Oklahoma State Shooting Better, Spending More in Steve Lutz’s Second Season

STILLWATER — The Cowboys have been at or near the bottom of the Big 12 in 3-point shooting for some time now, something that correlates with the fact that the Cowboys have made the NCAA Tournament just once in the past eight seasons.

But second-year coach Steve Lutz said Monday that he has seen an uptick in his newest group’s ability to put the ball in the basket.

“Going into Year 2, number one, you’re a lot more comfortable,” Lutz said. “You’re not as rushed, and I think that we’ve had an opportunity to build a team that probably fits the way I’d like to play a little bit better. What I mean by that is I think at times, we were really strapped last year in terms of being able to score. If we didn’t score in transition, if we didn’t get to the free-throw line, we had a hard time scoring baskets. …

“This team’s shown the ability to put the ball in the basket. I feel comfortable with the fact that I think we’ll be able to still play at the same pace, but hopefully when we pass the ball and somebody’s wide open in the corner, we’ll have an opportunity to make it. Sometimes last year we were more concerned with getting the offensive rebound than making the 3.”

Lutz has just two scholarship returners from last season’s squad, meaning the Cowboys hit the portal hard. OSU brought in seven players who were at different schools last season and another two from overseas.

OSU also had more time to use the portal this offseason, as Lutz wasn’t hired until April 1 of last year, meaning OSU had to attack the portal on the fly.

In order to hit the portal hard in 2025, you need some funding, and Lutz said OSU has taken steps there, as well.

Lutz said they referred to the stretch of time between the portal opening and July 1 as the “Golden Window.” College athletics ticked over into revenue sharing on July 1, meaning it was important to get NIL deals in beforehand, essentially giving programs two pots of money to use this offseason.

“We had one individual who’s a great friend in particular that jumped in, and jumped in with both feet,” Lutz said. “And we had a lot of people that built off that and helped pile on top of that.

“We had more. Plain and simple, we had more. But, we also had more time to recruit. When the entire year was going on, and you’re hearing about people in the portal. Well, last year when I was hearing about people in the portal, I was at Western Kentucky, and Coach (James) Miller was at Mississippi State and this guy was at that school. So, now you’re at Oklahoma State, and you have an opportunity to evaluate people before they hit the portal.”

Based on the analytics the program keeps track of during offseason workouts, Lutz said the shooting numbers have been much higher this offseason than they were the last. He also said the Cowboys’ assist-to-turnover ratio is in a better spot now than it was this time last year.

“We went into the recruiting process knowing that we needed to be better offensively,” Lutz said. “We knew that, so we tried to remain cognizant of that. We passed on some good players that maybe offensively just weren’t what I wanted. I’ve always said that I’d like to have four players on the floor at all times, one through four, that can pass, handle and shoot, and we didn’t always have that.

“There were times where certain players on the floor would have the ball at the 3-point line, and they’d guard them at the elbow. I don’t think that that’s going to be the case nearly as much this year. We even have a chance to have five people on the floor that can spread the floor and shoot the 3. We’d be a little bit smaller, but it’s a fun way to play.”