By Ryan Steele
STILLWATER NEWSPRESS (STILLWATER, Okla.)
KANSAS CITY, Mo.
March 13, 2008 08:57 pm
—
In the first half, Oklahoma State junior Byron Eaton wasn’t much of a factor.
In the final 20 minutes, all he was missing was a giant ‘S’ on his chest and a cape.
Eaton, who was held scoreless in the opening period, recorded 12 points in the second half and came up with a crucial steal late in the game as the ninth-seeded Cowboys edged No. 8 seed Texas Tech, 76-72, in the first round of the Big 12 Tournament at the Sprint Center on Thursday.
“Byron really came back,” said OSU coach Sean Sutton. “I challenged him at halftime that he had to be the best point guard on the court. He made a lot of big plays down the stretch.”
Late in the second half, which saw 18 lead changes and seven ties, sophomore Obi Muonelo hit a jumper that tied the game at 65-65, and on TTU’s next possession, Eaton stole the ball and passed it to junior Terrel Harris, who was fouled by Martin Zeno on a fast-break layup attempt.
Harris knocked down both free throws, and the Cowboys (17-14) never trailed again. Eaton, who picked up his third foul with 3:38 left in the first half, committed just one turnover in 33 minutes of action.
“(Sutton) told me I needed to come in there and run my team, and I think I’ve been doing a great job of responding to his challenges,” Eaton said. “Every game is a challenge for me to guard (the opponent’s) point guard and play the way I should play.”
A putback by Charlie Burgess narrowed the gap to 74-72 with 21 seconds left, and when Eaton missed the front end of a one-and-one on the next possession, the Red Raiders (16-15) had an opportunity to send the contest into overtime.
However, Burgess turned the ball over with 5 seconds remaining and a pair of free throws by freshman James Anderson provided the final margin.
Anderson led the Cowboys in scoring (18 points) and rebounding (eight) and also posted a key block late in the contest. Harris added 12 points and freshman Martavius Adams came off the bench and chipped in with 10 points in 17 minutes.
The Cowboys, who have won seven of their past 10 since ending a six-game losing streak, meet top-seeded and sixth-ranked Texas in Friday’s 11:30 a.m. quarterfinal, which will be televised on ESPN Plus and ESPNU.
“I’m happy to get this first round behind us and hope we play better (Friday) against an outstanding team,” Sutton said. “I think they’re a legitimate Final Four team. (D.J.) Augustin is as good as anybody in the country and they’re explosive in transitions.”
The Longhorns have won four consecutive games against O-State since last season’s 105-103 triple-overtime thriller at Gallagher-Iba Arena. They won, 63-61, in Stillwater on Jan. 21 and claimed a 62-57 victory in the regular-season finale last Sunday in Austin.
Also, UT defeated the Cowboys, 69-64, in the semifinals of last season’s Big 12 tourney. Friday’s winner advances to Saturday’s 1 p.m. semifinal. A victory for OSU would be one step closer to history — no team has ever claimed the conference tourney crown by winning four games in four days.
Ryan Steele writes for Stillwater (Okla.) NewsPress.
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