Oklahoma State Conquers A&M Press with a Nifty Practice Ploy, Coaching Matters

STILLWATER – We’ve said here since the day he was hired that Steve Lutz is a good basketball coach. You don’t graduate from years as an assistant and then make it to the NCAA Tournament your first three seasons as a head coach without being good, without having learned lots of lessons, and without having a few tricks up your sleeve. It sounds like Lutz pulled out one of those in practice this week to prepare his team for a Texas A&M team that loves to press and pressure.

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Isaiah Coleman (21) goes after a loose ball.

“It was fantastic (only nine turnovers), we saw where everybody was,” Isaiah Coleman explained. “It started in practice all week as we were going five on eight in practice. When you are doing that hard in practice, practicing hard, it becomes easier to do that out here in the game.”

“As you know, Texas A&M presses for 40 minutes, press the whole game, so our point guards, our forwards did a great job and also the big men we were supposed to get down the floor and when we beat it we would have a lay up,”  Parsa Fallah explained on the Cowboy Radio Network to Dave Hunziker. “When they pressed us, we did not want to slow down, we wanted to score.”

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Fallah goes up for a rebound against Texas A&M.

“We prepared all week for this,” Lutz said of the Aggies press without going into detail.

Five-on-eight in practice, that works both ways, offense and defense and it did for the Cowboys. The 87-63 win over Texas A&M will draw some big attention on an Oklahoma State team that turned the ball over only nine times while forcing 15 by the Aggies. Oklahoma State didn’t shoot as well as they are capable with a solid 48 percent from the field, but only 27 percent from three-point range. They can be better, but the visitors could only shoot 32 percent from the field and 27 percent from three-point range.

“It was the best defense so far this season,” added Fallah, who had a steal and a blocked shot to go with his seven rebounds and 10 points. “It was the best defense as a team and individually. We did a great job and the offense just flowed.”

Oklahoma State outrebounded A&M 42-39. 

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That’s a great shot above the rim.

“Guys were sharing the ball and they were turning down good shots for great shoots. We only turned the ball over nine times and that’s what happens,” assistant coach Keiton Page said. “The guys and Coach Lutz had an unbelievable game plan and they executed it.”