Kashie Natt Just Misses Triple Double in 93-85 Homecoming Exhibition Win Over Tulsa
STILLWATER – Wow, that was what most of the estimated crowd of 2,000 fans thought after watching Oklahoma State transfer Kashie Natt go up and down the floor, contort to get to the basket, put up three-points, and play defense. Natt did it all in Oklahoma State’s second of three exhibition games, this one a freebie for fans and against neighboring Tulsa. Natt played defense to and his efforts combined with those of his teammates led to a 93-85 win to even the exhibition mark at 1-1. Oklahoma State had lost to New Mexico 99-89 back on Oct. 11.
It wasn’t just Natt, but his 26 points, 12 rebounds, and nine assists stood out. After Tulsa jumped out to an early lead. The really early advantage came after Oklahoma State missed on their first possession and then bungled the transition defense allowing Tulsa’s freshman guard from Dale, Okla, Denton Forsythe to knock down an open three. That triggered a quick time out that allowed Cowboys head coach Steve Lutz to offer his team an immediate and forceful reset.
After that the Cowboys settled in and while they exposed Tulsa inside with constant drives and successful passes into the post, it was Natt’s drives and noticeable energy that dominated the Cowboys image from the floor. Natt had a follow-up slam dunk off a missed shot from his fellow Sam Houston transfer in Jacob Walker.
“I think the put back dunk on my miss," Walker said of his top Natt highlight. “I saw him coming, but it was still a crazy play.”
“It felt great, I ain’t going to lie,” Natt said about doing that in front of the crowd. “I’m not used to playing in front of this many people, even though it wasn’t a lot of people. It was to me. That energy made me play harder for the team and for the people in the stands.”
Another play that clearly was a memory on the afternoon was a quick pass from post Ben Ahmed out to Natt. Natt followed Ahmed to the basket and completed a picture perfect give-and-go for one of his nine assists and two of Ahmed’s four points.
Oklahoma State led at the half 45-40. They had outscored Tulsa 26-to-6 in the paint and they had shot nearly 61 percent from the field. Natt had 12 points at intermission.
Freshman Latrell Allmond had eight points at halftime and finished second in scoring with 14 points. Walker had 12 points and Anthony Felesi ahd 10.
In the second half, he really turned it on with a drive from the left corner neat the OSU bench and big lay up to make it 49-40, at that point the biggest lead in the game. Later he switched hands midair on a drive to the rim and that lay up made the score 57-46, again the biggest lead. Finally he nailed one of his two threes for an 82-70 lead.
“Natt was sensational, his energy level,” said Tulsa head coach Eric Konkal. “Every time we went on a run and he found a way to make a basket.”
“His energy and his effort is contagious and it doesn’t stop,” Lutz said adding he had been told that about Natt. “it is every single day whether practice is at 7 a.m. or 7 p.m. That young man is just special in that regard.
“I’ve had like 11 NBA teams come through here and I’ve told them allthat he is special,” Lutz went on. “He effects your winning, he effects your locker room and effects your culture. You want him on your team no matter where you’re at.”
The biggest disappointment was that Tulsa hit 16-of-38 three-pointers and shot 42 percent from three and 43.5 percent from the field. The Cowboys finished with the paint advantage of 50-to-18 points. Huge. They outrebounded Tulsa 34-29.
“I think we played more together defensively and then offensively we shared the ball better,” Natt said of the improvement. “Then we stayed together throught it all. There were times we didn’t have our best offensive stretches and then we came back to the bench and pulled together as a team. That is what it’s all about.”
What Oklahoma State fans hope it’s all about is Natt being somewhere consistent on that superlative effort. The next chance will be in Madison Wisconsin on Tuesday in the final exhibition against the Wisconsin Badgers.
“Natt was sensational, his energy level,” said Tulsa head coach Eric Konkal. “Every time we went on a run and he found a way to make a basket.”
