JimBob
02-15-2009, 07:48 AM
Cowboys find their identity with win
By JIMMIE TRAMEL World Sports Writer
Published: 2/15/2009 2:47 AM
Last Modified: 2/15/2009 3:04 AM
STILLWATER — Does Gallagher-Iba Arena have a lost and found department?
Apparently so.
James Anderson found a long-elusive first career double-double and Oklahoma State located its identity — or at least that's what coach Travis Ford hopes — in a 86-67 victory Saturday over Iowa State.
Anderson's 27-point, 10-rebound performance and Terrel Harris' 21 points helped OSU roll to its most lopsided Big 12 win of the season.
It came one game after OSU's most lopsided defeat of the season. Ford vowed to make changes following a 25-point loss Tuesday at Texas.
The changes? They were physical and mental.
Ford went with a small-ball lineup and started five guards, including 5-foot-10 freshman Keiton Page even though Iowa State starts two players 6-foot-10 or taller. The Cowboys applied full-court pressure from start to finish and somehow produced their biggest rebounding margin (plus-10) this season.
Perhaps more importantly, Ford decided he would not tolerate mistakes, no matter who makes them, and he outlawed excuses.
"We made the commitment Thursday, and we hope our guys continue to believe in it, that we are going to quit making excuses about being tired and we don't have depth and we're not tall and things like that," he said.
Ford said he might have been the lead excuse-maker, never mind that the excuses had validity. But it was time to throw caution to the wind and play ball.
"We didn't have an identity the past three or four games," he said.
Ford wanted to get back to playing the way his teams played at previous coaching stops. He said one of his former Massachusetts players, Gary Forbes, visited Stillwater recently and accused him of going soft. Ouch.
"When you take over a team, you want to give them great confidence and you want to build confidence in them and you feel your way through it as a coach even as (players) are feeling their way through it with me," he said.
"Maybe I haven't forced my identity on these guys as much as I normally maybe would as far as systems-wise and things like that because I made a lot of excuses.... But it came to a point that it's not about winning and losing. We have got to develop this program and this is what we are going to be and this is the way we are going to play and hopefully it will equate to a lot of wins this year and things like that."
The identity crisis wasn't cured immediately.
OSU fell into a 10-point hole in the first five minutes. But the Cowboys scored the first 12 points after halftime and were in control the rest of the way, despite a 27-point performance by Iowa State super soph Craig Brackins.
OSU ended a two-game skid and improved to 15-9 overall and 4-6 in league play.
"It is getting to the point in the season when we need to quit losing," Harris said.
"This is the time that teams usually peak. We came to that crossroads and, instead of us going backward, we needed to go forward."
By JIMMIE TRAMEL World Sports Writer
Published: 2/15/2009 2:47 AM
Last Modified: 2/15/2009 3:04 AM
STILLWATER — Does Gallagher-Iba Arena have a lost and found department?
Apparently so.
James Anderson found a long-elusive first career double-double and Oklahoma State located its identity — or at least that's what coach Travis Ford hopes — in a 86-67 victory Saturday over Iowa State.
Anderson's 27-point, 10-rebound performance and Terrel Harris' 21 points helped OSU roll to its most lopsided Big 12 win of the season.
It came one game after OSU's most lopsided defeat of the season. Ford vowed to make changes following a 25-point loss Tuesday at Texas.
The changes? They were physical and mental.
Ford went with a small-ball lineup and started five guards, including 5-foot-10 freshman Keiton Page even though Iowa State starts two players 6-foot-10 or taller. The Cowboys applied full-court pressure from start to finish and somehow produced their biggest rebounding margin (plus-10) this season.
Perhaps more importantly, Ford decided he would not tolerate mistakes, no matter who makes them, and he outlawed excuses.
"We made the commitment Thursday, and we hope our guys continue to believe in it, that we are going to quit making excuses about being tired and we don't have depth and we're not tall and things like that," he said.
Ford said he might have been the lead excuse-maker, never mind that the excuses had validity. But it was time to throw caution to the wind and play ball.
"We didn't have an identity the past three or four games," he said.
Ford wanted to get back to playing the way his teams played at previous coaching stops. He said one of his former Massachusetts players, Gary Forbes, visited Stillwater recently and accused him of going soft. Ouch.
"When you take over a team, you want to give them great confidence and you want to build confidence in them and you feel your way through it as a coach even as (players) are feeling their way through it with me," he said.
"Maybe I haven't forced my identity on these guys as much as I normally maybe would as far as systems-wise and things like that because I made a lot of excuses.... But it came to a point that it's not about winning and losing. We have got to develop this program and this is what we are going to be and this is the way we are going to play and hopefully it will equate to a lot of wins this year and things like that."
The identity crisis wasn't cured immediately.
OSU fell into a 10-point hole in the first five minutes. But the Cowboys scored the first 12 points after halftime and were in control the rest of the way, despite a 27-point performance by Iowa State super soph Craig Brackins.
OSU ended a two-game skid and improved to 15-9 overall and 4-6 in league play.
"It is getting to the point in the season when we need to quit losing," Harris said.
"This is the time that teams usually peak. We came to that crossroads and, instead of us going backward, we needed to go forward."