Oklahoma State University Athletics
Pregame Release for Oral Roberts Game
July 24, 2003 | Cowboy Basketball
Oklahoma State continues its six-game homestand tonight with a contest against Oral Roberts. The Cowboys will look to continue the nation's longest active home-court non-conference winning streak, which currently stands at 74, tied for fifth-best all-time. OSU, which defeated North Texas 98-60 on Saturday, will be trying to avenge last season's 71-60 loss to the Golden Eagles.
OSU-ORU: The Series
OSU had won nine straight over the Golden Eagles until last year's loss at the Mabee Center in Tulsa. The Cowboys own a 14-4 advantage overall in the series and are 8-1 against ORU in Stillwater. In the last meeting in Gallagher-Iba Arena, Oklahoma State got 17 points from Jerome Lambert and 12 from Adrian Peterson to win 73-56 on Jan. 10, 1996.
OSU Head Coach Eddie Sutton
Eddie Sutton (Oklahoma State, 1958) is in his eighth year at OSU and his 28th year of collegiate coaching. Under his guidance, OSU has advanced to the NCAA Tournament five times. Sutton currently owns a career record of 591-234 (71.6 percent) overall and is 161-70 (69.7 percent) at OSU. Only three coaches , Dean Smith, John Wooden and Bobby Knight , won more games in their first 27 years than Coach Sutton.
1997-98 Schedule/Results Tuesday, Nov. 11 California All-Stars (Exh.) W 97-83 Saturday, Nov. 15 Texas-Pan American W 103-71 Tuesday, Nov. 18 Buducnost (Exh.) W 114-52 Saturday, Nov. 22 Creighton W 86-70 Tuesday, Nov. 25 Southern Utah W 79-58 Saturday, Nov. 29 North Texas W 98-60 Tuesday, Dec. 2 Oral Roberts 7:05 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 6 Washington 2:05 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 10 vs. Arizona State 7:05 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 20 Jackson State 2:05 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 23 Arkansas State 6:05 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 30 at TCU (Fox) 7 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 3 at Texas A&M* 2 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 7 Nebraska* 7:05 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 10 Texas Tech* (ESPN) 8:30 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 14 at Missouri* 7 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 17 at Baylor* (Big 12 TV) 3 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 24 Texas A&M* 12:45 p.m. Monday, Jan. 26 at Oklahoma* 8:30 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 31 at Texas* (Big 12 TV) 12:45 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 3 Colorado* 7:05 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 7 Baylor* (Big 12 TV) 12:45 p.m. Monday, Feb. 9 at Iowa State* (ESPN2) 8 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 14 Oklahoma* (Big 12 TV) 12:45 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 18 at Texas Tech* 7 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 21 at Kansas State* 7:05 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 24 Texas* (Big 12 TV) 8 p.m. Sunday, March 1 Kansas* (ABC) 2:30 p.m. Thur.-Sun., March 5-8 Big 12 Championship (Big 12 TV) TBA * Ð Big 12 Conference games Ð Game to be played in Oklahoma City
About the Golden Eagles
Oral Roberts comes into Tuesday's game with a 4-1 record, its only loss coming in a close game at Arkansas. The Golden Eagles, led by first-year head coach Barry Hinson, are led in scoring by Tim Gill (21.2 ppg), who hit four three-pointers and scored 17 points in last year's OSU-ORU matchup. Scott Sutton, a former OSU player and the son of Cowboy coach Eddie Sutton, is an assistant coach with Oral Roberts.
Home, sweet home, sweet home, sweet home...
Oklahoma State is halfway through a six-game homestand, the longest in Gallagher-Iba Arena history. OSU played seven consecutive home games during the 1920-21 season, 18 years before moving into its current building. The Cowboys will play nine games this season before competing in a road contest, the longest such streak since the 1938-39 season began with 11 non-road games (five neutral, six home). Streak continues as Cowboys open season
It's been over 10 years since Oklahoma State lost a home game to a non-conference opponent, and the Cowboys' streak is now tied for the fifth-longest in Division I history. OSU's 74-game non-league win streak at Gallagher-Iba Arena is the longest such current streak in the country; Maryland has the second-longest streak at 55 games. The Cowboys' last non-conference loss in Gallagher-Iba was an 81-75 setback against Missouri Southern on Jan. 7, 1987, and the last Division I non-conference opponent to win in Stillwater was Tulsa in a 67-58 decision Dec. 21, 1985.
