Reeling from back-to-back losses at home, Oklahoma State faces another upset-minded opponent on Monday night when it hosts Cleveland State in Stillwater, Okla.
The Vikings (6-2), the defending co-regular season champions of the Horizon League, have won six games in a row. They begin a difficult two-game stretch against Power Five opponents as they will face the Cowboys (6-3) before a road trip to Duke next week.
Oklahoma State couldn’t score the bounce-back win it was hoping for against Xavier after losing at home to Wichita State. The Musketeers’ switch to a 2-3 zone in the second half helped limit the Cowboys to only 7-of-26 shooting from 3-point range. Xavier won, 77-71.
The strategy neutralized a solid game from Avery Anderson III, who finished with 26 points. Anderson leads Oklahoma State in scoring with 11.1 points per game and is the only Cowboys player averaging double figures.
“It sounds like a repeating thing, honestly,” Oklahoma State forward Isaac Likekele said. “Teams come in here that don’t play zone, they come in here and play zone.”
Things have been much more on the upswing at Cleveland State lately.
Jayson Woodrich continues to be one of the catalysts for the Vikings off their bench during their win streak. He finished with 17 points and hit 5 of 7 3-pointers in an 85-75 conference win over Wright State last Saturday.
“I think the biggest thing for me is I trust what Coach (Dennis Gates) is doing,” Woodrich said. “I know my role. The biggest thing he always preaches to me is stay ready, whether I’m playing two or 20 minutes.”
D’Moi Hodge leads Cleveland State in scoring, averaging 12.9 points per game, and finished with 14 points against Wright State. Torrey Patton continues to fill the box scores as well, averaging 12.1 points, 6.7 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game. Patton’s 10 assists led a 22-assist performance against Wright State.
–Field Level Media