Oklahoma State University Athletics
Men's Hoops Takes on Baylor Jan. 9
April 09, 2003 | Cowboy Basketball
Saturday's Game Oklahoma State looks for a season-long five-game winning streak when the Cowboys visit Baylor on Saturday. Despite the streak, the 23rd-ranked Cowboys are perceived to be in a slump after closer-than-expected victories over Southeast Missouri State, Kansas State and Texas A&M.
Probable Oklahoma State Starters
Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Yr. PPG RPG Notes F 34 Desmond Mason 6-6 207 Jr. 17.0 8.1 24 points, 10 rebounds, six steals at Texas A&M C 45 Alex Webber 6-10 257 Jr. 5.1 5.5 Scored key bucket late in Texas A&M victory G 4 Glendon Alexander 6-5 215 Jr. 12.5 3.8 27-for-29 from the line this season G 20 Adrian Peterson 6-4 205 Sr. 19.6 6.2 Big 12's leading scorer has topped 20 points nine times G 35 Joe Adkins 6-2 190 Jr. 12.5 *4.8 9 points, 3 assists, 4 steals, 0 turnovers in second half at A&M
Probable Baylor Starters
Pos. No. Name Ht. Wt. Yr. PPG RPG F 21 Jamie Kendrick 6-8 200 Jr. 9.9 7.2 F 25 Leon Morris 6-6 220 Jr. 7.9 4.7 C 50 Kish Lewis 6-7 238 Sr. 15.1 10.0 G 11 Austin Allen 6-0 180 Fr. 2.4 1.9 G 33 Robert Thornton 6-4 185 Fr. 3.4 1.8 * - assists per game.
The Series OSU leads the series 29-11 and has won four of the last six meetings, but the Ferrell Center is the site of heartbreaking OSU losses in the past two years. The Bears defeated OSU by one point two years ago and by two in double overtime last season. Cowboys coach Eddie Sutton owns a 21-7 lifetime coaching record against Baylor.
OSU Coach Eddie Sutton Eddie Sutton (Oklahoma State, 1958) is in his ninth year at OSU and his 29th year of collegiate coaching. Under his guidance, OSU has advanced to the NCAA Tournament six times. Sutton currently owns a career record of 619-244 (71.7 percent) overall and is 189-80 (70.3 percent) at OSU. Sutton is just the seventh coach to reach 600 wins in 28 or fewer seasons.
About Baylor The Bears have lost leading scorer Tevis Stukes, but they seemed to play one of their guttiest games without him Wednesday. Baylor gave 18th-ranked Kansas a scare before losing by four in the Big 12 matchup earlier this week. Kish Lewis, who is averaging a double-double (15.1 ppg, 10.0 rpg), leads a balanced offensive attack that features five players averaging seven points or more per game.
Inside the numbers Here's a statistical comparison. The teams' Big 12 rank is in parentheses:
All Games Big 12 Games OSU BU OSU BU Overall Record 10-3 (3) 6-9 (12) 2-0 (1) 0-2 (8) Scoring Offense 76.0 (3) 66.3 (10) 69.5 (6) 62.0 (9) Scoring Defense 62.5 (4) 69.2 (10) 64.0 (5) 79.5 (10) Scoring Margin +13.5 (3) -2.9 (12) +5.5 (6) -17.5 (10) Field-Goal Pct. 46.6 (2) 39.2 (12) 43.0 (4) 32.5 (11) Field-Goal Pct. Defense 41.6 (8) 41.7 (9) 41.6 (7) 47.7 (10) Free-Throw Pct. 71.5 (2) 67.0 (4) 68.2 (4) 69.2 (3) Rebound Margin +1.3 (9) +1.3 (10) -10.0(12) -0.5 (7) Three-Point FG Pct. 37.7 (5) 30.6 (11) 32.4 (8) 21.6 (11) Three-Pointers Per Game 6.7 (3) 5.8 (7) 5.5 (5) 4.0 (10) Turnover Margin +3.5 -1.8 +3.5 -2.5
Cowboys escape College Station with a victory Defense down the stretch helped OSU win its Big 12 road opener Wednesday as the Cowboys held off Texas A&M 64-59 in College Station. The Cowboys never led by more than six points, but A&M never held a lead in the last 15 minutes as OSU forced 11 second-half turnovers while committing just four itself.
