Oklahoma State University Athletics
Cowboys Host Samford In Hardcourt Action
December 30, 2003 | Cowboy Basketball
Oklahoma State (7-1) hosts
Samford (4-5) following the holiday break
Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2003 • 7:05 p.m.
Gallagher-Iba Arena • Stillwater, Okla.
radio - Cowboy Radio Network • internet - okstate.com • TV - none
Oklahoma State Cowboys
Projected Starters
Name Ht. Wt. Yr. PPG RPG F 23 Ivan McFarlin 6-8 237 Sr. 12.4 6.8 F 14 Joey Graham 6-7 217 Jr. 10.8 4.5 G 15 John Lucas 5-11 152 Jr. 11.8 5.1 ^ G 20 Daniel Bobik 6-4 200 Jr. 10.5 3.8 ^ G 24 Tony Allen 6-4 205 Sr. 14.9 4.1
Off the Bench
Name Ht. Wt. Yr. PPG RPG C 4 Frans Steyn 7-2 289 Jr. 2.5 2.8 G 21 Stephen Graham 6-6 213 Jr. 5.3 1.7 G 25 Janavor Weatherspoon 6-1 165 Sr. 6.4 1.1 ^ F 32 David Monds 6-7 220 Fr. 3.3 3.0 F 33 Jason Miller 6-8 239 Sr. 5.4 4.0
Samford Bulldogs
Projected Starters
Name Ht. Wt. Yr. PPG RPG F 4 J. Robert Merritt 6-6 221 So. 11.3 2.9 C 44 Phillip Ramelli 6-10 232 Sr. 14.5 6.1 G 5 Eddie Harper 6-5 202 Sr. 11.7 6.1 G 33 Tyson Dorsey 6-3 185 Sr. 8.6 2.3 G 55 Anthony LoPiano 6-1 179 So. 2.3 2.4 ^ ^ denotes assists per game
Cowboys host Bulldogs
Oklahoma State will return to action on Tuesday, Dec. 30, as the Cowboys host the Samford Bulldogs after a seven-day layoff. OSU is 7-1 overall this season and defeated Texas-Pan American, 96-61, in the last outing. Samford is 4-5 overall and coming off a disappointing 63-62 loss at Memphis. Oklahoma State leads the all-time series with the Bulldogs, 3-0, including a 2-0 mark in Stillwater.
Last time out
All five starters scored in double figures, and Janavor Weatherspoon reached the same off the bench, as Oklahoma State defeated Texas-Pan American, 96-61, in Gallagher-Iba Arena. The Cowboys were on fire offensively, shooting 64.3 percent from the floor and 80 percent from the free-throw line. Ivan McFarlin led the squad with 17 points and four blocked shots, while John Lucas chipped in 15 points while dishing out seven assists. He also had no turnovers. Tony Allen had 11 points and seven rebounds, leading the squad in that category. Joey Graham, in his first start as a Cowboy, scored 10 points, as did Daniel Bobik on 4-of-5 shooting. Eight Cowboys made at least four field goals in the rout. Ray Castillo led all Broncos with 15 points, all from beyond the three-point arc. It was Oklahoma State's fourth 30-point win of the season.
About Samford
The Bulldogs are 4-5 this season after a heartbreaking 63-62 loss to the Memphis Tigers in Tennessee on Dec. 22. Samford is led by senior center Phillip Ramelli, who is averaging 14.5 points and 6.1 rebounds per contest. He's also shooting nearly 56 percent from the floor. As a team, the Bulldogs are shooting 54 percent from the floor, including just over 41 percent from beyond the three-point arc. Samford has wins over Bryan College, Winthrop, Tennessee-Temple and Covenant College, and losses to Purdue (66-50), New Orleans (62-60), Southern Miss (81-61) and Ohio State (80-62).
