JimBob
12-06-2007, 08:56 AM
Cowboys scuffle to home victory
By JIMMIE TRAMEL World Sports Writer
12/6/2007
Anderson has big game, says Sutton was "pretty mad."
STILLWATER -- Not pretty.
Those were the words Oklahoma State basketball coach Sean Sutton used Wednesday night after his team dispatched Texas A&M-Corpus Christi 60-46 at Gallagher-Iba Arena.
The Cowboys led by only three points after one half, then responded to a halftime chewing by Sutton to push the margin to 20 midway through the second half.
"He was pretty mad," said freshman James Anderson, who scored a game-high 22 points.
But OSU failed to maintain a high level of play down the stretch, causing Sutton to grit his teeth at the reality of coaching a team with seven newcomers: Sometimes you look great -- the Cowboys peppered Washington by 25 points last Saturday -- and sometimes you look "not pretty" to the tune of shooting 33.9 percent from the field and 22.2 percent from 3-point range.
The saving grace? OSU was adequate on defense, pestering the Islanders into the worst 3-point shooting exhibition (with a minimum of 15 attempts) in Gallagher-Iba Arena history. The Islanders shot 5.6 percent (1-of-18) from beyond the arc and were held to their lowest point total since scoring 31 in a Jan. 21, 2004, game against Air Force.
Sutton gave the defense modest praise (solid, but not spectacular) and otherwise didn't care for what he saw.
"Last week, we had great practices and we played well," he said. "That's a lesson a young team has got to learn. You can only play as well as what you do in practice. The last two days were, I thought, sloppy. We weren't nearly as intense and focused for this game, despite as much as we talked to them (about it) and that's where leadership comes into play. As a result, you go out there and play bad basketball."
OSU improved to 4-3 heading into a Saturday home game against East Tennessee State, which won 24 games and dropped a seven-point game to Clemson in the first round of the NIT last season.
"If we play like this Saturday, we will lose. . .," Sutton said.
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi was an NCAA Tournament team last season, losing a first-round game to Wisconsin. Like the Cowboys, the Islanders are coping with the perils of a young roster. They have 10 new players, including eight freshmen, but one of the returnees is reigning Southland Conference player of the year Chris Daniels.
A 7-foot senior center, Daniels came to Stillwater averaging 16.4 points. He finished with more fouls (four) than points (three, a season-low). Sutton credited rotating frontcourt players Martavius Adams, Ibrahima Thomas and Anthony Brown for doing a good job of fronting Daniels and denying easy touches in the post.
"Then when the ball did go in there, we got over there and helped pretty quick," Sutton said. "Really, that was probably one of the few bright spots we had was our interior post defense was good and better than it has been."
The Islanders fell to 1-5. The lone victory was a 16-point comeback against Oral Roberts, coached by Sean Sutton's brother Scott.
By JIMMIE TRAMEL World Sports Writer
12/6/2007
Anderson has big game, says Sutton was "pretty mad."
STILLWATER -- Not pretty.
Those were the words Oklahoma State basketball coach Sean Sutton used Wednesday night after his team dispatched Texas A&M-Corpus Christi 60-46 at Gallagher-Iba Arena.
The Cowboys led by only three points after one half, then responded to a halftime chewing by Sutton to push the margin to 20 midway through the second half.
"He was pretty mad," said freshman James Anderson, who scored a game-high 22 points.
But OSU failed to maintain a high level of play down the stretch, causing Sutton to grit his teeth at the reality of coaching a team with seven newcomers: Sometimes you look great -- the Cowboys peppered Washington by 25 points last Saturday -- and sometimes you look "not pretty" to the tune of shooting 33.9 percent from the field and 22.2 percent from 3-point range.
The saving grace? OSU was adequate on defense, pestering the Islanders into the worst 3-point shooting exhibition (with a minimum of 15 attempts) in Gallagher-Iba Arena history. The Islanders shot 5.6 percent (1-of-18) from beyond the arc and were held to their lowest point total since scoring 31 in a Jan. 21, 2004, game against Air Force.
Sutton gave the defense modest praise (solid, but not spectacular) and otherwise didn't care for what he saw.
"Last week, we had great practices and we played well," he said. "That's a lesson a young team has got to learn. You can only play as well as what you do in practice. The last two days were, I thought, sloppy. We weren't nearly as intense and focused for this game, despite as much as we talked to them (about it) and that's where leadership comes into play. As a result, you go out there and play bad basketball."
OSU improved to 4-3 heading into a Saturday home game against East Tennessee State, which won 24 games and dropped a seven-point game to Clemson in the first round of the NIT last season.
"If we play like this Saturday, we will lose. . .," Sutton said.
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi was an NCAA Tournament team last season, losing a first-round game to Wisconsin. Like the Cowboys, the Islanders are coping with the perils of a young roster. They have 10 new players, including eight freshmen, but one of the returnees is reigning Southland Conference player of the year Chris Daniels.
A 7-foot senior center, Daniels came to Stillwater averaging 16.4 points. He finished with more fouls (four) than points (three, a season-low). Sutton credited rotating frontcourt players Martavius Adams, Ibrahima Thomas and Anthony Brown for doing a good job of fronting Daniels and denying easy touches in the post.
"Then when the ball did go in there, we got over there and helped pretty quick," Sutton said. "Really, that was probably one of the few bright spots we had was our interior post defense was good and better than it has been."
The Islanders fell to 1-5. The lone victory was a 16-point comeback against Oral Roberts, coached by Sean Sutton's brother Scott.