Cowboys Hit The Road For ORU

The Cowboys

The 2021-22 Cowboys will attack the season with a 17-man roster, including five newcomers and four returning starters from last year's squad.
Speaking of new - Oklahoma State welcomes three new assistant coaches (Terrence Rencher, Larry Blunt and David Cason) and a new strength coach (Mark Mitchell).
The Cowboys return four starters from last season's squad that returned OSU to the postseason and have added four key transfers with ambitions of pushing past the NCAA Round of 32. Setting its sights on a deep run in March, Oklahoma State returns 73 percent of its points from a year ago, 94 percent of its offensive rebounds and 74 percent of its assists.
Oklahoma State is set to compete in 17 games against 2021 NCAA Tournament foes.

Facing ORU - Here's The Scout

Oklahoma State is set to take the short trip up to Tulsa on Friday to take on the Golden Eagles of ORU. The game will stream, for free, on the ORU Sports Network. Fans should head to oruathletics.com for the stream.
The two in-state foes have met 23 times in a series that dates back to 1975. OSU leads the series 18-5 after defeating ORU, 83-78, last season in Stillwater. This will be the first meeting between the two in Tulsa since Jan. 29, 1997. The Golden Eagles took that contest, 71-60.
ORU is under the leadership of fifth-year head coach Paul Mills. He helped lead the Golden Eagles to the Sweet 16 last year with an 18-11 record. ORU comes into Friday's contest with a 3-2 record.
Max Abmas and Isaac McBride have led the scoring effort for the Golden Eagles. Abmas and Trey Phipps have proven to be threats behind the arc with both averaging more than six per game.

Through Six - Where We're At And Where We're Going

Oklahoma State moved to 5-1 on Monday night with a win over Charleston in Gallagher-Iba Arena to push its season-long winning streak to four games.
The Cowboys have punished teams in two main areas - points in the paint (250 thus far) and points off the fast break (145). 54 percent of all of OSU's points this season through six games have come inside the paint.
OSU now turns its attention to ORU and its first road trip of the season. The Cowboys finished 8-4 last season away from home in true road contests.
The trip to Tulsa will serve as a homecoming for three Cowboys - Kalib and Keylan Boone, as well as Bryce Thompson.

Oklahoma - Where The Points Come Sweeping Down The Plain

Oklahoma natives posted a combined 81 points over the past two games in the wins over NC State and Charleston, which accounts for 48 percent of OSU's points.

Defense First - Because It Wins Games

Oklahoma State has yet to allow an opponent to score 70 points in a game this year and has held four teams under 60.
A big key, the Cowboys are forcing a turnover on 30 percent of their defensive possessions, which according to KenPom ranks second in the country.
According to KenPom's adjusted defense, the Cowboys have posted the 10th-best defense thus far, trailing just Duke, San Diego State, Kansas, Tennessee, Houston, Michigan State, Michigan, Memphis and Illinois.
Another struggle for opposing players? OSU is recording a block on 21.2 percent of its defensive outings, which is good enough for 6th-best in the country. That of course is when OSU hasn't already taken the ball, as it is recording a steal on 16.9 percent of its defensive possessions (4th best in the country).

The New Sheriffs In Town

2021 American Athletic Conference Freshman of the Year and former five-star big man Moussa Cisse certainly stands out in this year's group of newcomers. Listed at 6-10 and a springy 225 pounds, Cisse started every game for Memphis as a freshman in 2020-21 and helped lead the Tigers to the NIT Title.
Joining Cisse is 2020 McDonald's All-American and former Kansas standout Bryce Thompson. A unanimous five-star talent, he finished his time at Tulsa's Booker T. Washington High School as the nation's No. 19 recruit according to Rivals. He comes to Stillwater as the seventh-highest rated Cowboy signee in the recruiting rankings era (since 2003).
Former Texas Tech Red Raider and four-star recruit Tyreek Smith will be complementing the duo. The 2021 Academic All-Big 12 Conference selection was the 2018 TAAPS 5A Player of the Year for Trinity Christian High School in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex, where he averaged 17.9 points, 12.3 rebounds and 3.0 blocks per game as a senior.
Rounding out the highly-anticipated class is Woody Newton. A former Rivals four-star recruit out of District Heights, Maryland, Newton is coming off a freshman campaign at Syracuse in which he posted a 46.4 shooting percentage, 38.9 percent clip from 3-point and averages of 3.5 points and 1.8 rebounds per game.

Oklahoma State University Athletics