It took Oklahoma State a bit of time to get settled in, but they jumped out to an 18-point lead in the second half, then held off a surging Southern Illinois team late for a 85-78 win in the program’s 3,000th game.
Oklahoma State is 0-2 the past two seasons against Southern Illinois, a team you can't lose against if you have any expectation of playing in the NCAA Tournament.
A big bruiser with a soft touch, 6-foot-10 forward Mekhi Ragland has signed a National Letter of Intent to play basketball at Oklahoma State beginning in 2025-26.
Oklahoma State head coach Steve Lutz met with the media on Tuesday to discuss the first two games of the season and to look ahead to Southern Illinois.
The first thing apparent was the ode to Iba and Sutton with man-to-man defense and that left Lutz needing to knock off the former Cowboy he invited for his Cowboy opener.