Oklahoma State basketball: 3 takeaways from 74-63 loss to Kansas
By John Scimeca
Oklahoma State basketball lost its Big 12 Conference opener against Kansas last night by a score of 74-63.
The Jayhawks, ranked No. 6 in the latest AP poll and now 12-1 (1-0), are a team that looks talented enough to challenge Baylor for the conference title after the Bears won the national championship (with the Big 12 regular-season’s best record) last season.
OSU, on the other hand, falls to 7-5 (0-1) with the home setback. Isaac Likekele led the Cowboys with 16 points, 12 rebounds, three assists, and three steals.
Here are three takeaways from the Cowboys’ loss:
3. Bill Self still has a losing record vs. OSU in Stillwater
OSU alumnus and Kansas head coach Bill Self has been in Lawrence for 19 years now, a number that seems almost unbelievable in this come-and-go age of college athletics. But even in 2022, the former Edmond Memorial star can be seen on the Jayhawks sidelines, barking at players and urging on his team.
With the win last night, Self’s Jayhawks teams are now only 7-8 against the Cowboys in Gallagher-Iba Arena. It’s an impressive feat — and a testament to the typical home-crowd advantage that seemed shoddy last night — against a Kansas team that has reached the Final Four three times (including one national title) in addition to a slew conference titles.
OSU was able to hang around in this game due to its lockdown defense. During one stretch to end the first half and begin the second half, the Cowboys held the Jayhawks to an 0-for-20 shooting slump.
If the Cowboys can hit more jump shots (they shot only 35.7 percent overall from the floor), they will put themselves in a better position to win games against quality Big 12 competition.