Mason's strong night keys A&M victory Junior forward Desmond Mason, a preseason all-conference honoree, played an outstanding game while his teammates struggled in College Station. He hit eight of 12 field-goal tries and scored 24 points to go along with 10 rebounds and six steals. Mason, who also hit his first three-pointer in five games, recorded the 11th double-double of his career, good for sixth place in school history.
Gottlieb continues to dish it out Junior guard Doug Gottlieb, with 8.8 assists per game (leading the nation), has a shot at owning every school record for assists by the end of this season. Gottlieb set a school mark by dishing out 18 assists, which also tied a Big 12 record, in the Florida Atlantic game. After another 10-assist game against Texas A&M, he has 12 double-digit games in his career; no other OSU player has ever recorded more than nine. Gottlieb is currently 10th in school history in career assists with 316. He needs one to catch Bill Self for ninth all-time.
Big comeback victory opens 1999 Big 12 play OSU overcame a 15-point second-half deficit against Kansas State and then held on for a 75-69 overtime victory Jan. 2 as the Cowboys opened their Big 12 season. Oklahoma State went on a 22-2 run, holding K-State without a field goal for a 6:43 span, and held a six-point lead with 2:30 remaining. The Wildcats rallied to tie, however, and the Cowboys had to hit eight OT free throws to clinch the victory.
Peterson continues to move up OSU charts Senior guard Adrian Peterson, the preseason Big 12 player of the year, continues to show why the league's coaches and media thought he deserved the honor. Peterson scored 24 points - 15 after halftime and nine during the game-turning second-half run - against Kansas State, marking his fifth straight 20-point game. He also keyed the victory over Southeast Missouri State, scoring 10 of his 20 points during the decisive stretch of that game. For his exploits, Peterson was named the Big 12 Player of the Week. The Cowboys' only senior, who has scored 20 points in nine of OSU's 12 games, has moved into OSU's career scoring top 10 and now has 1,520 points in his career. He is ranked sixth all-time; Randy Rutherford (1,541) is fifth, and Matt Clark (1,542) is fourth.
Cowboys' comeback ranks as school record OSU tied a school record with three double-digit comebacks in 1997-98, and the 17-point turnaround against Arizona State ranks as the school record. But OSU has now overcome double-digit deficits twice this year, and the victory against Kansas State set a couple of records as well. OSU overcame a 15-point deficit against the Wildcats, setting school marks for a conference-game comeback and for a second-half comeback. Here's a look at the biggest comeback victories and losses in school history:
OSU Comebacks Opponent Comebacks Date Deficit vs. Team Result Date Lead vs. Team Result Dec. 10, 1997 17 vs. Arizona St. W 79-68 Feb. 26, 1997 13 vs. Nebraska L 68-77 Jan. 2, 1999 15 vs. Kansas St. W 75-69 Jan. 20, 1997 13 vs. Texas Tech L 64-70 March 1, 1997 14 vs. Iowa State W 67-63 Jan. 26, 1988 13 vs. Pittsburgh L 75-93 Jan. 26, 1998 12 vs. Oklahoma W 88-84 Feb. 2, 1974 13 vs. Iowa St. L 75-78 12, five other times Dec. 1, 1998 12 vs. Fla. Atlant. L 81-83 12, three other times
Hot shooting keys Alexander's effectiveness Junior guard Glendon Alexander, who joined the Cowboys after six games, has made his presence felt with some impressive shooting. Alexander has missed just two free throws in 29 attempts this season. Against Kansas State, he hit the two free throws that tied the game for the first time at the 7:08 mark of the second half. His three-pointer less than a minute later gave OSU its first lead, and K-State would not lead again after that point. Alexander finished with 16 points against the Wildcats.
OSU's free-throw shooting continues to improve Free-throw shooting at Oklahoma State has come a long way since the woeful 56.9-percent mark that contributed a great deal to the 1995-96 team missing the NCAA Tournament. The Cowboys hit 69.1 percent in 1996-97 and 70.4 percent in 1997-98, and they are at 71.5 percent this season. It's early, but a 72-percent mark would be the Cowboys' best charity rate in 15 years. OSU hit 21 of 26 (80.8 percent) foul attempts against Southeast Missouri State and have topped 80 percent in three of the past six games.
