Oklahoma State Picked Fifth in Big 12’s Preseason Basketball Poll

The Big 12 basketball coaches think the Cowboys will battle for a spot in the top half of the league this season.

The Big 12’s Preseason Poll released on Thursday, and the Cowboys were tied for fifth with Texas Tech. Here look at the full poll:

1. Baylor (5) — 77 points
2. Kansas (4) — 73 points
3. Texas (1) — 64 points
4. TCU — 58 points
T5. Oklahoma State — 42 points
T5. Texas Tech — 42 points
7. Oklahoma — 32 points
8. Iowa State — 30 points
9. West Virginia — 20 points
10. Kansas State — 12 points

Fifth isn’t a bad prediction for OSU. The Cowboys’ 8-10 Big 12 record last season tied TCU for fifth, and their 11-7 conference record had them fifth in 2020-21, as well (the three teams ahead of OSU in the COVID-riddled year were 11-6).

In every season under Mike Boynton, the Cowboys have finished at or above their projection in the preseason poll — never below. So, a betting man could conclude the Cowboys will finish in the top half of the year again this season.

OSU returns three of its four leading scorers from last year in Avery Anderson (12.1 points per game), Bryce Thompson (10.6) and Moussa Cisse (7.2). Anderson was named to the conference’s preseason team on Wednesday, where Cisse was an honorable mention.