Oklahoma State-UT Martin Superlatives

The Cowboys opened up their non-conference season with a 91-57 victory over UT Martin on Friday. The team started slow, taking only an eleven-point lead into halftime, but a big second half run led to a convincing victory.

Here are some superlatives from the Cowboys opener:

Best Player: Phil Forte

If a poll was taken before the game on who would lead the team in points I’m pretty sure 90-95 percent of you would’ve said Forte. The senior guard lived up to expectations, scoring 24 points in only 26 minutes. Forte didn’t light it up from behind the arc in the game, only shooting 2 of 5. Instead, Forte attacked the lane and got himself to the free throw line where he 10 of his 11 shots. Forte lit it up exactly like he should’ve against any team from the Ohio Valley conference.

Best player (non-Forte): Chris Olivier

I think Forte is going to be the best player on the floor most nights so I came up with this category. Olivier impressed me more than any player did against UTM. He converted on 7 of his 8 field goal attempts for 14 points and he also added five rebounds in 18 minutes on the floor.

It was apparent that OSU was the bigger team in this game and they dominated in the low-block. Olivier used his polished post moves to score even while he was being closely guarded. Olivier already looks like the best threat the Cowboys on the inside.

Best play: Jeffrey Carroll

ICYMI: @J30Carroll had monster back-to-back dunks tonight on the Skyhawks. ? https://t.co/AbwIhV0jB5

— Cowboy Basketball (@OSUMBB) November 14, 2015

First of all, the near-full court pass from Jawun Evans was a thing of beauty on night where the freshman looked like, well a freshman. Carroll makes a James Washington-esque one-handed catch and the fact that he was able to keep his balance and dunk the ball was truly impressive. Carroll displayed some of his incredible athleticism, but I think we’ll see even more from the sophomore this year.

Worst moment: Tavarius Shine’s injury

Shine went down with a shoulder injury about seven minutes into the game. He later returned to the bench wearing a sling and an ice pack on his right arm. Coach Ford did not know the extent of Shine’s injury during his postgame press conference.

The one thing team’s want to avoid in these early non-conference games is injuries and unfortunately OSU could not do that on Friday. Hopefully the injury isn’t serious and Shine will return to game action soon.