Montonati returns to early-season form Junior forward Brian Montonati averaged double figures in scoring in OSU's first four games this season, but he had reached the 10-point mark just once since then heading into the Southeast Missouri State game. But he rediscovered his scoring touch against the Indians, hitting his first five shots and finishing with 13 points (one shy of his career high) and six rebounds. He scored nine of his 13 in the game's final nine minutes.
Adkins gets hot late, leads OSU over Rebels Junior guard Joe Adkins scored just one point in the first 34 minutes at UNLV. However, Adkins hit three three-pointers - including a 30-footer as the shot clock expired - in the last six minutes to key the Cowboys' victory over the Rebels. Adkins dished out a career-high 12 assists - five in the first five minutes of the game - against Houston Baptist and had seven dimes at Creighton and against Southeast Missouri State.
Led by Gottlieb and Adkins, OSU racks up assists Unselfishness has been a common trait of the Cowboys this season. The NCAA statistics manual states that as a rule of thumb, 50 to 60 percent of field goals involve the crediting of assists. But 72.9 percent of OSU's field goals this season have included assists, giving the Cowboys a Big 12-best 19.1 assists per game (the school record is 17.9) and a league-leading 1.39 assist-to-turnover ratio. OSU's 30 assists against Houston Baptist were the second-most in school history and missed the school record by two. Junior guards Joe Adkins and Doug Gottlieb have each recorded games with double figures in assists, marking just the third time in school history that two different players have had 10-assist games in the same season.
Key to the Cowboys could be turnovers OSU set a school record for turnover margin in 1997-98 (+3.5), and early this season, it appears that takeaways and giveaways will be a reliable barometer of the Cowboys' performance. OSU is 10-1 when forcing more turnovers than it commits and 0-2 when committing more turnovers than its opponent. In the Cowboys' victories, their turnover margin is +5.8, but in the losses, OSU's margin is -4.0.
OSU steals a win at Texas A&M The Cowboys recorded 16 steals, tying as the sixth-best mark in school history, in the Houston Baptist and Texas A&M victories. The Cowboys currently average 9.0 steals per game, just shy of the school-record pace (9.1). Mason had a school-record-tying eight steals against the Huskies and six against the Aggies, making him just the sixth player in school history to record two six-steal games in a career.
"Big Roy" Candley joins Cowboys for practice The Cowboys got a very big addition to their squad this past Saturday when Roy Candley, a 7-2, 390-pound center from Baton Rouge, La., reported for practice. Candley, who averaged 17 points and nine rebounds while shooting 78 percent from the free throw line for Panola (Texas) JC last year, did not dress for last week's games.
Cowboy Radio Network OSU games will be broadcast on the OSU Radio Network with KWTV's Bill Teegins handling play-by-play duties and Tom Dirato, OSU coordinator of radio & TV, providing commentary. Dirato and Teegins are in their eighth year as the Cowboys' basketball radio team, and Dirato is calling OSU men's basketball for the 22nd season. The OSU radio network can be accessed through the Internet (www.okstate.com) or on Teamline. Fans wishing to use Teamline should call (800) 846-4700 and use team code No. 1750. Use of Teamline requires a Visa or MasterCard.
Head Coach Eddie Sutton Eddie Sutton (Oklahoma State, 1958) is in his ninth year at his alma mater with a 189-80 record at the school as well as a 619-244 overall mark in his 29th year of collegiate coaching. Under his guidance, OSU has advanced to postseason play in seven of eight years and has won 20 games or more six times. Sutton is the 20th coach in Division I history to reach the 600-victory mark, and he is just the seventh coach to reach it in 28 years or less, joining Denny Crum, Bob Knight, Adolph Rupp, Dean Smith, Jerry Tarkanian and John Wooden.
Only three active coaches (Crum, Knight and Tarkanian) rank ahead of Sutton in both victories and winning percentage, and only one other coach - Nov. 28 foe Billy Tubbs - joins OSU's boss in having won coach-of-the-year awards in four different leagues. Sutton, who previously coached at Creighton, Arkansas and Kentucky, is the only coach in NCAA history to lead four different schools to the national tournament. With Sutton and Henry P. Iba among the 600-win club, OSU is one of only three schools - joining Illinois and Kentucky - with two coaches among the all-time top 20.
