Cowboys Need To Protect Their House With K-State In Town

Oklahoma State has proven capable of winning against the Big 12’s best, beating No. 7 Kansas and No. 19 West Virginia on the road and No. 4 Oklahoma at home. Problem is, the Cowboys have struggled against the bottom tier teams at home, losing by 13 to TCU and by 11 to Baylor in the past two weeks.

Tonight, Mike Boynton’s team gets another chance to protect Eddie Sutton Court with Kansas State (17-8, 6-6) in town. Opening tip is set for 6 p.m. CT.

Since 2013, Oklahoma State and Kansas State have faced off 13 times, and a grand total of 11 points scored has separated the two schools. In those 13 games OSU has scored 914 points and K-State has 925 points. The two teams have split the regular season series in each of the last five seasons.

K-State forward Dean Wade and OSU wing Jeffrey Carroll have joined TCU forward Vlad Brodziansky in an exclusive club - Big 12 players averaging at least 16 points and five rebounds per game in league play. Wade is have a phenomenal junior season, and is pouring in a team-high 16.2 points per game overall and 19.0 points in Big 12 play, which ranks fourth in the conference.

The switch has come on for OSU sophomore Cameron McGriff, who has posted a career-high 20 points in two of his last three games. He’s also OSU's most consistent free throw shooter at 85.9 percent from the line. McGriff had just two points and three rebounds in January’s 86-82 Wildcat win.

OSU will have to do a better job containing KSU guard Barry Brown. The junior had a career-high 38 against the Cowboys in Manhattan.