Oklahoma State’s Ability To Execute in the Post Was Too Much for Prairie View To Handle

STILLWATER – Oklahoma State beat Prairie View A&M 94-67 on Wednesday night at Gallagher-Iba Arena. With top facilitator Jaylen Curry out, the Cowboy offense was not as free flowing as it had been in previous games. 

“I was really surprised (Prairie View) came out in a zone,” coach Steve Lutz said. “We’ve got to do a better job preparing against the zone, and we’ve got to work on it.”

Leading scorer Vyctorius Miller once again led the Cowboys with 30 points, but the main difference came on the interior.

“I’ve always talked about what a good shooter he is,” Lutz said. “He also handled the ball really well tonight and was able to keep the ball moving.”

Oklahoma State won the rebounding battle 54-31. It also held the Panthers without an offensive rebound in the first half resulting in a 28-13 rebounding lead at the break.

“Coach works us on rebounding probably 45 minutes every practice,” guard Kanye Clary said. “It’s a big thing for him both on offense and on defense.”

The Cowboys won points in the paint 44-26 because of the rebounding advantage and the play of the forwards on the interior.

“We did a really good job of establishing in the post,” Lutz said. “We had 19 offensive rebounds for 23 points. Anytime you do can do that you’re going to be in a good position to win. We talked about needing to establish an inside presence and I thought we did that.”

The physicality inside did not mean fouls though for the Cowboys. Prairie View only shot 14 free throws to the Cowboys 27 and only shot four in the first 25 minutes of the game.

“The second half we did a better job of converting and rewarding ourselves,” Lutz said. “But having something like that carry over into the second half definitely helped us.”

Lutz believes that the ability to play inside on tough shooting days may be a staple for the Cowboys going forward.

“We did a good job getting stops and getting into transition late in the first half,” Lutz said. “I’m looking forward to having all of our guys back to see what our team really looks like.”