Oklahoma State University Athletics
Cowboys Host Islanders In Final Non-Conference Game
January 06, 2004 | Cowboy Basketball
Oklahoma State hosts Texas A&M-Corpus Christi in the Cowboys' final non-conference game
Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2004 • 7:05 p.m.
Gallagher-Iba Arena • Stillwater, Okla.
radio - Cowboy Radio Network • internet - okstate.com • TV - none
OSU hosts Islanders in final non-league game of regular season
Oklahoma State hosts Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Tuesday, Jan. 6, at 7:05 p.m. inside Gallagher-Iba Arena. It will be OSU's final non-conference game of the regular season before the Cowboys open Big 12 league play on Saturday. OSU is 9-1 overall this season and coming off an impressive 89-54 win over SMU Saturday night in Oklahoma City. TAMUCC is 7-5 this season and coming off a 56-47 win over Binghamton on Sunday afternoon. This will be the third meeting between the two schools on the hardwood, with the Cowboys winning both previous meetings.
Last time out
Oklahoma State had six players score in double figures, and the Cowboys had two players with double-doubles for the third time this season as OSU dismantled SMU, 89-54, Saturday night in the Touchtone Energy All-College Classic at the Ford Center in Oklahoma City. Ivan McFarlin scored 13 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, while John Lucas had 11 points and dished out 13 assists, a career high. Janavor Weatherspoon scored 10 points off the bench in 11 minutes. However, the scoring title went to the trio of Joey Graham, Daniel Bobik and Tony Allen who each scored 14 points. Bobik was named the tournament's MVP, while Allen joined him on the all-tournament team. The Pokes had 25 assists on 37 made baskets, and shot 59.7 percent from the floor, the eighth time in 10 games this season that Oklahoma State has shot better than 50 percent. Meanwhile, the OSU defense was stifling, allowing just 37.3 percent shooting by the Mustangs, who were outrebounded by the Cowboys, 40-23. Bryan Hopkins scored a game-high 16 points for SMU, the only Pony in double figures. Oklahoma State lit it up from long range, connecting on 7-of-9 shots from beyond the arc. Daniel Bobik hit 4-of-5 treys, all in the first half, while Tony Allen was 2-of-2 from downtown. John Lucas also made 1-of-2 from long range. OSU outscored SMU, 14-2, on the fastbreak, and had six dunks in the game.
About Texas A&M-Corpus Christi
The Islanders are 7-5 overall this season, including an 82-80 win over Texas A&M in College Station in mid-December. Corpus Christi is led by senior guard Brian Evans, who is averaging 14 points and 4.5 assists per contest. A total of five Islanders are averaging in double-figure scoring, with Travis Bailey (13.3 ppg), Aaron White (10.4), Thomas Bailey (10.3) and Corey Lamkin (10.2) joining Evans. As a team, TAMUCC is averaging 72.6 points per game while allowing just over 68 points per contest. The Islanders are outrebounding their opponents by an average of nearly seven boards per game. They are also shooting 47.7 percent as a team and 72.1 percent from the free-throw line. Head Coach Ronnie Arrow is in his fifth year as the head coach at Corpus Christi, and has a record of 60-62 at the school. He previously coached at South Alabama for seven seasons, and was 114-93 there.
Series history
Oklahoma State has won both games in the brief history with the Islanders. OSU defeated Corpus Christi, 96-83, on Dec. 4, 1972, before the school dropped the basketball program. After the program was revived in 1999, OSU hosted the Islanders on Jan. 8, 2003, of last season, and won, 91-58.
Non-Conference Record in Gallagher-Iba Arena
Oklahoma State will continue the non-conference home portion of its schedule when the Cowboys host Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Tuesday night inside Gallagher-Iba Arena. The Pokes are riding a current 34-game home non-conference winning streak that dates back to 1998. OSU has won 113 of its last 114 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 142-7 (.953) in those types of games. The Cowboys have not allowed more than 66 points in 29 of their last 30 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 72-10 (87.8 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 9-1 in non-league regular-season games so far this season.
Corpus Christi connections
Islander junior Jared Holt spent the last two seasons at Northeastern Oklahoma A&M College in Miami, Okla. ... junior Sean Cole recorded the only blocked shot of his career against Oklahoma State last season.
Ivan ranks among school's best
McFarlin, who grabbed double-figure rebounds in back-to-back games against Southeastern State and Arkansas, ranks among the best rebounders of all-time in OSU history. He currently has 570 caroms in his three-year career, ranking 13th all-time. He needs just five boards to move into 12th place on the school career list.
I-Mac moving up other career lists
With 13 points vs. SMU in his last outing, McFarlin became the 40th player in school history to record 800 points in an OSU career. He now has 809 points in his career, ranking 39th on the all-time list. Ivan recorded his fourth double-double of the season and the 18th of his career with 13 points and 10 rebounds vs. the Mustangs. He has 88 career blocked shots, ranking him ninth all-time in school history. Ivan recorded a career-best six blocks against Southeastern State, and needs five blocks to move past Desmond Mason and into seventh place.
