Norman, OK (SportsNetwork.com) - Intrastate rivals collide on Monday night, as the Oklahoma State Cowboys pay a visit to the Oklahoma Sooners for a Big 12 Conference tussle at the Lloyd Noble Center.
Oklahoma State had some trouble with West Virginia at home on Saturday, but it escaped with an 81-75 victory. The win was the fourth in the last five games for the Cowboys, who are 16-3 overall, but a more pedestrian 4-2 in conference play. The gauntlet continues for the Pokes, as they will host Baylor and Iowa State in their next two bouts.
Oklahoma is returning home after taking a trip to Lubbock, Texas to take on the Texas Tech Red Raiders. The Sooners claimed a 74-65 victory in that clash, improving to 16-4 overall and 5-2 in conference with a third straight victory. They will be on the road against Iowa State and West Virginia in their next two outings.
There have been 224 meetings between these squads all time, and Oklahoma has won 129 of them, but the teams split the season series a year ago, with each winning at home.
The squads will meet in Stillwater on Feb. 15 to complete the regular-season series.
Five players scored in double figures, led by Le'Bryan Nash and his 29 points, in Oklahoma State's recent win over West Virginia. The Cowboys held the Mountaineers to 36.8 percent field goal efficiency, and scored 23 points off turnovers.
Surprisingly, Marcus Smart (17.1 ppg, 4.4 apg) was not one of the players in double figures for the Cowboys in the win. Smart struggled to find his groove, going 1-of-7 from the floor, and he got into foul trouble, playing only 25 minutes before fouling out. Markel Brown (16.5 ppg) and Nash (14.1 ppg, 6.1 rpg) were able to pick up the slack, although the latter was eventually sent away with five fouls. Brown tallied 15 points and 10 rebounds in the winning effort. Phil Forte (12.6 ppg), who is the fourth and final member of the team averaging in double figures, finished with 13 points on Saturday, but on just 2-of-12 accuracy from the field.
Buddy Hield drilled 4-of-7 shots from beyond the arc and finished with 18 points to lead Oklahoma past Texas Tech. The Sooners had a 14-3 scoring edge off turnovers, while limiting the Red Raiders to just 4-of-14 from 3-point range and 42.1 percent shooting overall.
Oklahoma relies heavily on its starting rotation, with each member of the lineup averaging more than 10 ppg this season. Cameron Clark (17 ppg) is the leader of the group, ranking fifth in the league in scoring as well. He finished with 17 points on 8-of-12 shooting against Texas Tech. Hield (16.6 ppg) is the second option. He is a lethal 3-point shooter, netting 38.1 percent from that distance, while knocking down at least four triples in three of the last five games. Ryan Spangler (11.1 ppg, 9.8 rpg), Jordan Woodard (11 ppg) and Isaiah Cousins (10.4 ppg) give the Sooners additional scoring threats, but depth is an issue, with Tyler Neal (5.9 ppg) the best choice off the bench.
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