Years School (No. of Yrs.) Record Pct. Conf. NCAA 1970-74 Creighton (five) 82-50 .621 --- 2-1 1975-85 Arkansas (11) 260-75 .776 139-35 10-9 1986-89 Kentucky (four) 88-39 .693 48-24 5-3 1991-99 Ok. State (ninth) 189-80 .703 71-45 11-6 Totals 29th year (863 games) 619-244 .717 258-104 28-19
Sutton at Oklahoma State
Year Rec. Conf./Finish NCAA Final AP Notes 1990-91 24-8 10-4/First 2-1 14th OSU's second Big 8 championship 1991-92 28-8 8-6/T-Second 2-1 11th Second straight Sweet 16 1992-93 20-9 8-6/T-Second 1-1 23rd Big Eight Coach of the Year 1993-94 24-10 10-4/Second 1-1 19th NCAA Second Round 1994-95 27-10 10-4/Second 4-1 14th Final Four/Nat'l Coach ofthe Year 1995-96 17-10 7-7/T-Fourth --- --- 1996-97 17-15 7-9/T-Sixth --- --- First career NIT appearance 1997-98 22-7 11-5/T-Second 1-1 --- Big 12 Coach of the Year 1998-99 10-3 AP preseason No. 13
The Cowboys vs. Baylor Last year's meeting in Waco was one of the most entertaining games of the year, although the Cowboys ended up on the wrong end of a 97-95, double-overtime result. Here's a look at OSU players' career statistics against the Bears:
Name G-GS FG-A Pct. 3G-A Pct. FT-A Pct. RPG PPG Hi Pts. Adkins 4-2 11-25 .440 5-13 9-10 .900 1.3 11.3 20 Gottlieb 2-2 3-10 .300 1-3 .333 2-4 .500 1.5 4.5 5 Johnson 1-0 0-0 --- 0-0 --- 0-0 --- 0.0 0.0 0 Mason 4-2 17-32 2-6 .333 13-18 4.5 12.3 21 Montonati 2-0 2-4 .500 0-0 --- 1-2 .500 2.0 2.5 5 Peterson 4-4 24-48 .500 8-16 .500 18-22 .818 6.3 18.5 29 Webber 2-0 3-5 .600 0-0 --- 0-1 .000 2.5 3.0 4
Looking ahead The Cowboys return home for Bedlam Basketball on Tuesday, when OSU squares off with Oklahoma in an 8 p.m. tipoff. Oklahoma State then visits Texas Tech on Sunday, Jan. 17. The Cowboys host these same Baylor Bears on Wednesday, Jan. 20.
Gallagher-Iba Arena construction to begin Tuesday One of Oklahoma State University's most ambitious building projects ever begins Tuesday, when ground is broken for an expanded Gallagher-Iba Arena. The project will double the current seating capacity of the arena and add several auxiliary facilities. Despite the massive construction over the next two years, OSU's basketball and wrestling seasons will not be affected. However, there are numerous logistical issues dealing with both fans and media. Here's a rundown of some things that will be changed over the course of the project: * All offices, including the media relations staff, will be relocated. The media relations office will move to the Frontier Engineering building on Highway 51 in western Stillwater. The office's new address is 424 Squires Street. * Because of the move, most athletics offices will have new phone numbers. The media relations number, beginning Jan. 6, is (405) 707-7830. * Although offices must be vacated because Gallagher-Iba Arena will be closed during the day, game-day operations will still take place in their usual settings this season. The current media relations office will continue to be the site of the media and interview rooms. This is expected to change for the 1999-2000 season. * On game days, fans will have access to Gallagher-Iba Arena through only the east and south doors, and the media will enter through the south doors. Credentials will be required for entry. Because of the potential for bottlenecking at the two entrances, the athletics department urges that fans and media arrive early. The building will open to the public two hours before tipoff time. * No one - including media, staff and television crews - will be allowed access to the building during weekday business hours. Player Thumbnails
#35 * Joe Adkins * 6-2 * 190 * Jr. * G Led the Big 12 last season in free-throw shooting in conference games (88.0 percent); currently shooting 77.8 percent ... 23 points against Northwestern State to lead the Cowboys ... career highs of five three-pointers and eight rebounds against Florida Atlantic, including the game-tying three with just over a minute remaining ... career-high six three-pointers against UALR, scoring 24 points ... career-high 12 assists - five in the first five minutes - against Houston Baptist ... hit three three-pointers in the last 5:16 to key OSU's victory over UNLV.
