Oklahoma State Blown Out 102-80 by No. 15 Texas Tech in Big 12 Opener

Oklahoma State had a rude awakening in the Pokes’ Big 12 opener as they lost to No. 15 Texas Tech 102-80 down in Lubbock on Saturday.

With the loss, the Cowboys fell to 12-2 overall on the season and 0-1 in Big 12 play.

Anthony Roy led the Pokes in scoring with 22 points on 7-of-10 shooting from the floor, 6-8 of 3-point range and 2-of-2 from the free throw line. He also led the team with eight rebounds and four fouls. 

Parsa Fallah finished with 20 points on 7-of-12 shooting and Jaylen Curry finished with 13. 

Freshman Ben Ahmed played 17 minutes and recorded nine points on 4-of-4 shooting with five rebounds.

As a team, the Cowboys shot 43% from the floor, 31% from 3-point range and 74% from the free throw line. They were outrebounded 48-36 and turned the ball over eight times, while forcing seven on the other end. 

The Cowboys struggled offensive for most of the first half, trailing by as much as 16 points, with just over six minutes left to go until halftime. That’s when they the Pokes figured things out just a little bit, going on a 10-0 run in just over two minutes to make it a six-point game, 35-29, with 3:36 left in the half. That run included seven quick points from freshman big man Ben Ahmed.

The Pokes would get it down to a five-point deficit, 37-29, before Tech extended back out to a 12-point lead with one minute left in the half. But Parsa Fallah would not let things go without a field as he had four points in the final 37 seconds to make it an eight-point game, 46-38, going into the break. He was fouled, hit two free throws and a layup off a steal. The Cowboys had a chance to make it a six-point game as Jaylen Curry stole an in-bounds pass, but his shot was blocked at the buzzer.

The Cowboys shot nearly 38% from the floor and nearly 29% from 3-point range shooting 4-of-14 from deep. They were also 6-of-8 from the free throw line. They were outrebounded 28-19 but turned the ball over just two times. 

It was a similar start to the second half as the Red Raiders extended their lead back up to 13 points, 57-44, by the first media timeout. The Pokes hit the first bucket out of the break with an Anthony Roy layup to make it six points. But that’s when the Red Raiders went on an 11-4 run.

Unfortunately, unlike the first half, there was no magical run by the Pokes to cut their deficit down to single digits as the Red Raiders extended their lead up to 22 points just over five minutes left in the game, 84-62. The Pokes were able to get the game back to 17 points but no closer as the Red Raiders finished extended back up to 22.