No. 10 Longhorns Handle Oklahoma State in 2nd Half, Sweep Season Series
The No. 10 Texas Longhorns hosted the Oklahoma State Cowboys at the Moody Center Tuesday night looking for their first season sweep over the Pokes since 2016.
And behind 8 of 13 shooting from 3-point range and 50.9 percent from the field against one of the best defenses in the conference, the Longhorns (17-3, 6-2) came away with a convincing 89-75 win over the Cowboys (11-9, 3-5).
Tuesday's contest was a far cry from the first meeting in Stillwater on Jan. 7, which ended in a 56-46 Texas win. Both teams posted what is still their season-low scoring marks in that game, but fortunately there was a solid mix of both offense and defense in the second meeting.
Marcus Carr once again led the way for Texas with 21 points on 7 of 11 shooting while Timmy Allen (17 points) and Dylan Disu (12 points, eight rebounds) dominated the scoring from the front court.
Brock Cunningham posted a career-high 15 points on 5 of 6 shooting and 3 of 3 from deep, as he had some key makes in the second half that helped seal the win before the Cowboys could mount a potential comeback.
OSU forward Kalib Boone dominated the interior with 18 points behind a few early dunks, while guard John-Michael Wright added 18 points of his own. But the Cowboys only got a combined 17 points from leading scorers Bryce Thompson (11 points) and Avery Anderson III (six points), as the latter fouled out with five minutes left in the game.
The Horns jumped out to an early double-digit at 17-6 behind a pair of triples from Carr. But the Cowboys hardly looked like an offense ranked dead last in scoring in the Big 12, as they bounced back and responded to cut the lead to three at 33-30 with under five minutes left in the first half.
But Texas led 40-32 headed into the locker room and didn't look back. OSU was never quite out of striking distance midway through the second half, but the Longhorns never allowed the Cowboys to snag the momentum they needed to make things interesting late.
The Longhorns were able to create a significant gap in the second half after Cunningham and Tyrese Hunter nailed back-to-back 3s to build a 69-58 lead. Texas, which was in the bonus for half of the second half, was able to salt away at the game with accuracy from the foul line and from deep.
Texas now enters what is arguably its most brutal stretch of the season, as the Horns will visit the No. 4 Tennessee Volunteers on Saturday for the Big 12/SEC Challenge before matchups with the Baylor Bears, Kansas State Wildcats and Kansas Jayhawks.
You can follow Zach Dimmitt on Twitter at @ZachDimmitt7
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