Oklahoma State Can't Allow Big 12 Tournament to Define Season

The Cowboys are set for tipoff in Kansas City.

Jan 10, 2026; Ames, Iowa, USA; Oklahoma State Cowboys head coach Steve Lutz watches his team play the Iowa State Cyclones during the first half at James H. Hilton Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Reese Strickland-Imagn Images | Reese Strickland-Imagn Images

Oklahoma State’s results in Kansas City shouldn’t define this season.

Going into the Big 12 Tournament, OSU’s hopes of making it to the NCAA Tournament are rather slim, especially considering it may already be out of the running for an at-large bid. Even a loss in the conference title game might not be enough to get the Cowboys onto the right side of the bubble, but that shouldn’t be the focus.

Whether OSU is able to run the table and put together a magical run or loses to a Colorado team that it’s already 0-1 against in the first round, this season will continue to be about much more than the postseason results. Overall, this season hasn’t exactly gone according to plan, but there has already been plenty for OSU to build on going into next season.

With Steve Lutz’s second season in Stillwater nearly in the books, his ability to win in the Big 12 is still a bit uncertain, but there have been some positive signs. Ironically, the most encouraging sign for Lutz and the future of Cowboy basketball might be the team’s performance in the nonconference, where it suffered only one loss.

However, that Bedlam loss foreshadowed some of what OSU would deal with in Big 12 play. With several tight losses and a few crushing blowouts, the Cowboys’ losses came in all shapes and sizes against conference competition.

While the overall results might not have pleased OSU fans throughout the year, the resiliency shown by the Cowboys is still something worth paying attention to. Although there were some games where OSU looked outmatched and unprepared from opening tip, it mostly played in games where it had a chance to win in the second half, which is more than some OSU teams from previous years could say.

Obviously, the goal isn’t to simply be better than the previous Cowboy teams that also missed the tournament, but it is something that has to happen for OSU to achieve its goals. As the Cowboys’ first tipoff in Kansas City looms, they know their season is on the line.

Ultimately, this season won’t be remembered all that fondly in the long run on its own, but it could certainly be viewed as a turning point for the program. It’s unfortunate for OSU that it was unable to have the Big 12 success it once appeared destined for this season, but the road to becoming a great team might just be the road the Cowboys are on.