Big 12 Hoops Preview: Oklahoma State to Start Big 12 Tourney Against Iowa State

If Oklahoma State wants to make the NCAA Tournament, or get a solid seed and host during the NIT, they need to make a run in the Big 12 Tournament and that starts with Iowa State

• 2020 Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship
[8] Oklahoma State (17-14, 7-11) vs [9] Iowa State (12-19, 5-13)
Date / Tipoff: March 11, 2020 / 6 p.m. CT
Site: Sprint Center (18,972)
Series: Tied 66-66 (OSU leads 12-7 on neutral courts)
Last: OSU won 73-61 on Feb. 29 in Stillwater
TV: ESPNU (Rich Hollenberg, Chris Spatola)
Radio: Cowboy Radio Network (Dave Hunziker, John Holcomb)
Satellite Radio: Sirius 135, XM 199

STILLWATER – If Oklahoma State wants a berth into the NCAA tournament, or to host an opening round game of the NIT, the road starts tonight against Iowa State in the Big 12 tournament.

Obviously, for the Cowboys to make the NCAA tournament, they’d need to win the Big 12 Tournament. Will that’s not out of the realm of possibility, the more likely outcome will be a high enough seed to host the opening round of the NIT.

All of that starts against a struggling, a depleted Iowa State team in the opening eight-nine game of the Big 12 tournament.

The Cyclones have been without star Tyrese Haliburton for the last half of Big 12 play as he fractured his wrist against Kansas State in early February.

Now, to add more injury to insult, the Cyclones might be without two of their top remaining players in Rasir Bolton and Prentiss Nixon. Bolton, who’s averaging 14.7 points a game this season, missed the game against Kansas State this past Saturday as he was in concussion protocol. As for Nixon, he injured an ankle against Kansas State and both are questionable for tonight’s game.

The Cowboys enter this game playing their best basketball of the season. They’ve won seven of the last 10 game with senior Cameron McGriff averaging 20 points a game the past two weeks.

“It’s kind of part of the plan going in,” OSU coach Mike Boynton said. “I think throughout the course of the year you can be many things. We obviously showed early that we’re capable of having success. Then we had some moments in the middle of the year where we weren’t as good. Credit to these kids for not giving in to the outside noise and continuing to believe the messaging that was delivered inside the building. All the credit goes to them for finding a way to find success again here late. I feel good going into the conference tournament that we’re a team that can continue to win.”

While this might look like an easier game from the outside, the Cowboys still have to be mindful entering this game and not looking ahead to Kansas, who the winner will face Thursday.

“We met with our team before Senior Day and just talked about finishing strong, whatever that looks like,” Boynton said. “For our young guys to understand that one day they’ll be seniors, and I want them to play in a way that, they don’t understand this, right, that they would want people to play for them three years from now.”

Again, tipoff for Oklahoma State and Iowa State takes place Wednesday night at 6 p.m. on ESPNU.