Second-half run carries Cowboys past North Texas
OSU scored 15 straight points during the end of the first half and the beginning of the second and shot 77 percent from the field in the second half to rout North Texas on Saturday, 98-60. The Cowboys held the Mean Green to 22.9 percent shooting in the second half and 27.9 percent overall, the first time an OSU foe has shot below 30 percent since Drexel hit just 25.9 percent of its shots during OSU's 1995 NCAA Tournament run. The 38-point margin of victory was OSU's biggest since the Pokes defeated Nebraska 93-53 on Feb. 18, 1995.
Mason sets career scoring high in UNT win
Forward Desmond Mason has had an outstanding start to his sophomore season, and he continued that trend Saturday night. Mason scored a career-high 22 points, hitting 9 of 18 shots from the field, and pulled down nine rebounds in the victory to take over OSU's team scoring (17.8 ppg) and rebounding (8.3 rpg) leads. Mason came into 1997-98 with an 11-point career high; he has topped that number in every game this year. Mason also scored 16 points and pulled down a career-high 14 rebounds for his first career double-double against Creighton on Nov. 22.
Peterson adds rebounding to familiar scoring touch
Junior guard Adrian Peterson has been one of OSU's top scorers over his two-plus seasons at OSU, but he has added a new dimension to his game this season, rebounding. Peterson pulled down a career-high 10 boards against North Texas and, with 14 points, recorded the first double-double of his career. Averaging 3.2 rebounds coming into this season, Peterson has averaged 6.3 boards in OSU's first four games this year.
Big win gives reserves a chance to shine
OSU's 38-point victory Saturday gave some Cowboys a chance for career-best performances. Sophomore forward Brian Montonati hit 4 of 5 field goals and all four of his field goal attempts to score a career-best 12 points. In addition, redshirt freshman guard Estell Laster hit all five of his field goal attempts and scored a career-high 10 points. Sophomore forward Alex Webber also had his best performance of the year, scoring seven points and pulling down four rebounds.
Cowboys overcome sluggish start to beat T-birds
OSU struggled early, trailing 15-7, but used a 20-5 run to close the second half and pull away from Southern Utah on Tuesday. The Cowboys forced 27 turnovers, the most by an OSU opponent since West Texas A&M committed 30 on Jan. 10, 1994, and the Cowboys held the Thunderbirds to 38-percent shooting in the second half to earn the 79-58 victory.
Adkins continues to shine at home
Sophomore guard Joe Adkins set career scoring highs in each of OSU's last two home games a year ago, and he has continued that improvement into his second year. Adkins led OSU with 17 points against Southern Utah, and he scored 16, 12 in the second half, against Creighton. He also collected a career-best six steals against Southern Utah, becoming the ninth player in school history to do so. Six steals ties for the fifth-best single-game mark on the OSU charts. Adkins hit 5 of 6 three-pointers and scored 24 points in the 97-83 exhibition win over the California All-Stars. In his last six Gallagher-Iba Arena games, Adkins has averaged 14.3 points, well above his overall career average of 4.8 points per game.
Peterson moves up OSU scoring charts
Peterson was OSU's leading scorer a year ago, and he is currently second on the team this season. 'Pete,' an honorable mention All-Big 12 selection a year ago, already ranks 31st in career scoring at OSU and needs just one three-pointer to tie Sean Sutton for fourth in school history. At his current scoring pace (16.8 ppg), Peterson would become OSU's 20th 1,000-point scorer in OSU's Jan. 17 game at Baylor.
Gottlieb provides stability at the point
Sophomore transfer Doug Gottlieb, who joined OSU this season after spending his freshman year at Notre Dame two seasons ago, has shown early in the season that he will provide the element the Cowboys missed last year, a true point guard. Gottlieb has had 33 assists and just nine turnovers in the first four games of the year, a 3.67 assist/turnover ratio, and he has shown an ability to beat a press on his own on the dribble. Gottlieb had a career-high 12 assists against North Texas, tying for the seventh-best single-game mark in school history.
Elder Robisch opens season with double-double
Senior center Brett Robisch played the best basketball of his career over the last half of 1996-97, averaging 12.4 points and 7.5 rebounds, and his play in the team's first game indicated that his improvement is ongoing. With 12 points and 10 rebounds in just 23 minutes of action, Robisch recorded his third career double-double in the season opener. Robisch tied Peterson for game-high honors with 17 points against Creighton and scored 12 points, 10 in the first half, against Southern Utah.