Series history
Oklahoma State leads the all-time series with Samford, 3-0, although the teams have not played since 1988. The first game was played on Dec. 1, 1967, with OSU coming away with a 76-60 win in Stillwater. The next matchup was on Dec. 16, 1978, when the Cowboys picked up a 104-85 victory over the Bulldogs in Birmingham. The last meeting ended in an OSU win as well, a 70-44 victory on Nov. 29, 1988, in Stillwater. Oklahoma State is 7-0 all-time vs. members of the Ohio Valley Conference. The Bulldogs joined the OVC prior to this season. Samford was a member of the Atlantic Sun Conference up until last season. The last time the Cowboys faced a team from the Atlantic Sun was on Dec. 1, 1998, when Florida Atlantic stunned the Pokes and broke OSU's 79-game home non-conference winning streak, 83-81.
Sutton joins all-time elite
Head Coach Eddie Sutton took over sole possession of 10th place on the NCAA Division I all-time victories list with the Cowboys' 73-58 win over Arkansas. Coach Sutton is now 731-289 in his 34-year career at the Division I level, and his 731 victories rank as the 10th most in that category. With the win against the Hogs, Coach Sutton also picked up his 300th win as the head coach at Oklahoma State. His record at OSU is 301-125 in his 14th season.
Non-Conference Record in Gallagher-Iba Arena
Oklahoma State will continue the non-conference home portion of its schedule when the Cowboys host Samford on Tuesday night inside Gallagher-Iba Arena. The Pokes are riding a current 33-game home non-conference winning streak that dates back to 1998. OSU has won 112 of its last 113 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 141-7 (.953) in those types of games. The Cowboys have not allowed more than 66 points in 28 of their last 29 home non-conference contests.
OSU vs. non-conference opponents
Oklahoma State's Cowboys have enjoyed considerable success at home vs. non-conference opponents. However, OSU has also been successful overall vs. non-league foes. Since the 1997-98 season, Oklahoma State has a 70-10 (87.5 percent) record in regular-season non-Big 12 contests. That includes a 10-0 record in 1997-98, a 9-3 mark in 1998-99, an 11-1 record in 1999-2000, a 9-2 mark in 2000-01, a 13-1 record in 2001-02 and an 11-2 finish last year. The Cowboys are 7-1 in non-league regular-season games so far this season.
Samford connections
Samford has three Oklahomans on its roster. Freshman forward Ryan Woolsey is from Valliant, Okla., home of Cowboy administrative assistant Wren Baker. J. Robert Merritt and Joe Ross Merritt, both members of the Bulldog squad, went to high school at Bishop McGuinness in Oklahoma City, the same school from which the Cowboys' Terrence Crawford graduated.
McFarlin earns Player of the Week honors
Cowboy senior Ivan McFarlin was named the Big 12 Conference's Player of the Week for the period ending Dec. 21. The 6-8 forward averaged a double-double with averages of 16 points and 11.5 rebounds in two Cowboy victories. He had 19 points and 10 rebounds against Southeastern Oklahoma State, and followed that with a 13-point, 13-rebound performance at Arkansas. The Missouri City, Texas, native is averaging 12.4 points per game this season, shooting 59 percent from the floor and 73 percent from the line. He also leads the squad in rebounds (54) and blocks (19).
Ivan ranks among school's best
McFarlin, who grabbed double-figure rebounds in back-to-back games, ranks among the best rebounders of all-time in OSU history. He currently has 551 caroms in his three-year career, ranking 16th all-time. He needs just 13 boards to move into 14th place on the school career list.
I-Mac moving up other career lists
McFarlin began the season with 688 points, and now has 787 in his career. He needs just 13 points to become the 40th player in school history to record 800 points in an OSU career. Ivan recorded his third double-double of the season and the 17th of his career with 13 points and 13 rebounds vs. Arkansas. Ivan has 82 career blocked shots, ranking him ninth all-time in school history. He recorded a career-best six blocks against Southeastern State, and needs 10 blocks to move past Johnny Pittman and into eighth place.