#4 * Glendon Alexander * 6-5 * 215 * Jr. * G Joined the team for the first time for the UALR game; sat out the first semester under NCAA four-year transfer guidelines ... did not commit a turnover in his first four games, covering 108 minutes ... 16 points and three three-pointers against UNLV ... scored 11 points with four rebounds and four assists against the Trojans ... 19 points (4-for-6 from three-point range), five rebounds and four assists in his home debut against Houston Baptist ... 16 points, including five straight that tied the game for the first time and then gave OSU its first lead, against Kansas State.
#52 * Roy Candley * 7-2 * 390 * Jr. * C Joined the program Dec. 26 after completing exit requirements at Panola (Texas) JC ... Averaged 17 points and nine rebounds, hitting 78 percent >from the foul line, at Panola ... has been practicing with the team but has not suited up for games; has begun a conditioning program with Dan Austin, OSU's strength and conditioning coach.
#42 * Zac Cazzelle * 6-5 * 220 * Jr. * G Walked on to the program this season; a likely redshirt who is expected to contribute next season ... spent a year at Northern Oklahoma College after transferring from Centenary ... started the final nine games of the year as a freshman with the Gents ... averaged 7.7 points in 27 games, playing over 20 minutes per contest ... scored in double figures nine times, including a career-high 18 in one game.
#32 * John Gilmore * 6-7 * 240 * Jr. * F Transferred to OSU from Tyler (Texas) JC after spending one year at Wisconsin-Milwaukee ... earned all-region and all-conference honors last season at Tyler ... MCC All-Freshman Team member two years ago while playing at UWM ... scored 15 points and pulled down five rebounds in the exhibition victory over the California East All-Stars ... took an estimated 40 stitches in his upper lip after taking a shot there in the first half of the Marquette game ... missed the TCU game after developing a hernia and had surgery Dec. 3; rejoined the team for practice after Christmas and is listed as day-to-day.
#44 * Doug Gottlieb * 6-1 * 180 * Jr. * G Set a school record and tied the Big 12 mark with 18 assists against Florida Atlantic; currently leads the nation in assists (8.8 per game) ... has 12 career double-figure assist games, breaking Andre Owens' school record of nine ... 15 assists, one turnover off the bench at UNLV ... 15 points, just one turnover in the two games in Hawaii, earning him all-tournament honors ... hit a career-high three three-pointers in the Marquette victory, scoring 11 points ... career-high-tying four steals and season-high four rebounds against TCU ... just into his second year, is ranked 10th in school history in career assists (316) and is near a pace to break the school record this season.
#33 * Michael Johnson * 6-7 * 220 * So. * F Saw action in 10 games last season, scoring four points vs. UTPA and two at Texas A&M ... was called "Too Much in the Clutch" by the Kansas City Star during his senior year at Shawnee Mission (Kan.) East High School after he hit numerous buzzer-beating shots to win games or send them into overtime ... likely redshirt this season.
#12 * Fredrik Joenzen * 6-10 * 230 * Fr. * F Played for the club team Sallens, which won the Swedish 20-and-under championship in 1997-98 ... named to the all-star team and was MVP at the championship ... spent one year as a teammate of Johnson at Shawnee Mission (Kan.) East High School ... career-high eight points, hitting three of four FG tries, against Florida Atlantic ... career-high six rebounds against UALR and UNLV... contributed a key steal and assist to Montonati during the Cowboys' decisive 23-2 run against Hawaii.
#34 * Desmond Mason * 6-6 * 207 * Jr. * F Named to the preseason all-conference team by the league's coaches ... 27 points (tying a career high), six rebounds, three assists, three blocked shots, eight steals (tying the school record) and no turnovers against Houston Baptist ... 24 points, 10 rebounds, six steals at Texas A&M ... 21 points against UNLV ... 26 points and 13 rebounds, both one shy of his career highs, against TCU ... three double-doubles this season and 11 in his career, good for sixth in school history in that category ... named to the all-tournament team in Hawaii ... named by ESPN's Jay Bilas as an honorable mention defensive All-American ... blocked a career-high four shots against Florida Atlantic ... ninth in school history in career blocks (48).
