Matchup Of Nation's Premier Guards Awaits Cowboys At Maryland

Saturday, December 3

College Park, MD

8 p.m.

Oklahoma State University

Maryland

Matchup Of Nation's Premier Guards Awaits Cowboys At Maryland

December 01, 2016 | Cowboy Basketball

Game Center
• Opponent: at RV/22 Maryland (7-1, 0-0 Big Ten)
• Date/Tipoff: Dec. 3, 2016 / 8 p.m. Central
• Tickets: umterps.com
• TV: Big Ten (Dan Bonner & Cory Provus)
• Radio: Cowboy Radio Network (Bill Roth & Bryndon Manzer)
• Satellite Radio: Sirius 119, XM 203 (Maryland Call)
• Internet Radio: http://okla.st/osutunein
• Live Stats: okstate.statbroadcast.com
• Oklahoma State Game Notes

The Basics
• Oklahoma State, the No. 25 squad in this week's ESPN Power Rankings, improved its record to 6-1 with a win over in-state neighbor Rogers State, and will travel to Maryland for its first true road game of the season. The Terrapins have one of the nation's top backcourts, anchored by All-Big Ten guard Melo Trimble, and are coming off a 27-win season and a trip to the Sweet 16 round of the NCAA Tournament.

On the Air
• On Saturday, the Cowboys will appear on the Big Ten Network for just the second time in school history (OSU defeated Minnesota, 62-60, in Sioux Falls, S.D., on Dec. 12, 2015) when they visit Maryland. Cory Provus and Dan Bonner will be on the Big Ten Network call. The usual Cowboy Radio Network team of Dave Hunziker and John Holcomb has Bedlam football duties in Norman, so Bill Roth, former voice of Virginia Tech and UCLA athletics, and former Cowboy guard and ESPN analyst Bryndon Manzer will have the call.

Oklahoma State Snapshot
• OSU ranks second in the country in scoring with 98.9 points per game, but their high-pressure defense is the reason why. The Cowboys rank second in the country with 12.4 steals per game and third in turnovers forced at 20.71. According to KenPom, OSU is holding opponents to an average possession of just 14.0 seconds - the shortest in the country - and they rank 11th in turnover percentage with a mark of 25.1. That defensive pressure has allowed OSU to shoot a total of 75 more shots (+10.7 per game) than their opponents, and average 25.6 points off turnovers per game.
• Jawun Evans was named to the NCAA's "All-Week Team" after his performances in Maui. The Naismith Trophy and Cousy Award watch list member posted 35 points against UConn and 30 points against No. 3 North Carolina to earn a spot on the Maui Invitational All-Tournament team. Evans now has five 20-point games and three 30-point games this season, which is tied for the second most nationally. He leads the Big 12 and ranks third nationally in scoring at 24.7 points per game, and is the only player in the country among the NCAA's top five in scoring and steals (fifth at 3.1 per game).
• Freshmen proved the difference in Maui, and are starting to make an impact for OSU this season. Lindy Waters III led all players at the Maui Invite with nine total steals, while Cam McGriff earned SportsCenter's Top Play on Wednesday night with his ferocious dunk against Georgetown. Over the last two games, Lucas N'Guessan has made his last eight shots and is averaging 9.0 points and 5.5 rebounds per game. Thomas Dziagwa posted a pair of steals and eight points against the Hoyas, including a momentum-building 3-pointer at the halftime buzzer. Brandon Averette hosted a coming-out party in the Georgetown game with 12 points, four assists and four steals in the win, and followed it with 15 points against Rogers State on Wednesday.
• On Wednesday, Phil Forte became just the 17th player in school history to score 1,400 career points. The senior now has 1,409 points to his credit. He currently ranks sixth in the country with a 96.8 free throw percentage. At 260 career makes, Forte needs just 39 more 3-pointers to tie Keiton Page for the school's career 3-point record.
• At 16.1 points and 7.6 rebounds per contest, Jeffrey Carroll is the only player in the Big 12 averaging at least 15 points and seven rebounds. The junior ranks 38th nationally in field goal percentage at 61.2 percent. Carroll entered the season with a career scoring high of 19 points, but has three 20-point games this season.

Maryland Snapshot
• The Terrapins suffered their first loss of the young season, 73-59, at the hands of Pittsburgh on Tuesday night at the XFINITY Center. Melo Trimble led the Maryland attack with 13 points, six rebounds and five assists, but the Terps shot just 34.4 percent from the floor and turned the ball over 14 times. Pittsburgh forward Michael Young posted 25 points and nine boards in the win.
• Mark Turgeon has faced the Cowboys as the head coach of three different schools; Wichita State, Texas A&M and Maryland. Turgeon's Shockers went 1-2 against OSU, but his Aggie squads were 5-3 versus the Pokes, including wins in each of the last three matchups. The Terps took the 2014 matchup in Gallagher-Iba Arena, 73-64, in Turgeon's first season at Maryland.
• Bob Cousy and Wooden award watch list selection Melo Trimble leads the Terps with 20.1 points per game on 45.1 percent shooting. The junior was named the Barclays Classic MVP after posting a team-high 18 points - including the game-winning layup with 6.6 seconds remaining - against Kansas State.
• The Terrapins are coming off a 27-9 season that included a trip to the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16. Maryland took down South Dakota State (79-74) and Hawaii (73-60) in Spokane, Washington before falling to Kansas (79-63) in Louisville, Kentucky in the round of 16.
• Oklahoma State director of player development Stephen Gentry served as Mark Turgeon's video coordinator during his four seasons at Texas A&M. Known for his preparation and scouting abilities, Gentry played a vital role in preparing the Aggie defense, which was consistently ranked at the top of the Big 12.
• The Cowboys are 67-76 all-time against current members of the Big Ten Conference, although the bulk of those games were played against Nebraska (117-game series, Huskers lead 63-54) who shared a Big Eight and Big 12 rivalry with OSU.