JimBob
01-16-2008, 08:09 AM
Mistakes haunt the Cowboys
By JIMMIE TRAMEL World Sports Writer
1/16/2008
OSU commits 22 turnovers; Anderson injures ankle in loss.
WACO, Texas -- The scouting report says Oklahoma State is a turnover-prone team that shoots free throws very well.
Unfortunately for the Cowboys, they lived up to only half of their reputation.
OSU committed 22 turnovers and missed a season-high 15 free throws in a Big 12 road opener Tuesday night, falling 79-71 to Baylor in front of 6,837 fans at Ferrell Center.
"I think the effort was there," OSU forward Marcus Dove said. "We competed the whole game. Just turnovers killed us and free throws killed us."
The Bears scored 29 points off OSU turnovers and extended the Cowboys' road losing streak to 15 games, matching the fourth-longest road skid in school history. The Pokes entered the game with the Big 12's best free-throw shooting percentage, but made only 18-of-33 foul shots.
Despite the aforementioned, OSU was in position to win a road game for the first time since beating Kansas State on Feb. 4, 2006. The Cowboys erased deficits of seven points in the first half and six points early in the second half. The score was tied with 12:27 remaining.
That's when freshman guard James Anderson, OSU's leading scorer this season, was helped to the bench with an ankle injury.
Baylor went on a 16-6 run after Anderson's injury to build a 10-point cushion and blunted Cowboy comeback attempts to improve 14-2 for the first time since the 1945-46 season.
"I didn't know we had a season back then," said Bears coach Scott Drew, whose program is off to a 2-0 Big 12 start for the first time since the 1997-98 season.
OSU came to Waco with a five-game winning streak and left with a record of 10-6 overall and 1-1 in league play. The Cowboys will get another chance to end their road losing streak Saturday at Iowa State.
Junior guard Terrel Harris scored 23 points, one shy of a career-high and his most ever in a Big 12 game, to lead the Cowboys, but he also committed eight turnovers.
Harris acknowledged afterward that his turnovers helped the Bears get their transition game unleashed. He and Dove both said the Cowboys have got to play "smarter."
Last season in Waco, OSU fell behind by 18 points and scrambled to catch up. This time, the Cowboys were in contention until the end.
Progress? "I was really proud of our effort," coach Sean Sutton said. "We competed hard enough from that standpoint to win the game and had opportunities where we were down 12 and down 10 again and kept fighting back. That's one of the positives we can take out of this game. But you can't turn it over 22 times and you can't miss 15 free throws and expect to beat a good team."
OSU cut a 10-point deficit to four with five minutes left, then Baylor scored seven unanswered points and pushed the margin to 12. The Cowboys charged back within four points and had possession in the final minute, but Byron Eaton was called for a charging foul while driving past Aaron Bruce with 24.7 seconds left.
By JIMMIE TRAMEL World Sports Writer
1/16/2008
OSU commits 22 turnovers; Anderson injures ankle in loss.
WACO, Texas -- The scouting report says Oklahoma State is a turnover-prone team that shoots free throws very well.
Unfortunately for the Cowboys, they lived up to only half of their reputation.
OSU committed 22 turnovers and missed a season-high 15 free throws in a Big 12 road opener Tuesday night, falling 79-71 to Baylor in front of 6,837 fans at Ferrell Center.
"I think the effort was there," OSU forward Marcus Dove said. "We competed the whole game. Just turnovers killed us and free throws killed us."
The Bears scored 29 points off OSU turnovers and extended the Cowboys' road losing streak to 15 games, matching the fourth-longest road skid in school history. The Pokes entered the game with the Big 12's best free-throw shooting percentage, but made only 18-of-33 foul shots.
Despite the aforementioned, OSU was in position to win a road game for the first time since beating Kansas State on Feb. 4, 2006. The Cowboys erased deficits of seven points in the first half and six points early in the second half. The score was tied with 12:27 remaining.
That's when freshman guard James Anderson, OSU's leading scorer this season, was helped to the bench with an ankle injury.
Baylor went on a 16-6 run after Anderson's injury to build a 10-point cushion and blunted Cowboy comeback attempts to improve 14-2 for the first time since the 1945-46 season.
"I didn't know we had a season back then," said Bears coach Scott Drew, whose program is off to a 2-0 Big 12 start for the first time since the 1997-98 season.
OSU came to Waco with a five-game winning streak and left with a record of 10-6 overall and 1-1 in league play. The Cowboys will get another chance to end their road losing streak Saturday at Iowa State.
Junior guard Terrel Harris scored 23 points, one shy of a career-high and his most ever in a Big 12 game, to lead the Cowboys, but he also committed eight turnovers.
Harris acknowledged afterward that his turnovers helped the Bears get their transition game unleashed. He and Dove both said the Cowboys have got to play "smarter."
Last season in Waco, OSU fell behind by 18 points and scrambled to catch up. This time, the Cowboys were in contention until the end.
Progress? "I was really proud of our effort," coach Sean Sutton said. "We competed hard enough from that standpoint to win the game and had opportunities where we were down 12 and down 10 again and kept fighting back. That's one of the positives we can take out of this game. But you can't turn it over 22 times and you can't miss 15 free throws and expect to beat a good team."
OSU cut a 10-point deficit to four with five minutes left, then Baylor scored seven unanswered points and pushed the margin to 12. The Cowboys charged back within four points and had possession in the final minute, but Byron Eaton was called for a charging foul while driving past Aaron Bruce with 24.7 seconds left.