STILLWATER – Oklahoma State put together a valiant second-half effort, outscoring No. 9 Iowa State 50-33. But the comeback bid fell short as the Pokes lose the Remember the Ten game, 84-71.
With the loss, the Cowboys drop to 14-6 overall and 2-5 in Big 12 play.
This game was the very definition of tale of two halves as the Cowboys posted probably the best and worst halves of the season.
Starting with the first half, the Cowboys were outscored 51-21 in the first frame, shooting a paltry 31% from the field on 8-of-26 shooting and just 19% from 3-point range on 3-of-16 shooting. For comparison, the Cyclones shot 62% from the field and 53% from 3-point range.
Then a totally different OSU came out of the locker room in the second half. The Pokes outscored the Cyclones 50-33 in the second frame, shooting 47% from the field on 14-of-30 shooting and 43% from 3-point range on 6-of-14 shooting. They also turned things around from the free throw line as they were 16-of-21 in the second half, compared to 2-of-2 in the first half.
They steadily chipped away at their 30-point deficit throughout the second half, with the biggest chunk coming in a 9-0 run near the middle of the second half.
Kanye Clary and Jaylen Curry were the second-half catalysts for the Pokes. Curry was the leading scorer in the first half with seven points and finished with 19 points, dropping 12 points in the second. Clary scored all 19 of his points in the second half on 5-of-6 shooting from the floor, 2-of-3 from 3-point range and 7-of-8 from the free throw line.
The Cowboys were outrebounded 36-27, outscored 28-22 in the paint, but outscored the Cyclones off the bench 35-3 and forced 18 turnovers to 14, leading to 25 points for the Pokes to just 15 for the Cyclones.
The Cowboys are back in action next Saturday as they travel out to Salt Lake City for a match up with Utah.
