Cowboys Hold off Hot-Handed ORU To Move To 5-0 on the Season

STILLWATER – Oklahoma State took care of business against ORU in the 23rd meeting between the two programs as the Cowboys won 83-78. With the win, Oklahoma State moves to 5-0 on the season, as well as taking an 18-5 lead over the Golden Eagles. The Pokes also extend their win streak dating back to last season to nine, the longest win streak for OSU since the 2005-06 season.

“I have a lot of respect for [ORU]; they’ve got a good team,” said head coach Mike Boynton. “We watched their game versus Missouri, watched their game versus Wichita State, they’ve got some talent. Credit to them, we didn’t just not play well, I know a lot of times we hear that. They play well, they’ve got a good team and they gave us some problems, problems we thought they could give us. So, I’m proud of our guys for finding a way to win. Obviously, we got some contributions from a few different guys tonight; I thought [Matthew-Alexander Moncrieffe] was really good, his effort early on and energy on the glass really helped us set the tone inside. I thought Keylan [Boone] was back to his rebounding self, really, really effective on the glass. Then Bryce [Williams] and Rondel [Walker] off the bench, those guys’ defensive presence and energy is becoming something we can really count on.”

It was freshman guard Cade Cunningham leading the way for the Pokes tonight as he finished with 29-points on 9-of-18 shooting from the field, 9-of-10 from the free throw line with four rebounds and three assists. The 29-points is the most by an Oklahoma State play since 2016 when Jawun Evans dropped 30-points against North Carolina in the Maui Invitational.

Fellow freshman Matthew-Alexander Moncrieffe also had a solid shooting night as he finished with 15-points on 6-of-9 shooting from the field with five rebounds.

As it has been in a few games to start this season, the game was a little close for comfort for the Cowboys. They went into halftime with a 32-31 lead, but the Cowboys shot just 28.6% from the field, 12.5% from three-point range and recorded zero assists.

The Pokes also allowed the Golden Eagles to light it up from three-point range as they went 7-of-16 on 44% shooting. They’d finish the game going 16-for33 from 3-point range. Leading the Golden Eagles was sophomore guard Max Abmas who finished with a career-high 36-points on 11-of-20 shooting from the field, 7-of-12 from 3-point range and nine assists. It also marked the second-straight game for the Pokes allowing a 30-point+ scorer.

However, Keylan Boone was very active on the boards as he recorded nine total rebounds, six of which came on the defensive end. Cade Cunningham led the way in scoring with 11 points on 4-of-12 shooting from the field, 1-of-3 shooting from three-point range and 2-of-3 from the free throw line in the first half.

As for the second half, it was sophomore center Kalib Boone who got things going for the Pokes as he scored six quick points putting the Pokes up 38-31. However, every time the Pokes started to pull ahead, ORU had an answer. With just under eight minutes remaining in the game, the Golden Eagles trailed just 57-53.

With just over seven minutes left, the Cowboys started to pull away a little bit more using the bonus. The Golden Eagles struggled in both halves with foul trouble and the Pokes were able to get to their largest lead of the night with eight, 63-55 with the help of free throws with 6:01 left in the game.

The Cowboys topped that with three and a half minutes left in the game with a bucket in the paint by MA Moncrieffe and Isaac Likekele on a put back after a steal by Rondel Walker on the ensuing inbounds to go up by nine.

The Golden Eagles held in there until the very end, but the Cowboys were able to continue to use the bonus to get to the free throw line to keep their lead. Cunningham was fouled with 4.2 seconds left to go in the game sending him to the free throw line where he sank both free throws to clinch an 83-78 lead and win for the Cowboys.

The Cowboys will now head up to Wichita to face the Shockers on Saturday, Dec. 12 with tipoff scheduled for 2 p.m. on ESPN+.