Five Thoughts on Oklahoma State’s 95-92 Overtime Loss to TCU

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STILLWATER — The Cowboys took part in a heck of a basketball game on Saturday, but in the end, their NCAA Tournament chances took another hit.

Oklahoma State lost to TCU 95-92 in overtime. The Cowboys’ path to OT was improbable, but once they forced the extra five minutes, they couldn’t quite find a way in front.

The loss moves OSU to 16-9 on the season and 4-8 in Big 12 play.

Here are five thoughts on the game.

1. The Point of Separation OSU Couldn’t Quite Recover From

This was a competitive basketball game throughout, but the Cowboys were always the chasers.

Anthony Roy hit his first 3 of the day with 14:17 to play in the first half, cutting TCU’s lead to 15-13. But then Horned Frog point guard Jayden Pierre hit back-to-back 3s before Micah Robinson went 1-for-2 at the foul line. That quick 7-0 run gave TCU a 22-13 lead with 12:48 to play in the half, and if felt like OSU was trying to make up that difference for the rest of the game.

It felt like the Horned Frogs always had an answer to push the Pokes back to arm’s length.

OSU capped off a 9-2 run with a Jaylen Curry 3-pointer, cutting TCU’s lead to 24-22, but then Xavier Edmonds stepped into a 3 on TCU’s next possession, starting a 6-0 run.

Roy hit a 3 early in the second half to cut TCU’s lead to 47-45 just for the Horned Frogs to respond with a 7-0 run.

A Christian Coleman dunk cut TCU’s lead to 55-51, and David Punch instantly hit a 3. OSU had a 7-0 run to cut the lead to 66-64, TCU responded with a 6-0 run.

It was  the tale of Sisyphus. The Cowboys were just constantly pushing the boulder uphill all game.

Of the 45 minutes, OSU trailed for 43:26 and were tied for 1:34. The Cowboys didn’t lead all night.

2. The Wild End to Regulation

The final eight seconds or so of regulation maybe could’ve had its own feature film.

Down 83-80, Jaylen Curry dribbled the ball across midcourt with about 12 or so seconds to play. Steve Lutz tried to call a timeout when Curry got into the frontcourt, but the arena was too loud that Lutz was left there hollering and making a T with his hands. Finally, he ran up behind the closest referee on the floor and got the timeout with 7.3 seconds to play. Needless to say, the Cowboys nor their fans were excited about the time that was lost.

TCU then fouled Curry on the inbound, sending him to the foul line with seven seconds flat to play. He hit both the foul shots to make it 83-82, TCU.

The Cowboys then fouled, but TCU split a pair, giving OSU a shot with less than six seconds to play.

Curry dribbled the ball down the floor and attempted a heavily contested 3 that clanged off the glass but right into the waiting hands of Parsa Fallah, who quickly laid it back in to tie it and send it to overtime.

There was also a substitution hiccup in that final 10 seconds that took what felt like five minutes of real time. It was a chaotic close.

3. Fallah Was Dominant

That putback at the end of regulation meant Fallah scored 15 points in the second half alone.

He finished with 27 on 10-for-13 shooting. He hit another 3 and went 6-for-7 from the foul line, which was extra notable considering OSU went 10-for-16 at the stripe outside of Fallah. He also tied the team-high with six rebounds.

Fallah started the second half with his hair on fire, scoring the Cowboys first eight points of the frame — three layups from the low post and a pair of free throws.

He also sounded exactly like what you’d want your leader to sound like given the tough loss.

“It’s hard, man,” Fallah said. “Losing games like that that we needed to win, it really is hard. But, I refuse to give up on this team, and I think all the players and all the coaches, we can not give up now. We understand that fans might be mad, and they have the right to be mad, too. But we got a game on Wednesday, and we got (six) more games to go. We have the Big 12 Tournament, and we got a good team. We’re right there. We’re just a step short.

“We’re not gonna give up, but it’s tough. It’s really tough. I don’t think any of the players will be happy right now and smiling, but at some point tomorrow, we just have to come back, get some work in and let it go.”

4. Curry, Ahmed Provide Some Juice Off the Bench

In a game the Cowboys never led, Jaylen Curry was +16 off OSU’s bench, meaning the Cowboys were 16 points better than the Horned Frogs with Curry on the floor.

There was about a minute-long stretch late in regulation where Curry nearly took the game over.

He had a steal that led directly to a layup.

On OSU’s next possession down the floor, Curry got doubled coming off a ball screen, but he was calmly able to find a wide open Ben Ahmed under the basket for a big slam.

Curry then got another steal on TCU’s ensuing possession before hitting a corner 3 on the other end.

Over about 1:15, Curry had five points, two steals and an assist. He finished with 12 points, three rebounds, four assists and those two steals.

Ahmed’s pops weren’t quite as evident, but he’s a menace defending the low post and on the glass.

In 14 minutes on the floor, Ahmed scored four points on three shots and had five rebounds and a block. He was +9 in those minutes.

It wasn’t all the prettiest. He had an ugly turnover and went 0-for-2 from the line, but it was another stock-up day for the freshman.

5. The Tourney Chances Update

The Cowboys’ NCAA Tournament hopes might be on life support, but they aren’t dead yet.

Losing to TCU was a bit of a double-gut punch in some ways, as the Horned Frogs were with the Cowboys on the bubble. This win counts as Quad 1 for the Horned Frogs because the Cowboys entered the day in the Top 75 of the NET. The loss also pushes OSU to 6-3 in Quad 2 games.

You could argue how likely it is that OSU can make a tournament push at this point, but the opportunities are still there.

There are still four Quad 1 games left on the Cowboys’ schedule. Colorado could make that five if the Buffaloes can get from 79 into the Top 75 of the NET.

Don’t tell Lutz what is and isn’t possible over the final six games.

“Who the hell is giving up?” Lutz said. “Nobody should be giving up. We have a chance to still go to the NCAA Tournament. Last week when bracketology came out, we’re in. We did not play well at Arizona State. TCU’s right on the bubble with us, so did we need to win this game? Absolutely, but you got Kansas. You beat Kansas, you’re right back where you need to be. …

“I don’t see anybody that’s quitting. I don’t see anybody that’s hanging their head around here. That’s not how things work at Oklahoma State. You gotta be tough. This league, it ain’t for the weak. I’ve told y’all that before. And we’re not weak, and we’re not soft. Now, we’re not perfect, but we’re not weak and we’re not soft. I promise I can look every one of you in the eye, I can look at all 7,000 of those people that were here tonight, and I can assure them that we will not quit.”

Postgame News Conference

Up Next

Who: Oklahoma State vs. Kansas
When: 8 p.m. Wednesday
Where: Gallagher-Iba Arena
Watch: Peacock