Cowboys Set to Open Season with Exhibition Against Ouachita Baptist

STILLWATER — On Monday, Oklahoma State revealed its first projected starting lineup for the 2018-19 season-opening exhibition game against Ouachita Baptist.

The starters were graduate transfer Mike Cunningham, juniors Thomas Dziagwa, Lindy Waters and Cam McGriff, and freshman Yor Anei. On Tuesday, OSU coach Mike Boynton said that lineup is by no means set in stone. Cunningham also pulled a hamstring Monday and didn’t practice Tuesday. Boynton said it wasn’t anything major, but there isn’t a need to rush Cunningham back.

“This isn’t the type of game that I’m going to make him play 30 minutes in,” Boynton said. “We think he’ll be ready. We think he’ll play, but if he’s not, then we’ll give some more minutes to somebody else.”

Boynton said he doesn’t know too much about Sunday’s opponent Ouachita Baptist. The Tigers played an exhibition game against Philander Smith College on Thursday that Ouachita Baptist won 90-70. Ouachita Baptist is a Division-II school that plays in the Great American Conference. The Tigers were 12-16 last season.

“You really don’t know much about the opponent to be honest,” Boynton said. “It’ll be that way for probably the first few games in the season. Our first game at Charlotte, they’ve got a lot of new players and a new coach. So, we’ll be guessing in a lot of ways.”

The Cowboys are learning more about themselves, thought. The team went on a three-game tour in Europe this summer and also had a closed-door scrimmage against Wichita State on Oct. 21.

ICYMI the Cowboys battled @GoShockersMBB in a closed-door scrimmage yesterday and @thacoachmike liked what he saw. #c2e #okstate pic.twitter.com/OiLFH8U8UH

— Cowboy Basketball (@OSUMBB) October 23, 2018

Anei was an apparent standout from Wichita.

“Yor was as impressive a player as there was on the court in Wichita, and I’m talking both teams,” Boynton said Tuesday.

On Sunday, Gallagher-Iba Arena will get it’s first view of a basketball team — with seven newcomers — that was picked last in the Big 12. Boynton said he is looking forward to seeing how steady his young team can be.

“Probably the thing I’m looking forward to the most is: How consistent can they play?” Boynton said. “Not how well necessarily, but how consistent can they be in terms of their effort and focus? It’s really hard to get young people to understand that because it’s not something that has been really important so far.”