#30 * Brian Montonati * 6-10 * 220 * Jr. * F Recorded career highs of 14 points and 11 rebounds against Hawaii; 10 of his points came during OSU's game-clinching 23-2 run ... the Hawaii performance gave him the first double-double of his career ... scored 11 points and went 5-for-5 from the field against UCLA ... 13 points, six rebounds, 5-for-6 from the field against Southeast Missouri State ... like Adkins, is just short of qualifying for the Big 12's free-throw percentage list (83.3 percent)... 11 points, six rebounds, 5-for-6 free throws against Northwestern State ... also blocked a career-high four shots against the Demons.
#20 * Adrian Peterson * 6-4 * 205 * Sr. * G The Big 12 Preseason Player of the Year ... 24 points, including nine during the game-turning run, against Kansas State ... 22 points, season-high eight-rebounds vs. TCU; hit his last three three-point attempts, including the one that gave OSU the lead for good with 1:02 left ... has scored 20 points in nine of the 13 games this year ... career-high-tying five treys against Marquette ... now has 80 double-figure scoring games and 29 20-point games in his career ... trying to become just the fourth player in school history to average double figures in scoring in four consecutive years ... also looks to become the fifth player to lead OSU in scoring in three straight seasons ... sixth in school history in scoring ... has started in 68 straight games ... career-high six steals vs. Northwestern State ranks as the sixth-best single-game performance in school history ... named to Dick Vitale's "All-Rip Van Winkle" team honoring the nation's "sleepers."
#40 * Scott Robisch * 6-10 * 220 * So. * F/C Played impressively in both exhibition games, scoring 13 points and hitting six of seven field-goal tries against Athletes First ... career highs of nine points and three blocked shots against Northwestern State; also pulled down four rebounds ... hopes this season to avoid the injury bug that bit him in each of the last two years - had tendinitis in a knee and a broken hand two years ago and missed most of the year with a stress fracture in his thigh last season.
#24 * Rodney Sooter * 6-2 * 180 * Jr. * G Walked on to the program this season ... saw his first action of the year in the UALR game and saw his three-point attempt go in and then out of the hoop ... also played against Houston Baptist ... played for two years at Northeastern Oklahoma A&M, playing for Coach Lonnie Spencer ... three-time all-conference and -district performer at Miami (Okla.) High School ... father, Mark, played baseball and basketball at Oklahoma ... uncle Bruce Sooter played basketball at Texas A&M.
#45 * Alex Webber * 6-10 * 257 * Jr. * C Hoping to regain the form he showed early in his freshman season ... missed the second half of his rookie year with a ruptured disk and never quite returned to form last year ... has started every game at center but was looking for his first points until he tallied 10 times against TCU ... showed the TCU performance wasn't a fluke by hitting for 17 points against Florida Atlantic; also pulled down a career-high nine rebounds vs. the Owls ... performance vs. the Horned Frogs was his first double-figure scoring game since he had 22 against Mississippi Valley State on Dec. 4, 1996.
#31 * Jared Weiberg * 6-3 * 180 * Jr. * G Spent two seasons at Northern Oklahoma College in Tonkawa, Okla., playing for Coach Mick Weiberg, his father ... saw his first action of the year in the UALR and Houston Baptist games ... averaged seven points per game and hit 41.5 percent of his three-point attempts ... the nephew of the new Big 12 Conference commissioner, Kevin Weiberg ... his brother Chad is OSU's POSSE coordinator.
LAST TIME OUT:
Game notes: Although it never trailed in the game's final 15 minutes, OSU could not put away the Aggies thanks to Cook's 25-point performance. A no-look pass from Adkins to Webber led to a layup that gave OSU a three-point lead with 37 seconds left, and the Cowboys hit four free throws in the last 20 seconds to seal the victory ... Mason's double-double was the 11th of his career, moving him into sixth place in school history in that category ... Mason's six steals tied for the sixth-best single-game performance in school history and made him just the sixth OSU player to record six or more steals twice ... Gottlieb recorded his 12th career double-digit assists game ... Peterson passed Ronnie Daniel into sixth place in OSU career scoring ... OSU's 16 steals ranks third-best in school history.
