Oklahoma State entered the NIT as a losing team.
Now it has a chance to make the NIT semifinals as a winning team.
The fourth-seeded Cowboys host second-seeded North Texas Tuesday night in Stillwater with a trip to Indianapolis for next week’s semifinals at stake.
Oklahoma State got there by upsetting top-seeded SMU 85-83 Sunday in Dallas when Brandon Newman intercepted Tibet Gorener’s inbounds pass with one second left. Abou Ousmane hit the go-ahead shot, a turnaround jumper, with 33 seconds remaining.
Bryce Thompson pumped in 24 points, one off his career high, to lead the team. The Cowboys (17-17) shot 50.8 percent from the field and made 10 of 21 3-pointers.
“I appreciate them and their character and their resolve,” Oklahoma State coach Steve Lutz said. “There’s a lot of teams across the country that would have just packed it in, right, and just not competed throughout the season. There’s a lot of teams that just never would have gotten their head above water.”
Thompson leads the Cowboys in scoring at 12.9 ppg, while Ousmane hits for 12.4.
Meanwhile, the Mean Green (26-8) also advanced in dramatic fashion, nipping Arkansas State 65-63 on Sunday night in Denton, Texas, when Jasper Floyd sank a turnaround jumper with two seconds left. The shot capped a fine all-around effort for Floyd, who finished with 18 points, five rebounds and four assists.
“We were able to make one more play at the end,” said North Texas coach Ross Hodge. “That’s usually what it comes down to this time of year.”
North Texas finished second in the American Athletic Conference behind Memphis but lost in the AAC semifinals to UAB, dropping it into the three-letter tournament.
Drake transfer Atin Wright leads the Mean Green in scoring at 14.9 ppg but managed just three points on Sunday night. They play at a slow tempo, averaging just 68.2 ppg, but are good on free throws (77.4 percent) and 3-pointers (36.0 percent).
North Texas stopped Oklahoma State in the NIT quarterfinals two years ago in Stillwater on its way to the tournament title.
–Field Level Media
