Cowboy Basketball Racing Into Big Monday Showdown In Lawrence

• Game Center
RV/24 Oklahoma State (12-5, 5-5) at 23/22 Kansas (12-7, 6-5)
Date: Feb. 8, 2021
Tipoff: 8 p.m. CT
Site: Allen Fieldhouse (16,300)
Series: KU leads 118-60 (63-12 in Lawrence)
Last: OSU won 75-70 on Jan. 12 in Stillwater
TV: ESPN (Bob Wischusen, Fran Fraschilla)
Radio: Cowboy Radio Network (Dave Hunziker, John Holcomb)
Satellite Radio: KU call on Sirius & XM 83
Live Stats: okstate.statbroadcast.com
Oklahoma State Game Notes

• The Basics
RV/24 Oklahoma State powered through double-overtime to take down No. 6/6 Texas and improve to 5-3 in NCAA N.E.T. Quadrant 1 games. The victory sets up a Big Monday showdown against 23/22 Kansas in Allen Fieldhouse. After taking the first meeting in Stillwater on Jan. 12, the Cowboys have an opportunity to sweep the season series with the Jayhawks for the second time in the Mike Boynton era. OSU's 2018 sweep of KU was the first by any team since 2001. Monday's game can be seen on ESPN with Bob Wischusen and Fran Fraschilla on the call, and fans can listen to the game with Dave Hunziker and John Holcomb on the Cowboy Radio Network.

• Cowboy Firepower
Oklahoma State has loads of firepower on both ends of the floor. The Cowboy offense ranks second in the Big 12 in scoring (76.8 points) and field goal percentage (46.2 fg%), and they lead the league in tempo (72.5 poss/40). On the other end, OSU ranks second in the league in field goal percentage defense (40.3 fg%) and total rebounds (40.0/game) while leading the Big 12 in blocks (4.41 bpg). KenPom lists the Cowboys 24th nationally in defensive efficiency. Only four of OSU's opponents this season have finished the game with a positive assist-to-turnover ratio.

• The Future Is Bright
Oklahoma State is having success with one of the nation's youngest rosters. According to KenPom, OSU ranks 320th nationally in experience with an average of 1.13 years of experience per player. In the Big 12, only K-State (1.02) has a younger roster. The Cowboys have a combined 22 starts by freshmen in 2020-21, which ranks 13th nationally.

• Boone On The Block
Kalib Boone faced the Oklahoma State media on Jan. 7 and was brutally honest about his performances for the Cowboys. At the time, he was averaging 6.4 points and 4.2 rebounds on 61.1 percent shooting, but inconsistent play frustrated the Tulsa native and led to more time on the OSU bench. He and Boynton had a heart-to-heart talk about it, and since that chat seven games ago he's averaging 13.0 points, 6.9 rebounds and 1.7 blocks per game, and is shooting 66.1 percent from the floor. Boone has double-doubles in two of his last three games, and is coming off a 22-point, 15-rebound performance in the win over Texas - both career highs. The 15 boards are the most by an OSU player since Marshall Moses had 18 at La Salle on Dec. 4, 2010. Boone is shooting 64.3 percent from the floor this year, which would set a new school record if he can maintain that clip through 100 attempts.

• The Series With The Jayhawks
This will be the 179th meeting between Oklahoma State and Kansas, which trails only the Bedlam matchup with Oklahoma (240 meetings) as OSU's longest standing rivalry. The Jayhawks have been ranked inside the AP top-25 in each of the last 37 meetings. Kansas leads the series to 118-60, but OSU is coming off a 75-70 win over the Jayhawks in GIA in January.

• Nobody Plays KU Closer
No other program has had as much recent success against Kansas as Oklahoma State, which has nine wins over the Jayhawks since 2008. OSU has won five of the last eight games against KU in Gallagher-Iba Arena, including the famous 2018 sweep of the Jayhawks - the first by any program since 2001.

Cowboy Basketball Racing Into Big Monday Showdown In Lawrence

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Players Mentioned

Kalib Boone

Oklahoma State University Athletics