Cowboys Battle Back, Can't Finish in Loss at BYU

OSU cut its massive deficit to three but couldn't do much from there.
Jan 11, 2025; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Oklahoma State Cowboys head coach Steve Lutz calls a play against the Utah Utes during the first half at Jon M. Huntsman Center. Mandatory Credit: Rob Gray-Imagn Images
Jan 11, 2025; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Oklahoma State Cowboys head coach Steve Lutz calls a play against the Utah Utes during the first half at Jon M. Huntsman Center. Mandatory Credit: Rob Gray-Imagn Images / Rob Gray-Imagn Images

Oklahoma State’s season is getting rougher.

On Tuesday, the Cowboys fell 85-69 at BYU to fall to 1-4 in conference play and somehow managed to lose in multiple fashions. Unsurprisingly, the first fashion the Cowboys lost in was a blowout.

In addition to losing by 16, OSU’s first half looked all too familiar to some of its other performances in the first 20 minutes this season. In that first half, OSU shot 8-of-31 from the field and trailed 46-26 at halftime.

Not only were the Cowboys down 20 at the half, they were down 42-15 near the end of that first half. Unlike their other contests, where they went down big in the first half, OSU showed some fight for the first time and battled back into the contest.

On the first play of the second half, BYU nailed a 3-pointer to extend its lead to 23. Then, the Cowboys made a couple of big runs to make the game competitive. 

A couple of 3-pointers from Jamyron Keller helped the Cowboys make a 10-0 run to cut into the deficit. With the game back within striking distance, OSU allowed a couple of free throws from BYU, but those were the only two points OSU allowed in a nearly seven-minute stretch.

Trailing by 15 at that point, the Cowboys mustered a 12-0 run with their offense looking alive for one of the first times in Big 12 play. Bryce Thompson’s free throws with 13:23 left in the game cut OSU’s deficit to three and capped an extended 22-2 run.

However, the Cowboys were unable to get any closer from there. Over the next couple of minutes, BYU extended its lead back into double figures, where it would remain for the rest of the night. While OSU got down early and took another loss in Big 12 play, the fight Steve Lutz’s team showed is encouraging as conference play rages on.


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Ivan White
IVAN WHITE

Ivan is a sports media student at Oklahoma State University. He has covered OSU athletics since 2022 and also covers the OKC Thunder for Inside The Thunder and Thunderous Intentions.