It’s been 20 years since Arizona and Oklahoma State faced off, an epic win for the Wildcats in the 2005 Sweet 16 sealed by Salim Stoudamire’s late jumper in Chicago.
(What happened the following game is irrelevant. Try not to think about that)
Now the Wildcats and Cowboys will be meeting as Big 12 foes for the first time, and the programs have gone in different directions since that last clash. While Arizona has remained a national power, OSU has only made six NCAA tournaments and failed to get out of the first weekend, with only one bid in the past seven years.
OSU (10-7, 2-4 Big 12) has a new coach in Steve Lutz, who had previous stops at Western Kentucky and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, losing 99-61 at Arizona with the latter in 2022.
To better understand this Cowboy squad, we reached out to Kyle Cox of Pistols Firing for some insight and a score prediction. Below are his friendly answers to our aggressive questions:
AZ Desert Swarm: Oklahoma State won only 12 games last season and is already at 10 victories just past the midpoint of 2024-25. How would you assess how things have gone for the Cowboys so far in Lutz’s first season?
Kyle Cox: “Well, I’d say it’s a mixed bag. With only three roster holdovers from last season, it was hard to know what to expect in Year 1 under Lutz. The team has played well in spurts—they had a nice second half in the loss to Houston and wins over K-State and Colorado—but there has been an overall lack of consistency and there’s some sentiment that they haven’t played to their potential given all the experienced talent on the roster. That’s somewhat forgivable in a transition year, but a little more consistency would go a long way.”
At 70.7 possessions per 40 minutes, OSU has a slightly faster tempo than Arizona but the efficiency numbers aren’t there. What has worked on offense and what continues to be a struggle?
“The Cowboys do like to get out and run and they’re at their best when forcing turnovers and getting into transition. That’s what can make them a fun team to watch. They’re not so strong in the halfcourt and that really boils down to a lack of the guy. OSU has guys that can score (Bryce Thompson, Abou Ousmane, Chi Chi Avery) but none have been able to create their own offense on a consistent basis.”
The Cowboys are one of the best in the country at getting to the line, and against Colorado attempted 42 free throws. Is this by design, and what happens if they don’t get the calls?
“The charity stripe served them well against Colorado and they took advantage. It seems to be a product of the aggressive style Lutz is trying to enforce. Before CU, the Cowboys’ FT attempts have been pretty consistent all year. That does highlight an interesting stat about their success at the stripe. Pulling out the Houston game in which they shot 83 percent, you can draw a line between OSU’s Big 12 wins and losses falling on either side of their FT percentage.”
Arizona is coming off its worst offensive performance of the season but has a ton of weapons and can put up big numbers. What will OSU try to do to negate this?
“The Cowboys will likely attempt to stick to their gameplan of getting into passing lanes in hopes of forcing turnovers to create fast break opportunities. Aside from that, it’s going to take some serious effort to try to contain Arizona’s weapons. But I’m sure they’ll be eager to put the Texas Tech performance out of their minds, which probably doesn’t bode well for the Cowboys.”
Both of OSU’s Big 12 wins have come at home, and it gave Houston a game in the conference opener. How would you describe the atmosphere that Arizona will be entering at Gallagher Iba Arena?
“GIA is a storied arena and fans are proud of its reputation, but numbers have been down as of late. I do think a visit from Arizona should make for a good turnout and a decent crowd.”
Prediction time. Does Arizona rebound from its loss at Texas Tech and stay in the hunt for the top of the standings or do the Cowboys pull off the upset? Give us a score pick.
“As unpopular as it might be around this corner of the web, I’ll have to go with the Wildcats in this one. Like you said, I think they just have too much firepower for an OSU team that is never quite sure where its points are coming from. I’ll say the Cowboys keep it close but Arizona takes it 75-69.”