Saturday Morning Showdown Against No. 2 Baylor Awaits Cowboy Basketball

Saturday, January 18

Stillwater, OK

11 a.m.

Oklahoma State University

Baylor

Saturday Morning Showdown Against No. 2 Baylor Awaits Cowboy Basketball

January 16, 2020 | Cowboy Basketball

• Game Center
Oklahoma State (9-7, 0-4 Big 12) vs 2/2 Baylor (14-1, 4-0 Big 12)
Date / Tipoff: Jan. 18, 2020 / 11 a.m. CT
Site: Gallagher-Iba Arena (13,611)
Tickets: okstate.com/tickets or 877-ALL-4-OSU
Series: OSU leads 55-29 (OSU leads 26-9 in Stillwater)
Last: OSU won 67-64 on March 6, 2019 in Waco, Texas
Streak: Baylor has won 7 of last 8 matchups
TV: ESPN2 (Clay Matvick, Tim McCormick)
Webcast: WatchESPN app or ESPN.com
Radio: Cowboy Radio Network (Dave Hunziker, John Holcomb)
Satellite Radio: XM 380 (OSU call), Sirius 83 (BU call)
Live Stats: okstate.statbroadcast.com
Oklahoma State Game Notes

• The Basics
Oklahoma State plays host to the Big 12's last remaining undefeated squad, No. 2/2 Baylor, in a Saturday morning showdown in Gallagher-Iba Arena. OSU's second-half rally fell short against Texas on Wednesday night, and the Cowboys dropped to 0-4 in league play. However, Oklahoma State owns a 62.5 all-time win percentage at home against teams ranked inside the top-3 of the Associated Press Poll, which is the highest in all of college basketball. The Bears are No. 1 in the NCAA's N.E.T. Rankings and are riding a 13-game win streak that includes five ranked victories.

• On the Air
The Cowboys and Bears will square off on ESPN2 with Clay Matvick and Tim McCormick on the call. Tipoff is slated for 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, and the webcast can be seen on the WatchESPN app or ESPN.com. As always, Dave Hunziker and 2019 Oklahoma Sportscaster of the Year, John Holcomb, will have the Cowboy Radio Network call from the historic white-maple floor.

• Cowboy Quick Hitters

Saturday's game is expected to be the 117th in Cameron McGriff's OSU career, which ties him for the 29th most appearances by a Cowboy.
OSU's opponents this year are a combined 182-93 (.662), which is the seventh highest opponent win percentage in the country.
The last time OSU started Big 12 play with an 0-4 record was in 2016-17. That season, the Cowboys turned around an 0-6 conference start to finish 9-9 and earn an at-large bid to the NCAA Tourney.
Entering last week, OSU was 12-0 in the Mike Boynton era when holding its opponent under 60 points, but the Cowboys dropped their last two when holding their opponent under 60.
In its nine wins, OSU limited its opponents to 44.8 percent shooting inside the paint. In the seven losses, opponents are averaging 56.6 percent shooting in the paint.

• Home Court Advantage
According to ESPN Stats & Info, no program has a higher win percentage at home over Associated Press Poll top-3 teams than Oklahoma State. The Cowboys have a stellar 10-6 record (.625) at home against teams ranked inside the AP top three since the poll began in 1948-49. What's more, seven of those 10 victories came when OSU was unranked. The Cowboys have 53 wins over top-10 squads, including four in the Mike Boynton era. A win over Baylor on Saturday would give OSU it's 10th victory against teams ranked No. 1 or No. 2, and it's first since Marcus Smart famously backflipped on the center-court Jayhawk logo in Allen Fieldhouse on Feb. 2, 2013 after an 85-80 win.

• The Series With The Bears
This will be the 85th meeting between Oklahoma State and Baylor in a series that dates back to Feb. 7, 1918. The Cowboy lead the overall series, 55-29, including a 26-9 edge in Stillwater, although the Bears have won four of the last five in Gallagher-Iba Arena. OSU snapped Baylor's seven-game win streak over the Cowboys with their 67-64 victory in the Ferrell Center on March 6, 2019.

• Down To The Wire
While Baylor has taken seven of the last eight meetings with Oklahoma State, the games typically come down to the wire regardless of location. Ten of the last 14 games between these two schools were decided by nine points or less, including nine two-possession ballgames and two in overtime. Despite OSU's 12-20 record last season, the Cowboys and Bears split the regular-season meetings and the games were decided by four and three points. Even when Baylor was ranked in the top-5 for both games in 2017, those meetings were decided in the final minute and by two possessions.

• Success Against Baylor
OSU's freshmen stole the show against Baylor last season. Now a sophomore, Yor Anei averaged 12.5 points, 5.5 rebounds and 4.0 blocks, and shot 61.5 percent against the Bears in 2018-19. Isaac Likekele was held scoreless in the first meeting (0-2 fg, 5 assists, 8 rebounds), but exploded for 23 points on 10-of-15 shooting, nine rebounds and six assists. Likekele is averaging 11.5 points, 8.5 boards and 5.5 assists on 58.8 percent shooting in two meetings with Baylor.