Oklahoma State Beats St. Thomas 80-71

STILLWATER – Oklahoma State moved to 2-0 under head coach Steve Lutz as the Cowboys took care of business against St. Thomas, 80-71.

Marchelus Avery had himself a game, leading the way with 23 points on 8-of-12 shooting, 6-of-8 from the free throw line, with three steals. Arturo Dean was down the scoring list with just four points, but he recorded nine rebounds, eight on the defensive end five assists and four steals.

Bryce Thompson and Patrick Suemnick both scored in double figures, with Thompson finishing with 11 points on 4-of-10 shooting from the field, three assists and one steal. As for Suemnick, he also scored 11 points, but on 5-of-6 shooting, with two steals.

As a team, the Cowboys shot 45% from the field, just 27% from 3-point range and 71% the free throw line. It was dead even on rebounding at 37 to each side, but the Cowboys outscored the Tommies in points off the bench 49-8, in fast break points 26-8 and forced 20 turnovers, leading to 20 points. 

“Obviously, I’m happy to get a win today, but I don’t think we played our best basketball, especially in the second half,” head coach Steve Lutz said on the Cowboy Radio Network. “There were stretches in the first half where defensively we were locked in and we communicated well, and we were physical and aggressive. Then I think as the second half unfolded, we started to worry more about our personal endeavors than our team winning this basketball game. That part was very disappointing. It’s a 40-minute game and we’ve got to learn to be able to play and string together 40 consistent minutes.”

The Cowboys jumped out to a 19-8 lead over the Tommies midway through the first half, before going on a nearly three-minute scoring drought making it a one-point game on the other end, 19-18, with just under seven minutes. 

The Cowboys responded with another run of their own, going up 28-18, which was punctuated with a steal by Patrick Suemnick, leading to a fast break dunk on the other end. He did, however, pick up a technical foul as he held onto the rim just a touch too long and stared down a St. Thomas played on the way back down to the court.

Thompson scored the last points of the first half as he stole the ball following a bad pass from Carter Bjerke, leading to another fast break dunk, making it a 33-23 game going into the break.

The Pokes finished the first half shooting 42% from the field on 13-31 shooting, while outrebounding the Tommies, 22-17 and forcing 11 turnovers. The Cowboys had eight turnovers on the other end, with St. Thomas scoring nine points of the turnovers.

The game got close down the stretch as the Tommies were able to keep it fairly close to an 11-point game in the final seven minutes, including multiple instances where they made it a nine-point game. Kendall Blue hit a layup with 35 seconds left to make it a nine-point game, 77-68. Blue then drilled a 3-pointer with 28 seconds left to make it an eight-point game, 79-71, before Khalil Brantley hit a free throw a few seconds later. Brantley scored eight of the Pokes’ final 19 points of the game.

The Cowboys are back in action this coming Thursday, Nov. 14, as they play host to Southern Illinois. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. and will be streamed on ESPN+.