Five Thoughts on Oklahoma State’s Loss to Baylor

BOX SCORE

Just as Oklahoma State handled TCU this week with no problems, Baylor handled the Cowboys on Tuesday with no problems. The Cowboys suffered their first conference loss of the season at the Ferrell Center in Waco, 79-62, and moved to 9-5 on the season, 1-1 in conference play. I had five thoughts on the game. Here we go…

1. OSU’s size is a problem

Total OSU rebounds: 18. Total Rico Gathers rebounds: 17. It seemed like the only defensive rebounds the Pokes gathered were rebounds that already went through the net for the Bears. When you don’t have any player with more than 2 rebounds at half, you’ve got a problem – whether you’re playing Rico Gathers or not.

Jawun Evans and Tavarius Shine lead #OKstate with seven points at half. Evans also has seven assists.

No Cowboy has more than two rebounds.

— Mark Cooper (@mark_cooperjr) January 6, 2016

2. Jawun Evans is something serious

Evans only downside is his size, which he has learned to turn into his own advantage. He’s quick, elusive, and consistently has his eyes up the floor looking for guys to come open – and even taking advantage of his speed by attacking the lane to look for his own shot. He’s truly the quarterback of the team; he can pass, reads the defense extremely well, and has excellent vision. He sees things develop before they develop, and that’s what you want from a point guard. 8 points, 9 assists, and only one turnover on the night. He’s not one-and-done good, but he’s already an incredible point guard at this level.

https://twitter.com/GottliebShow/status/684551083130273792

3. Travis Ford has been watching OSU football game film

OSU dug themselves in a serious hole in the first half, which was just devastating to try and overcome. They finished the first half on an 11-5 run, but still went into the break down 12. They cut it to as close as three, but turnovers and a blatant inability to rebound was too difficult to overcome. Big 12 play is going to be tough, and playing from behind is going to make it much more difficult – especially on the road.

4. The BIG-MAN lineup took too long

It took until 15:00 left in the second half to insert both Allen and Solomon together, after they were demolished down low all night by Gathers. I like the idea, but…. couldn’t you try that maybe, at the start of the game? Or did it take until halftime to realize that Rico Gathers was murdering the glass?

OSU got out-rebounded 44-18 on the night. Just brutal.

5. Jeff Carroll must be more aggressive

I think Carroll wants to have the Klay Thompson, shoot-it-from-deep-every-time game, but he was at his best when he was aggressive. There’s a reason everyone calls him Clip – the kid can shoot. But his aggression at the end of the game was huge, and if he can get going early, he can get his confidence up. Not only that, but penetrating the lane can also open things up for teammates outside. They need him to be more aggressive when he’s in the game.

Example:

Carroll’s dunk for #OKState pic.twitter.com/wrfWylZBET

— Cowboy Basketball (@OSUMBB) January 6, 2016

Next up: OSU travels to Morgantown to face West Virginia Saturday