Cowboys getting the ball up the floor
OSU averaged 69.4 points per game in 1996-97, making last season's team the lowest-scoring Cowboys in 20 years. But if the first four games of this season are any indication, that trend is changing drastically, with OSU averaging 91.5 points per game. In defeating Texas-Pan American 103-71 in the season opener, the Cowboys topped 100 points for the first time since the 1995 squad defeated Alaska-Anchorage 112-72 on Jan. 2, 1995. The Cowboys scored 90 points or more only three times in the past two seasons and had not scored over 90 since Feb. 18, 1996.
Looking ahead
The Cowboys close out this long homestand Saturday with a 2:05 p.m. game against Washington. OSU will face a second consecutive Pac-10 team Dec. 10 when it plays Arizona State at the Myriad in Oklahoma City. Following the game with the Sun Devils, OSU takes a 10-day break for finals.
Coaches vs. Cancer Cowboy coach Eddie Sutton is joining his NABC colleagues in participating in the Coaches vs. Cancer program this season. The Coaches vs. Cancer IKON Three-Point Attack is a fund-raising program that recruits fans to help fight cancer. Fans can contribute by making a one-time donation or by pledging any amount from $.01 to $10 or more for every three-point basket the Cowboys make during the season. For information, fans may call the Men's Basketball Office at 405-744-5845.
Inside the numbers
Here's a look at how OSU and Oral Roberts compare statistically (number in parentheses represents OSU's Big 12 rank):
OSU ORU Record 4-0 4-1 Scoring Offense 91.5 (2) 86.6 Scoring Defense 64.8 (7) 66.6 Scoring Margin +26.8 (2) +20.0 Field Goal Pct. 54.7 (1) 47.5 Field Goal Pct. Defense 38.5 (6) 40.0 Free Throw Pct. 63.3 (6) 64.8 Rebound Margin +11.3 (3) +4.4 Three-Point FG Pct. 30.9 (7) 37.8 Three-Pointers Per Game 4.3 9.6 Turnover Margin +3.8 (3) 5.4
Head Coach Eddie Sutton
Eddie Sutton (Oklahoma State, 1958) has coached for seven-plus years at his alma mater with a 161-70 record at the school as well as a 591-234 overall mark in his 28th year of collegiate coaching. Sutton finished the 1996-97 season ranked ninth in total victories and 18th in winning percentage among active Division I coaches with at least 10 years' experience. Under his guidance, OSU has advanced to postseason play in six of the last seven years and has won 17 games or more each season. Only three coaches, Bobby Knight, Dean Smith and John Wooden, won more games than Eddie Sutton in their first 27 years as head coaches.
Years School (No. of Years) 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 1991-98 Oklahoma State (eighth) 161-70 .697 59-39 10-5 Totals 28th year (824 games) 591-234 .716 246-98 27-18 Sutton at Oklahoma State Year Record 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 1994-95 27-10 10-4/Second 4-1 14th Final Four/Nat'l Coach of the Year 1995-96 17-10 7-7/T-Fourth --- --- 1996-97 17-15 7-9/T-Sixth --- --- First career NIT appearance 1997-98 4-0
Postgame procedure
The Oklahoma State locker room is closed to the media. However, selected OSU players and head coach Eddie Sutton will be brought to the sports information office for postgame interviews. If you have any questions, please contact OSU coordinator of media relations Will Hancock.
On the Air Tuesday's game will be broadcast on the OSU Radio Network with Tom Dirato and Bill Teegins providing commentary. Dirato Teegins are in their seventh year as the Cowboys' basketball radio team, and Dirato is calling OSU men's basketball for the 21st season in 1997-98.
National Rankings?
