Recap: Cowboys Beat Gottlieb’s Green Bay, Start Lutz Era with Win

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STILLWATER — Steve Lutz and Doug Gottlieb were separated by just a point at the half, but Lutz’s up-tempo Pokes closed well to start the season with a win.

Oklahoma State beat Green Bay 89-76 on Monday night in Gallagher-Iba Arena in a game full of pace for the Pokes. OSU had 73 possessions against the Phoenix. Lutz, in his first year as the Cowboys’ coach, used tempo to great success at Western Kentucky last season, being the No. 1 team in KenPom’s adjusted tempo metric. The Cowboys flew up and down the floor, resulting in 31 layup attempts and a trio of dunks. It also helped the Cowboys force 19 turnovers, 11 of which were steals.

The Cowboys led 51-48 with 16:15 to play before rattling off a 14-2 run over the next five and a half minutes or so. OSU would hover around that 15-point lead for the rest of the game. It got as high as 22 points.

Bryce Thompson led the Pokes in scoring, pouring in 22 points on 9-for-13 shooting. He was also 4-for-5 from 3-point range. Thompson scored 13 of his points in the second half, where he made all three of his 3-point attempts.

Abou Ousmane (16), Davonte “Devo” Davis (10) and Marchelus “Chi Chi” Avery (10) joined Thompson in double figures. Ousmane led the Pokes with eight rebounds, and Khalil Brantley led the way with four assists.

Lutz wasn’t happy with his defense, especially in the first half where Green Bay shot 58% from the field and 58% from 3-point range. Gottlieb’s Phoenix led for about the first 12 minutes before the Cowboys ripped off a 9-0 run to take their first lead.

Anthony Roy, a transfer from right down the road in Langston, was the catalyst to Gottlieb’s offense. He finished with a game-high 27 points, making seven of his 13 3-point attempts. Marcus Hall added 21 points and brought down seven boards.

Jeremiah Johnson, a true freshman who was at one point signed with OSU, was in the starting lineup for Green Bay. He finished his first college game having played 18 minutes and scored five points. Isaiah Miranda, who was with the Cowboys for a brief stint last season, played just three minutes and had a dunk.

The Cowboys were able to counteract Green Bay’s hot shooting performance thanks to getting on the offensive glass, making free throws and forcing turnovers. Nineteen Phoenix turnovers led to 27 OSU points. Nineteen OSU offensive rebounds led to another 20 points for the Pokes. Then the Cowboys got to the line 24 times and made 21 shots (88%).

So, the Lutz era starts with a W, and it was a good look at the up-tempo style Lutz is implementing. Game No. 2 is at 2 p.m. Sunday when the Cowboys host St. Thomas. The game will be on ESPN+.