Four Things to Know Before Oklahoma State Hosts Arizona State

The Cowboys got a couple extra days off following a hard-fought road loss to No. 5 Houston on Tuesday. Now they’ll return home to face a Big 12 newcomer for the first time in nearly three decades.

Oklahoma State hosts Arizona State on Sunday, marking the first time the two teams have met since 1997 (20 years before James Harden went there). It will be the first time the Sun Devils have played in Stillwater since a year earlier in 1996.

The Cowboys and Sun Devils each sit at 3-8 in Big 12 play, but the Cowboys are 8-2 (3-2) at home on the year while the Devils have lost their last two (both at home). Let’s take a look at the matchup and three things you should know before Sunday.

1. The Sun Devils Spread the Ball Around

Four of Arizona State’s starters are averaging double digits in BJ Simmons (12.9), Basheer Jihad (12.5), Alson Mason (11.7), Adam Miller (10.3) with Jayden Quaintance sitting just below the line at 9.8 ppg. Off the bench, Joson Sanon makes five in scoring 11.2 points per game. That’s a lot of weapons that can fill it up making team defense that much more crucial for the Cowboys.

“Yeah, Arizona State’s very talented,” said Steve Lutz on Thursday. “Offensively, they do a lot of things that put you in tough positions. They’ve got size. They’ve got shooting. They’ve got scoring. They’re a really, really good basketball team. I’ve been very impressed with watching them on video, so we’ll have to be on top of our game defensively.”

2. 3 and D

The Sun Devils are a volume 3-point shooting team with a slew of 3-and-D guys.

ASU is the only team to rank in the top five in both 3-point shooting and 3-point defense in the league.

The Sun Devils average five more 3-point attempts per game than the Cowboys, who rank last in the league 3-point attempts. ASU’s Miller is shooting 46.1% from 3, and Sanon is shooting 41.8%, further putting pressure on the Pokes both to play sound defense and to understand that even with a lead, the Devils can put up points fast and they have the ability to keep the Cowboys from getting hot on the perimeter.

3. Opportunities to Get Out and Run

The Sun Devils rank 14th of 16 Big 12 teams averaging 13.4 turnovers per game (OSU averages 13.5), but they force only 11.5 per game (third-fewest).

The Cowboys have cleaned things up of late.

In the past two games, a win over Utah and a close road loss at Houston, the Cowboys combined for just 21 turnovers. They had 41 in the previous two losses t K-State and Texas Tech. If they can string together a third consecutive game below their TO average — and force a couple extra against the Sun Devils — they’ll have a chance to play their best type of ball.

4. OSU Finally Keeping it Close

Before the Cowboys’ win over Utah on Feb. 1, they had not had a single-digit result in their first nine conference games (either way). They then beat Utah by nine and lost to Houston by nine. That’s may seem like a cherry-picked stat (it is, a bit) but it does show progress.

If the Cowboys can make up for the potential 3-point threat by winning the turnover battle and beat the Devils on the boards, it will go a long way toward helping them get back above .500 on the year.

The Cowboys and Sun Devils tip off at 1 p.m. Sunday inside Gallagher-Iba Arena.