Here's a look at Oklahoma State's week-by-week appearance in the Associated Press and USA Today polls, Jeff Sagarin's basketball ratings and the unofficial RPI compiled by Jim Sukup (RPI rankings have not yet been released):
Week AP USAT Sag. RPI Preseason (64) --- 48 Nov. 17 (61) 59 Nov. 24 (65) (60) 52 Dec. 1 (56) (44) 50 Here's how some of OSU's opponents stack up in the current rankings: Team AP USAT Sag. RPI Baylor --- --- 159 Colorado --- --- 117 Iowa State --- (32) 96 Kansas 2 3 4 Kansas State (57) --- 87 Missouri --- --- 67 Nebraska --- (40) 41 Oklahoma (28) (27) 114 Oral Roberts (63) --- 90 Texas (48) --- 65 Texas A&M --- --- 115 Texas Tech --- --- 148 Washington (52) --- 51 Big 12* 6 * Ð Ranked among the nation's 31 conferences. The Record Books Career Scoring
1. Byron Houston, 1989-92 2,379 28. Mark Tucker, 1978-79 844 29. Eddie Bunch, 1960-62 833 30. Randy Wright, 1978-81 829 31. Adrian Peterson, 1996-Present 820
Career Three-Point Percentage 1. Sean Sutton, 1991-92 .445 7. Marlon Dorsey, 1996-97 .394 8. Adrian Peterson, 1996-Present.391 9. John Starks, 1988 .380 10. Chad Alexander, 1995-Present .371 Career Three-Pointers Made 1. Randy Rutherford, 1993-95 279 4. Sean Sutton, 1991-92 108 5. Adrian Peterson, 1996-Present 107 6. Darwyn Alexander, 1989-92 102 -- Chad Alexander, 1995-Present 66
Conference FG Pct. Leaders
An OSU player has led the league in field goal pct. for each of the last five years.
1992-93 Bryant Reeves .621 1993-94 Bryant Reeves .585 1994-95 Bryant Reeves .586 1995-96 Jerome Lambert .544 1996-97 Chianti Roberts .625
Current Big 12 Standings
through Nov. 30 Big 12 All Games W L Pct. W L Pct. Kansas 0 0 ---- 6 0 1.000 Nebraska 0 0 ---- 5 0 1.000 Oklahoma St. 0 0 ---- 4 0 1.000 Kansas St. 0 0 ---- 3 0 1.000 Texas A&M 0 0 ---- 3 0 1.000 Colorado 0 0 ---- 4 1 .800 Oklahoma 0 0 ---- 4 2 .667 Baylor 0 0 ---- 2 2 .500 Missouri 0 0 ---- 2 2 .500 Iowa State 0 0 ---- 1 1 .500 Texas 0 0 ---- 2 3 .400 Texas Tech 0 0 ---- 0 3 .000 Around the Big 12 Monday, December 1 Nebraska at Tulsa, 6 p.m. Southern at Texas A&M, 7 p.m. Tuesday, December 2 Arkansas-Pine Bluff at Iowa State, 7 p.m. Coppin State at Missouri, 7 p.m. Oral Roberts at Oklahoma State, 7:05 p.m. Colorado at Colorado State, 8 p.m. Kansas vs. Arizona,8:30 p.m. Wednesday, December 3 Arkansas State at Baylor, 7 p.m. American at Texas, 7 p.m. Texas A&M at Alabama, 7 p.m. George Washington at Texas Tech, 7 p.m. Kansas State at UMKC, 7:30 p.m. Thursday, December 4 Arkansas-Pine Bluff at Oklahoma, 7 p.m. Emporia State at Kansas, 7:05 p.m. Friday, December 5 N.C.-Wilmington at Nebraska, 6:30 p.m. Texas Southern at Iowa State, 8 p.m.
Home non-league streaks Active streaks School No. Next home game Oklahoma State 73 Oral Roberts 12/2 Maryland 55 Md.-Balt. Co. 12/13 Tulane 38 Prairie View 12/2 Kentucky 36 Georgia Tech 12/13 Washington St. 30 Gonzaga 12/4
All-time streaks School No. Years UCLA 97 1966-77 Duke 95 1983-95 Marquette 81 1967-73 DePaul 81 1942-56 Oklahoma 74 1982-90 Oklahoma State 74 1987-Present
#35 - Joe Adkins 6-2 - 185 - So. - G
Team-high 17 points and career-best six steals vs. Southern Utah ... six steals ties for fifth-best in school history ... 24 points (5 of 6 from three-point range) in exhibition opener against the California All-Stars ... 16 points, 12 of which came in the second half, against Creighton ... keyed an important second-half run against the Bluejays by scoring eight straight points, including two three-pointers ... 13 points, five rebounds, five assists, three steals vs. North Texas.
#12 - Chad Alexander 6-3 - 193 - Sr. - G
The only remaining letterwinner from OSU's 1995 Final Four team ... scored eight points and pulled down five rebounds after coming off the bench against Texas-Pan American ... one of seven Cowboys in double figures in the exhibition victory over Buducnost, hitting 3 of 7 three-point attempts ... also had a would-be career-high-tying four steals against the Yugoslavians.
