The Cowboys' Cold Shooting Night Derails Any Hope Of An Upset

OSU's bad night shooting the ball gave them no shot of beating the No. 8 Jayhawks.

Oklahoma State Cowboys center Parsa Fallah (22) reacts during a men's college basketball game between the Oklahoma State Cowboys and the Kansas Jayhawks at Gallagher-Iba Arena in Stillwater, Okla., Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2026. | BRYAN TERRY/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Oklahoma State’s upset hopes were shattered fast. 

The Cowboys welcomed No. 8 Kansas to Stillwater on Wednesday night, in hopes of shocking the world and putting themselves back into NCAA Tournament talks. The Pokes soon learned that this dream would not become a reality. 

The Jayhawks didn’t necessarily outplay the Cowboys, as the Cowboys won the battle on the offensive boards and even the turnover battle. The problem for the Pokes was that they flat-out couldn’t seem to put the ball in the basket.

OSU came out of the game cold, shooting 9-29 in the first half. This caused the Cowboys to go into the break down 43-29, a deficit the Pokes would never recover from. 

The Pokes would finish the game shooting 35% from the field, and an even worse 25% from three. It seemed like no amount of hustle or grit could overcome this issue, especially with the Jaywaks shooting 46% from both the field and from beyond the arc. 

Parsa Fallah did all he could to help the Cowboys, scoring 21 points, but in the end, it wasn’t enough. OSU’s usual sharpshooter, Anthony Roy, had an off night as the senior guard shot 4-14 from the field and 3-10 from three. 

This fatal flaw in OSU’s shooting would ultimately be the Pokes downfall and cost them an opportunity for the team’s third ranked win of the year. However, now, it might have cost the Pokes a shot at the postseason altogether. 

With only five games remaining, the Cowboys don’t seem to have a clear path to a bid in the 64-team tournament. OSU could technically go undefeated the rest of the season and finish the year with a win over No. 2 Houston, but not only is that a long shot, but it might not even secure a bid. 

The only guaranteed way for Oklahoma State to make the tournament would be to make a run in the Big 12 tournament. This would require OSU to take down some of the best teams in the nation, including this Kansas team that had no trouble walking into Stillwater. 

The future for the Pokes seems grim, but the light at the end of the tunnel hasn’t faded all the way out just yet. If the Cowboys can make a run late in the season, they still have a chance to go dancing come March. However, to do this, they must leave this poor shooting night behind them and never replicate it again.