Oklahoma State University Athletics
Oklahoma State University
Texas Tech
Olukemi, Cowboys Down Red Raiders
February 26, 2011 | Cowboy Basketball
Feb. 26, 2011
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STILLWATER, Okla. (AP) — Jean-Paul Olukemi scored 20 points, including the final six for his team, and Oklahoma State broke a four-game losing streak with a 70-68 win over Texas Tech on Saturday. Olukemi's three-point play put Oklahoma State ahead 69-68 with 25.4 seconds left. After Texas Tech's Mike Singletary traveled with 8 seconds remaining, Olukemi made one of two free throws. Texas Tech's John Roberson missed a 3-point attempt at the buzzer. Marshall Moses added 14 points for Oklahoma State (17-11, 5-9 Big 12), which had harbored hopes of receiving an at-large NCAA tournament bid until the losing streak. Coach Travis Ford has said that as the regular season winds down, the Cowboys need to focus on earning a possible trip to the National Invitation Tournament. That focus seemed present early and late against Texas Tech (12-17, 4-10), which has lost six of its last seven games. The Cowboys built a double-digit lead in the first half and rallied after Texas Tech went up by five in the second half. Oklahoma State is now 18-3 all-time against the Red Raiders in Stillwater. Brad Reese led Texas Tech with 18 points and Roberson added 17. The teams entered the game tied for ninth in the Big 12, but were only two games out of sixth place in the conference when play began Saturday. Oklahoma State will close the regular season by hosting Baylor on Tuesday and visiting archrival Oklahoma next Saturday. A free throw by D'walyn Roberts gave Texas Tech a 68-66 lead but the Red Raiders didn't score again. Olukemi tied the game with a fall-away 10-footer while being fouled by Singletary, and he made the ensuing free throw. Point guard Reger Dowell had 13 points and four assists for the Cowboys. Dowell had played limited minutes this season - not even getting off the bench in 11 games - until the past two weeks. Against the Red Raiders, he made his second career start - his first since Dec. 4 at La Salle - and produced his third straight double-digit scoring game. Oklahoma State seized control with a 13-2 run - capped by a basket by Olukemi - that put the Cowboys ahead 20-8 eight minutes into the game. The Red Raiders cut the lead to 26-22 and trailed 36-31 at halftime. Oklahoma State shot 51.9 percent from the field in the half. The Cowboys pushed their advantage to 50-41 with 14:15 left with a basket by Olukemi, but didn't have another field goal for more than four minutes. The Red Raiders took their first lead since the game's opening moments at 54-51 on Roberson's 3-pointer with 11:54 left. A basket by Texas Tech's Robert Lewandowski made it 56-51 with 9:46 left. Oklahoma State scored the next six points to regain the lead at 57-56 at the 8:16 mark, and the game remained tight after that. Oklahoma State played its first game without guard Ray Penn, a part-time starter suspended by Ford earlier in the week for violating team policy. Roberts had 12 points and 13 rebounds for Texas Tech, while Matt Pilgrim had nine points and 10 rebounds for Oklahoma State.
