Underwood Returns To Home State To Face Wichita State

Saturday, December 17

Wichita, KS

6 p.m.

Oklahoma State University

Wichita State

December 16, 2016 | Cowboy Basketball

Game Center
• Opponent: Wichita State (9-2, 0-0 Missouri Valley)
• Date/Tipoff: Dec. 17, 2016 / 6 p.m. Central
• Tickets: goshockers.com
• TV: ESPN3 (Mitch Holthus & Rich Zvosec)
• Radio: Cowboy Radio Network (Dave Hunziker & John Holcomb)
• Satellite Radio: Sirius 137, XM 384
• Internet Radio: http://okla.st/osutunein
• Live Stats: okstate.statbroadcast.com
• Oklahoma State Game Notes

The Basics
• Brad Underwood returns to his home state of Kansas for the first time as a head coach to lead his Oklahoma State squad against Wichita State. A native of McPherson, Kansas, Underwood played his college ball at Kansas State under Jack Hartman and later spent six seasons on the Wildcat coaching staff (2007-12). Underwood's Cowboys will face a relentless defensive team in the Shockers, who have the nation's No. 11 ranked scoring defense at 59.5 points allowed per game.

On the Air
• The matchup between the Cowboys and Shockers is slated to appear on ESPN3 (Webcast) with the play-by-play team of Mitch Holthus and Rich Zvosec starting at 6 p.m. Central. As always, Dave Hunziker and John Holcomb will have the Cowboy Radio Network call from downtown Wichita.

Oklahoma State Snapshot
• OSU ranks fourth in the country in scoring at 93.5 points per game, but their high-pressure defense is the main reason why. The Cowboys rank fourth in the country with 11.3 steals per game and second in turnovers forced at 21.2. On Wednesday, OSU turned UAPB over 31 times, which is tied for the fourth most in school history. According to KenPom, OSU is holding opponents to an average possession of just 14.5 seconds - the shortest in the country - and they rank third in turnover percentage with a mark of 26.6. That defensive pressure has allowed OSU to average 10.8 more shots per game than their opponents, and average 24.2 points off turnovers per game.
• Two of the nation's deepest teams will take the floor on Saturday in Wichita. The Shockers lead the country in bench minutes at 47.4 percent, and Oklahoma State ranks ninth at 43 percent. On Wednesday, the Cowboys nearly had six players in double-figures for a second time this season thanks to a deep bench that scored 60 points. OSU averages 40.7 bench points each game.
• Freshmen have emerged as key players for the Cowboys. Freshmen are responsible for 40.5 percent of OSU minutes this season, and scored 19 of OSU's final 23 points - including the last nine - in the road win at Tulsa. Brandon Averette is the current Big 12 Newcomer of the Week award for his career-high 17 points in the Tulsa win, while Lindy Waters III hit a baseline jumper with 15.8 seconds left that proved the game winner. Over the last two games, sharpshooter Thomas Dziagwa has averaged 12.5 points on 58.3 percent shooting from 3-point. He has yet to miss from the free throw line in 10 attempts.
• One of the nation's elite point guards, Jawun Evans returned to the starting lineup after a one-game absense due to a bruised left AC joint. The sophomore is the only player in the country to rank among the top 25 in scoring (23rd, 21.6 ppg) and the top 15 steals (12th, 2.7 spg) and KenPom currently rates him as the No. 5 offensive threat in the nation. The Naismith Trophy and Cousy Award watch list member has five 20-point games and three 30-point games this season alone, and he also earned a spot on the Maui Invitational All-Tournament team. The Big 12 leader in scoring, Evans also ranks among the league's top 10 in steals (2nd, 2.7 spg), assists (5th, 4.8 apg), free throw percentage (6th, 78.3%) and assist-to-turnover ratio (10th, 2.2 a/to), and he owns the Big 12's top two scoring performances this season - 35 points against UConn, and 34 points against Campbell.
• Jeffrey Carroll has been a scoring and rebounding machine this season. The redshirt-junior is the only player in the Big 12 ranked among the league's top six in scoring (5th, 15.7 ppg), rebounding (5th, 7.5 rpg) and field goal percentage (6th, 57.7 percent). He's also seventh in 3-point percentage at a stellar 43.8 percent (14-of-32). Carroll has three 20-point games this year, and pulled down a career-high 12 board at Maryland.

Wichita State Snapshot
• The Shockers improved to 9-2 on the year with a 76-73 win over Oklahoma last Saturday in Oklahoma City. Despite 28 points from OU's Jordan Woodard, the Shockers prevailed by holding the Sooners to 30.8 percent shooting from the floor. Zach Brown led three WSU players in double figures with 17 points. Daishon Smith tallied 13 points and six assists.
• Two of the nation's most aggressive defenses will square off on Saturday. The Shockers field the nation's No. 11 ranked scoring defense, which allows just 59.5 points per game. Opponents shoot just 34.6 percent from the floor against Wichita State, which is the third-best mark in the country. WSU also ranks 10th in rebound margin at +9.6 per game.
• At 433-170, Gregg Marshall is among the winningest coaches in college basketball. The 2014 National Coach of the Year, Marshall put the Shockers on the national scene after a trip to the Final Four in 2013. He and WSU have won at least 25 games in each of the last seven seasons, and Marshall is one of just five coaches to win a game in each of the last four NCAA Tournaments.
• The Cowboys lead the all-time series against Wichita State, 29-8, although the two programs haven't met since Dec. 21, 2002. OSU has won four of the last five meetings, and owns a 14-5 mark against the Shockers in Wichita. OSU won the first 12 meetings between the two programs beginning in 1934.
• Oklahoma State, known then as Oklahoma A&M, and Wichita State shared a Missouri Valley Conference rivalry from 1945 (when WSU joined the league) until 1957 (when OSU left for the Big Eight). During that span, A&M emerged as a national power under Mr. Henry Iba - winning NCAA titles in 1945 and 1946 - and was 19-5 against the Shockers.
• The Cowboys are 93-36 all-time against the current members of the Missouri Valley Conference.