout and non-conference home games with Fresno State and Arkansas.
"Overall, this is a very challenging schedule; one that will prepare our players for Big 12 Conference play," said OSU Associate Head Coach Sean Sutton. "Having two nationally prominent programs in Fresno State and Arkansas visiting Gallagher-Iba Arena is something both our players and our fans are looking forward to."
Oklahoma State will open the regular season on Friday, Nov. 22, when the Cowboys host Yale of the Ivy League. The Bulldogs finished 21-11 last year, tied for the conference championship, and lost in the second round of the NIT.
OSU will travel to Anchorage, Alaska, over the Thanksgiving holiday to compete in the 25th annual Carrs/Safeway Great Alaska Shootout. The Cowboys' first opponent will be host Alaska-Anchorage on Wed., Nov. 27, and the game will be televised by ESPN2.
"We're very excited about having an opportunity to participate in the Great Alaska Shootout, one of the most prestigious and traditional tournaments in the country," Sutton said. "It will be a great experience for our players to go to Alaska. It will be a tough field, and our goal is to win the tournament. But, we also want our players to experience some fun things like snow-mobiling and dog-sledding. The people of Alaska are always warm and have treated our players extremely well. It has always been a positive experience."
Other teams competing in the tournament are Michigan State, Wyoming, College of Charleston, Villanova, Loyola Marymount and Montana. It will be Oklahoma State's second appearance at the Great Alaska Shootout, having participated in the 1994 event. OSU went on to the Final Four that season.
The Cowboys will host four-straight home games from Dec. 5-18, including Hartford, Northwestern State, Fresno State and UMKC. OSU will travel to Wichita, Kan., on Dec. 21, to face the Wichita State Shockers before taking a break for the holidays. Game time at the Kansas Coliseum will be 1:30 p.m.
Oklahoma State will host the Arkansas Razorbacks on Monday, Dec. 30, at 7 p.m. in Stillwater. It will be the Hogs' first appearance in Gallagher-Iba Arena since 1970.
The Cowboys will face Brigham Young in the first game of the Touchtone Energy All-College Classic on Sat., Jan. 4, in the new Ford Center in Oklahoma City. The game will be at 6 p.m. and televised by ESPN2. Oklahoma will host Michigan State in game two in a contest broadcast by ESPN.
"We're very pleased to be a part of the Touchtone Energy All-College Classic," said Sutton. "It will be an exciting setup for the basketball fans in this state. Obviously, we have two outstanding programs in Oklahoma State and Oklahoma, and bringing in two quality teams in Michigan State and BYU creates an exciting atmosphere just before Big 12 play begins."
OSU will open the Big 12 Conference portion of its schedule on Sat., Jan. 11, as the Cowboys travel to College Station, Texas, to face the Texas A&M Aggies. Oklahoma State will have home-and-home games with all the Big 12 South schools, including two ESPN Big Monday games in Gallagher-Iba Arena: Oklahoma on Jan. 13 and Texas Tech on Feb. 24.
"We're excited that ESPN will have the opportunity to broadcast two Big Monday games that will showcase one of the finest arenas in college basketball," Sutton said. "Gallagher-Iba Arena always has a special atmosphere. The bigger the game, the more electrifying it becomes."
The Cowboys will take a break in the conference action on Sat., Feb. 8, when OSU makes a return trip to Cincinnati to face the Bearcats in a nationally-televised game by ABC. Tipoff is set for 2:30 p.m.
"We're looking forward to facing Cincinnati," said Sutton. "They have always been one of the toughest teams in the country, year in and year out. It will be a hard-fought game, just like it was last year in Gallagher-Iba Arena."
OSU will face three Big 12 North schools at home in Missouri (Jan. 18), Iowa State (Jan. 29) and Kansas State (Feb. 5). On the road, the Cowboys will travel to Nebraska (Feb. 12), Kansas (March 1) and Colorado (March 5). The KU game will be nationally televised by ABC at noon.
"Our staff felt like a lot of others last year - that the Big 12 Conference is the best conference in the country," Sutton said. "Two teams advancing to the Final Four really solidified our position as one of the elite conferences in all of college basketball. We believe the Big 12 this year will be even stronger and better than a year ago. Its the premier league in the country, with outstanding coaches, great players, and the very best venues to play in in college basketball."
