Bedlam: Previewing Monday Night's Matchup Between OU & OSU

Oklahoma and Oklahoma State will square off in the first Bedlam basketball matchup of the season on Monday night at 8 p.m. inside the Lloyd Noble Center.

Related: OSU Dominates Arkansas As Cowboys Remember The 10

Here are a few things to know about the Big 12 matchup:

Cowboys playing well

After dropping six consecutive games to open conference play, Brad Underwood’s squad has completely flipped the script as of late by winning their last three games in blowout fashion against Texas Tech, TCU and Arkansas.

The Cowboys were clicking on all cylinders in their most recent win against the Razorbacks as Jeffrey Carroll scored a team-high 20 points while Phil Forte III drained four 3-pointers and Davon Dillard dazzled a sold-out GIA crowd with a pair of monster dunks.

With daunting matchups against No. 18 WVU and No. 5 Baylor looming in OSU’s future, it’ll be important for the Pokes to stay focused on a winnable matchup with the Sooners.

Sooners struggling

After back-to-back promising wins over Texas Tech and then No. 7 WVU, the Sooners completely collapsed in heartbreaking losses to Iowa State and Texas before getting run off the court in Saturday’s 32-point loss to No. 25 Florida.

Despite the three-game skid, the Sooners do have some positives to build on for the future. True freshmen, Kameron McGusty and Kristian Doolittle, are really coming on as of late and both guys are capable of hitting big shots. McGusty is averaging 16.7 points over the last four games while Doolittle is averaging 16 of his own during that span.

Jordan Woodard has been OU’s most important player this season, but the senior has struggled over the last two game and failed to score in the loss to Florida. With Woodard’s OU career coming to a close at the end of this season, it’s important that younger players such as McGusty, Doolittle and Rashard Odomes continue to improve and build confidence.

Last time these two teams met…

OU picked up a 71-49 win over OSU as Ryan Spangler led the way for the Sooners with 26 points on 10-for-13 shooting to go with 14 rebounds. Buddy Hield added 17 points as OU’s limited the Cowboys to only 34-percent shooting from the field as Jawun Evans sat out with a shoulder injury.