Lucas dishing the rock
Junior John Lucas leads the Big 12 Conference in both assists per game and assist/turnover ratio. The 5-10 guard has 57 assists and just 15 turnovers in 10 games this season, an average of 5.7 assists per game and 3.8 assists for every turnover. He dished out a career-high 13 assists vs. SMU in the Cowboys' last outing, recording his second double-double as a Poke. He also had 10 points against the Ponies. Against Southeastern State, he recorded his first double-double with 11 assists and 10 points. He has had double-figure scoring in seven games this season. In the last three games, he has 23 assists and just one turnover. He leads the team and is second in the league in free-throw shooting at 91.3 percent. John made ESPN Sportscenter's top plays of the week for his midcourt heave against Arkansas just before halftime.
Bobik coming up big time
Junior transfer Daniel Bobik has been a pleasant surprise this season. The 6-4 guard from Newbury Park, Calif., was named the MVP of the Touchtone Energy All-College Classic last weekend. He is averaging 10 points per game this season, and is shooting 63.6 percent from the field. His long-range accuracy is just as impressive. He has made 18-of-33 shots from beyond the arc this season, good for 54.5 percent. That includes a 5-of-7 effort against Southeastern State and a 4-of-5 outing against SMU. He is second in the Big 12 Conference in three-point field-goal percentage, and seventh in three-point field goals made. Daniel has 34 assists in 10 games this season, equaling his single-season best while at BYU. In two seasons with the Cougars, Bobik averaged 5.2 points and 1.8 rebounds per game.
It's Tony time
Senior guard Tony Allen is one of the best players in the Big 12 Conference. The 6-4 Chicago, Ill., native is currently seventh in the league in scoring, averaging 15.2 points per game. He's also averaging 4.2 rebounds per contest and 2.9 assists per game. Tony has made more shots than anybody else on the team at 59, and he is shooting just over 52 percent from the field.
Joey stepping up
Junior Joey Graham has stepped in impressively for the Cowboys this season. The 6-6 guard/forward has scored in double figures in all but one game this season, and has started the last three contests. He's averaging 11.5 points per game this season, and is shooting 55.8 percent from the field. That includes a 14-of-19 effort in his last two games. Joey's also averaging 4.5 rebounds per game.
Offensive dominance
Oklahoma State's offense has been impressive this season. The Cowboys have scored at least 80 points in eight games this season, and are currently averaging 82.6 points per game, the second-best mark in the Big 12 Conference. The Cowboys have outscored their opponents by 30 or more points in half the games this season, and lead the league in scoring margin at +23.5. OSU is shooting 54.7 percent as a team, which leads the league by a large margin and should rank in the top three when the national statistics are updated. The Pokes' are connecting on 39.1 percent of their shots from beyond the three-point arc, which leads the Big 12 as well. Oklahoma State has 188 assists on 320 made shots, an average of one assist for every 1.7 shots made. Compare that to last year, when the Cowboys had one assist for every 1.96 shots made. Oklahoma State has finished just four seasons in school history averaging 80 points or more per game, and just once in the Sutton Era of Defense.
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 59.1 points per game, while allowing 38.3 percent shooting from the floor and 33.2 percent shooting from beyond the three-point arc. The OSU defense has forced 190 turnovers, and scored an average of 21.3 points per game off those miscues. The defense has taken 15 charges as a team, led by Ivan McFarlin's six. Jason Miller has taken four charges, while Joey Graham and John Lucas have taken two each.
Minimizing miscues
Through 10 games of the season, Oklahoma State has improved dramatically in three categories in the Big 12 statistical rankings over last season. Last year, OSU finished the season ranked 11th in the league in assist/turnover ratio, averaging just 0.86 assists for every one turnover. So far this year, the Pokes are leading the league in the same category, averaging 1.35 assists for every turnover. The Cowboys also lead the Big 12 in assists, averaging 18.8 dishouts per game. Oklahoma State was 10th in that category last year, averaging just 12.8 assists per contest. OSU's turnover margin of +5.1 ranks second in the conference behind Oklahoma. OSU has 139 turnovers in 10 games, an average of 13.9 per game, while forcing an average of 19 per contest.
Fast starts
Since Oklahoma State failed to make the NCAA Tournament in 1996-97, the Cowboys have started out the last seven seasons extremely well. Here is a look at OSU's record over the last seven seasons before picking up the second loss of the year:
Coming up
OSU opens the Big 12 schedule on Saturday, Jan. 10, as the Cowboys travel to Lubbock, Texas, to face the Texas Tech Red Raiders (12-2). Tipoff at United Spirit Arena is set for 3 p.m., and the game will be televised by ESPN Regional, part of the Big 12 Conference's television package. OSU will host bedlam-rival Oklahoma (10-0) next Wednesday, Jan. 14, at 7 p.m. in a game televised by ESPN Regional.
