Cunningham's Fast Start Keys Cowboys Over Cyclones

STILLWATER – Was it the artic temperatures and the snow? Was it the Tuesday matinee start? Maybe, it was all the talk about how Oklahoma State freshman sensation and expected future NBA Draft number one selection Cade Cunningham has been a slow starter in so many of the Cowboys games this season. I doubt that last one because Cunningham has told the media that he doesn’t listen to any of the noise outside his Oklahoma State basketball bubble.

The bubble Cunningham burst on Tuesday afternoon inside Gallagher-Iba Arena was that slow start one. Cunningham finished the first half with 15-points, four rebounds, four assists, a blocked shot and a steal and he finished with 21-points total as the Cowboys got above .500 in Big 12 Conference play with a 76-58 win over Iowa State. The Cowboys rose to 14-6 on the season and 7-6 in Big 12. The verdict kept the Cyclones winless in Big 12 play at 0-12.

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It was a powerful and versatile first half for Cunningham.

In that first half Cunningham did a little bit of everything as he opened his scoring with a three-pointer from the corner as he was 6-of-8 from the field. Next trip down the floor the super freshman drove down the right side of the lane and banked a kiss off the glass. The Cowboys completed a 7-0 run to jump out 9-5 when Cunningham drove down the middle and passed it to post Kalib Boone for one of his five first half dunks.

Later after a miss, Cunningham got one of his rebounds and then got the ball outside to Rondel Walker for a three-pointer, another of his assists.

“Definitely, we wanted to start off strong and make our mark in the first four minutes of the game before the first media time out,” Cunningham said after the game. “I think we did that and Avery (Anderson) and K.B. (Kalib Boone) were making plays and we fed off that.”

It didn’t lead to points, but Cunningham showed his toughness as he dove for a loose ball and save. The dive skinned up his knee and caused him to bleed on his tights. That meant a trip back to the locker room to change the tights and get rid of the bloody ones.

Maybe his best play was a defensive rotation where he got behind the offense and picked off an errant pass and took it down the floor, earned himself some space with a behind the back dribble, and then hit a midrange jumper in the paint for a 22-13 lead.

“I was just trying to find ways to get my teammates involved in the game and I played off the ball some there in the first half,” Cunningham said not talking about that play we described just previous. Bryce (Williams), Avery (Anderson), and Rondel (Walker) did a good job of getting me the ball but they made the plays and credit goes to those guys.”

“He does what we ask him to do to put us in a position to win,” head coach Mike Boynton said of Cunningham’s fast start in the first half. “I feel very confident that he has bought in to the habit of doing what it takes to help us win and helping his teammates along the way. I get it to whom much is given much is expected. He’s not above criticism but I do think there is a tendency to look at waht he could be doing better.”

Cunningham was involved in scoring or passing on 25 of the Cowboys 42 first half points and a 42-30 lead at the half. Honestly, it was not nearly as big a lead as you would have expected as Boone had his 10 points on dunks and Walker and M.A. Moncrieffe each had six points to chip in. The Cyclones were buoyed by four three pointers.

In the second half the two teams were slower starters on offense than in the first 20 minutes as it took 1:55 before points were scored and they were at the free throw line from Iowa State’s offensive leader Jalen Coleman-Lands. Cunningham was a big reason the Cowboys kept pace as his pass inside to Boone for an easy lay-up was his fifth assist.

Cade Cunningham came in on the day second in the Big 12 in free throw shooting and his first second half points came at the line and he knocked both down for a 48-35 OSU advantage. Cunningham did it all.

The second half Iowa State cut the Oklahoma State lead to single digits several times but it was never really in serious doubt. Oklahoma State felt in control. Cunningham’s three at the midway mark of the second half extended the Cowboys lead 58-47. Another pick and roll from Cunningham to Bernard Kouma made it 60-49.

The final dagger from my point of view was Cunningham hitting Walker for a three in the corner to make it 70-58 Cowboys.

Cunningham is working on and wants to be the fourth freshman in Big 12 history to lead the conference in scoring. Cunningham came in averaging 18.5 points and leading the Big 12. The others from most recent have been Trey Young (27.4) of Oklahoma, Michael Beasley (26.2) of K-State, and Kevin Durant (25.8) from Texas. Cunningham helped himself on Tuesday afternoon.

“I don’t think that was his (Cunningham) best game so far,” Kalib Boone said after getting many of his baskets and really dunks (15-points) off assists from Cunningham. “I think this may have been his game where he was most aggressive scoring, but not his best game overall.”

“He had two good days of practice and he played a good game,” confirmed Boynton of Cunningham. “I think we are missing out on a really talented young kid that isn’t going to be in college for very long. I get it that everybody wants to see him score 40 and get 15 assists. He’s having a helluva year and he is doing it getting everybody’s best shot. For the most part he shows up and performs at a pretty high level each night but he hasn’t always been as proficient as he was tonight.”

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One of six Boone dunks vs, Iowa State.

Six of Boone’s seven made baskets were dunks. He confirmed that was the most dunks he has had in one game in his college career, but he promied he would top it.

Cunningham had 21-points, seven assists, five rebounds, and three steals. He had help as M.A. Moncrieffe had a career high of 17-points and nine rebounds.

“(Pick and roll) was a big part of the game plan,” Moncrieffe said. “We knew we could get open and that Cade could get KB and me the ball. That is something we knew we could do.” 

Walker with 10-points, and Anderson with eight-points. Anderson also had five assists.

Jalen Coleman-Lands led Iowa State with 17-points.

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Likekele sat out the Iowa State game.

The Cowboys were able to rest veteran and junior point guard Isaac Likekele. It was the second game in a row the Cowboys glue player was able to sit out and rest his injured toe. It’s the basketball equivalent of turf toe. 

“Yeah, we are doing this without one of our best players,” Moncrieffe said. “I think we can get even better and keep taking our game up when we get Ice back.” 

“Glad we were able to rest him for the second straight game and still play a good game, play the game right,” Boynton said of Likekel. “I hope the next time we play he can be healthier and play even better for us.”

Now the Cowboys may not play for a week as just minutes before the start of the game Baylor announced that due to COVID-19 protocol the game on Saturday with the Cowboys in Waco has been postponed.

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