Arturo Dean Sets Impressive Oklahoma State Record in Big 12 Tournament
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Not everything went against the Cowboys in Kansas City.
On Tuesday, Oklahoma State’s Big 12 Tournament run ended after only one game with an 87-68 loss to Cincinnati. After OSU beat Cincinnati just a few days earlier in the regular season finale, there was hope that OSU could begin a solid run in Kansas City, with Iowa State, another team OSU recently beat, awaiting the winner.
Instead, the Cowboys flamed out in the first round of the conference tournament and might have ended their season at 15-17, barring any postseason tournament invites. Should the Cowboys’ season be over, they at least made a little bit of history in their loss against Cincinnati.
Against Cincinnati, OSU guard Arturo Dean finished with seven steals to tie the season-high he set against Iowa State a couple of weeks ago. His seven steals also set a new OSU record for most steals in a Big 12 Tournament game.
Before Dean’s impressive display on Tuesday, the Cowboys’ single-game steals record in the conference tournament belonged to Marcus Smart, who had six steals in the first round against Texas Tech in 2014.
Along with setting the new Big 12 Tournament single-game steals record for the Cowboys, Dean also moved onto the leaderboard for steals throughout an entire Big 12 Tournament with just one performance. Dean moved into a tie for fourth alongside Byron Eaton, Daniel Bobik and Marlon Dorsey. Smart’s 2014 run sits at third with eight, while Eaton’s 2009 run is tied with Doug Gottlieb’s 1999 performance for the top spot with nine steals.
Had the Cowboys been able to move onto the second round, Dean would have had a prime opportunity to set the new OSU record for a single tournament and also move into first for most steals averaged across a tournament.
However, the Cowboys couldn’t pull off back-to-back victories against the Bearcats and are awaiting their fate as they hope to make a postseason tournament. Even if the Cowboys can’t earn an opportunity to play more basketball this season, Dean’s performance against Cincinnati will stand in the history books in Stillwater.
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Ivan is a sports media student at Oklahoma State University. He has covered OSU athletics since 2022 and also covers the OKC Thunder for Inside The Thunder and Thunderous Intentions.