#44 - Doug Gottlieb 6-1 - 190 - So. - G
Career-high 12 assists, the seventh-best mark in school history, and just three turnovers in 33 minutes against North Texas ... pulled down a career-high five rebounds against UTPA and again vs. Southern Utah ... 33 assists and just nine turnovers so far this year, a 3.67 assist/turnover ratio ... the ninth four-year transfer at OSU during Eddie Sutton's tenure here, joining such other players as Sean Sutton, Brooks Thompson and current Cowboy Brett Robisch.
#33 - Michael Johnson 6-7 - 220 - Fr. - F
OSU's only true freshman in 1997-98 ... has seen action in three games, scoring four points vs. UTPA ... 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.
#25 - Estell Laster 6-2 - 172 - Fr.- RS - G
Career-high 10 rebounds, hitting all five of his field goal attempts, against North Texas ... career highs of three rebounds and seven free throws against Southern Utah ... played 18 minutes vs. UNT, his most substantial playing time this year ... medical redshirt in 1996-97 after suffering a broken arm in the fourth game of the year ... showed promise in his small amount of action last year, scoring eight points in his one full regular-season effort and 10 in an exhibition.
#34 - Desmond Mason 6-6 - 207 - So. - F
Has had an outstanding start to his sophomore season ... career-high 22 points, as well as nine rebounds, three blocked shots and three steals, vs. North Texas ... 16 points and career-high 14 rebounds against Creighton for the first double-double of his career ... had six dunks on the way to his 19-point outing against Texas-Pan American ... hit 14 of 24 field goals and scored 32 points against Buducnost, most coming on dunks ... an instant OSU celebrity last season when he shattered a backboard during the preseason Basketball Bash.
#30 -Brian Montonati 6-9 - 220 - So. - F
Scored career-high 12 points, hitting 4 of 5 field goals and all four of his free throw attempts, against North Texas in just eight minutes of action ... 12 points and seven rebounds against Buducnost in 21 minutes of action ... hit 4 of 9 from the field and made all four of his free throw attempts ... scored four points in just five minutes of action against Texas-Pan American ... the Grand Rapids Free Press Player of the Year as a high school senior ... transferred to OSU from Fullerton (Calif.) College.
#20 - Adrian Peterson 6-4 - 197 - Jr. - G
Began the season with his 10th career 20-point game, tallying 24 against Texas-Pan American ... 14 points and career-high 10 rebounds against North Texas for his first career double-double ... also grabbed five rebounds and dished out four assists against the Broncs ... 15 points, six rebounds, five steals and four assists vs. Buducnost ... 31st in career scoring (820) and fifth in career three-pointers (107) despite being only four games into his junior year.
#31 - Brett Robisch 6-11 - 255 - Sr. - F/C
Recorded double-doubles in two of the six games so far, including a 14-point, 14-rebound (three above his career high) exhibition performance against the California All-Stars ... 12 points, 10 rebounds in victory over Texas-Pan American ... averaged 12.4 points, 7.5 rebounds over the second half of 1996-97 after joining the Cowboys in mid-December ... has started 31 straight games Ñ every contest since he officially joined the Cowboys in December 1996.
#40 - Scott Robisch 6-10 - 196 - Fr.-RS - F/C
Career-high eight points in Texas-Pan American game ... career-high six rebounds vs. North Texas ... 11 points (hitting all five of his FTs) and seven rebounds vs. Buducnost ... along with Brett, makes up first brother tandem at OSU since Dickey and Houston Nutt, who played in 1980 ... he and Brett are sons of former All-American Dave Robisch, who played at Kansas ... medical redshirt in 1996-97 with tendinitis and a broken hand.
#22 - Tommy Warner 6-0 - 162 - Sr. - G
On scholarship for the first time in his career ... expects to graduate in May and is a hot prospect in area accounting firms ... has played in three games (including a first-half exhibition stint against Buducnost), scoring two points against Texas-Pan American.
#45 - Alex Webber 6-10 - 257 - So. - F
Scored seven points and pulled down four rebounds before fouling out against North Texas ... scoring total vs. UNT was his best since his 22-point outing against Mississippi Valley State last year ... one of OSUÕs most promising freshmen last season when a ruptured disk ended his season in mid-January ... had become one of only four OSU freshmen (including Peterson the year before) to start their debuts.