McFarlin graduates a semester early
Senior forward Ivan McFarlin, who was a partial qualifier when he first arrived at Oklahoma State, walked across the stage during fall convocation ceremonies and graduated with a bachelor's degree in university studies with an emphasis in family relations and childhood development in 3-1/2 years. He will, in all likelihood, regain a year of eligibility and be a senior once again next season.
Lucas dishing the rock
Junior John Lucas dished out a career-high 11 assists vs. Southeastern State, and recorded his first double-double as a Poke with 10 points as well in that game. He has dished out 41 assists in his first eight games as a Cowboy, an average of 5.1 per game and the third-best per game average in the Big 12 behind Iowa State's Curtis Stinson and Kansas' Aaron Miles. Lucas also has just 14 turnovers, an assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.93-to-1 and the third-best mark in the league. John is second in the league in free-throw shooting, connecting on 21-of-22 shots from the line so far this season. He also made ESPN Sportscenter's top plays of the week for his midcourt heave against Arkansas.
Bobik coming up big time
Junior transfer Daniel Bobik recorded career highs in both points and assists in the Cowboys' game vs. BYU, scoring a team-high 18 points and dishing out a game-high eight assists. Bobik is averaging 10.5 points per game this season for OSU, shooting nearly 62 percent from the floor and 50 percent (14-of-28) from beyond the arc. He is averaging 3.1 rebounds per game, and is second on the team with 30 assists, an average of 3.8 per game. Daniel has 12 steals and 13 turnovers, a 2.31:1 assist-to-turnover ratio. In two seasons at Brigham Young, Bobik averaged 5.2 points and 1.8 rebounds per game, and had a single-season best of 34 assists his sophomore season.
Offensive explosion
So far this season, Oklahoma State has five different players averaging double figures in scoring. Tony Allen leads the offensive barrage, averaging 14.9 points per contest. Ivan McFarlin is chipping in 12.4 points per game, while John Lucas is averaging 11.8 ppg. Joey Graham is averaging 10.8 points per contest, and Daniel Bobik is scoring 10.5 points per game. Meanwhile, eight of OSU's 10 regular players are shooting 50 percent or better from the floor, including four that are shooting above 60 percent. Jason Miller is leading the team at 69 percent, while Janavor Weatherspoon is shooting 68.8 percent. Stephen Graham is connecting on 62.5 percent of his shots, and Daniel Bobik is shooting 61.7 percent. As a team, the Cowboys are shooting 54.7 percent from the field, leading the Big 12 Conference. OSU's 84 points per game is second-best in the league behind Texas. Oklahoma State has finished just four seasons in school history averaging 80 points or more per game, and just once in the Eddie Sutton era of defensive dominance.
Working on defense
While Oklahoma State's offense has been quite potent, the defense has also been playing well. The Cowboys are giving up just 60.9 points per game, while allowing 38.2 percent shooting from the floor and 31.8 percent shooting from beyond the three-point arc. The OSU defense has forced 157 turnovers, and scored an average of 21 points per game off those miscues. The defense has taken 14 charges as a team, led by Ivan McFarlin's five. Jason Miller has taken four charges, while Joey Graham and John Lucas have taken two each.
Minimize miscues
Through eight games of the season, Oklahoma State has improved dramatically in three categories in the Big 12 statistical rankings. Last year, OSU finished the season ranked 11th in the league in assist-to-turnover ratio, averaging just 0.86 assists for every one turnover. So far this year, the Pokes are third in the league in the same category, averaging 1.27 assists for every turnover. The Cowboys are third in the Big 12 in assists, averaging 18.1 dishouts per game. Oklahoma State was 10th in that category last year, averaging just 12.8 assists per contest. OSU's turnover margin of +5.29 ranks third in the conference behind Oklahoma and Texas. OSU has 113 turnovers in eight games, an average of 14.1 per game, while forcing an average of 19.6 per contest.
Coming up
Oklahoma State faces upstart SMU on Saturday, Jan. 3, in the second game of the Touchtone Energy All-College Classic in Oklahoma City. The Cowboys and Mustangs tip off at 6:30 p.m. in the Ford Center. The game will be televised nationally by ESPN.
