Demuth Provides Spark for OSU Bench Against UTSA

The Cowboys opened up their home game against UTSA on Wednesday with little energy and looked flat on their way to an early 7-0 deficit. While the Road Runners were at the free throw line scoring their seventh point, Mike Boynton decided to substitute freshman forward Duncan Demuth into the game. We saw it as well in the season opener against Charlotte, but Demuth plays with a lot of fire and intensity, and this is just what the Cowboys needed last night.

Marshall Scott covered Demuth’s night in his Five Thoughts but I wanted to dive in a little deeper below.

Demuth entered the game and grabbed Oklahoma State’s first offensive rebound(s). He wasn’t able to score but went up strong and drew a foul sending him to the free throw line. He would miss both free throws, but he was the first Poke to crash the offensive boards aggressively in this game, and it got the crowd and his teammates going.

A few plays later, he assisted in creating a turnover for the Cowboy defense on the perimeter and showed he’s capable of playing with this aggressiveness on both ends of the floor.

From that point, OSU would go on a 35 to 13 run, and although they didn’t close out the half particularly strong, they headed to the locker room with the lead.

Here’s what Mike Boynton had to say about the freshman’s play upon entering the game.

“I thought Duncan Demuth was the catalyst for us getting going,” Boynton told reporters. “… That’s just who he is and what you expect from him. His stat line doesn’t look great, but there’s no question his play, his emotion and his energy turned the tide of our game.”

Along with bringing the intensity, Demuth also showed off his skills scoring the basketball. He created for himself off the dribble in the high post with this nice turnaround jumper in the lane.

In addition, he found space in the UTSA zone and hit this short corner jumper in the second half. This shot was one of Mitchell Solomon’s specialties, and if Demuth can show accuracy from this area, it will be a huge plus for the Cowboys.

Although he didn’t finish here, he once again showed he isn’t afraid to create for himself off the bounce.

A season ago, Oklahoma State looked for energy off the bench from guys like Tavarius Shine, Brandon Averette and Yankuba Sima, but coming into 2018 there was some question as to who would now assume this role.

It’s still early on, but Demuth is showing signs of being the spark off the bench for this Cowboy squad. With all of the hype, and rightfully so, around newcomers Isaac Likekele, Yor Anei, Michael Weathers and Mike Cunnigham, Demuth has flown somewhat under the radar, however, I don’t expect that to be the case much longer.