Carroll leads Oklahoma State to win in SEC/Big 12 Challenge (Jan 28, 2017)
STILLWATER, Okla. (AP) Jeffrey Carroll scored 20 points and grabbed seven rebounds, Phil Forte had 18 points and six assists, and Oklahoma State beat Arkansas 99-71 on Saturday in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge.
Forte, a sixth-year senior, shot 4 of 9 from 3-point range to become just the seventh Big 12 player ever to reach 300 made 3-pointers. He also broke the Oklahoma State school record of 299 set by Keiton Page from 2008-12. Page is now OSU's assistant director of player development.
''It's definitely a moment I won't forget,'' said Forte, who tied the record with 10:59 remaining and set it with 5:21 to go, sending the sellout crowd of 13,611 into a frenzy. ''Seeing how my teammates reacted is what made it so special - just their reaction on the bench and them coming up to me and high-fiving. It was definitely fun to do in front of our fans.''
Jawun Evans added 16 points, seven rebounds and eight assists for the Cowboys (13-8), who won their third straight after a six-game losing streak.
Jaylen Barford scored 21 points to lead Arkansas (16-5), which saw its four-game winning streak snapped. Barford scored Arkansas's first seven points, then didn't score again until early in second half.
''They just outplayed us,'' said Arkansas coach Mike Anderson. ''I thought we'd have a much better performance, but when you go on the road, you've got to make shots. We didn't make shots early on, we didn't get stops. It seemed like we were a step slow.''
Oklahoma State started quickly, amassing early leads of 9-0 and 14-2, while the Razorbacks missed their first four shots and five of their first six.
Arkansas pulled within 25-17 with 10:22 left in the opening half, but the Cowboys went on an 18-5 run over the next five-plus minutes to push the advantage over 20. Oklahoma State led 59-33 at halftime.
BIG PICTURE
Arkansas: After battling back from a 15-point deficit in the final 6:02 to win 71-70 at Vanderbilt on Tuesday, the Razorbacks couldn't put together back-to-back miracle comebacks. They had difficulty slowing down Oklahoma State's potent offense, allowing 59 first-half points and 99 overall, both season-highs. After four straight SEC wins, Arkansas will undoubtedly be happy to get back to their conference schedule.
Oklahoma State: The defensive changes that sparked the Cowboys to two straight Big 12 victories helped them again in this one, limiting Arkansas to 41.4 percent shooting (24 for 58), while connecting on 54.3 percent of their shots from the floor (19 for 35) in the first half and 50 percent (33-of-66) overall. It was their third straight game hitting the 50 percent mark.
LETDOWN
Arkansas' leading scorer Daryl Macon, who entered averaging 14 points per game, was shut out for the first time this season. Macon, who had scored in double digits in all but four games, shot 0-for-8 from the floor, including 0-for-6 from 3-point range. He also had one rebound and one assist in 25 minutes of action, while picking up three first-half fouls. ''He just didn't play well,'' Anderson said. ''And in order for us to be that team that we know we're capable of being, he's got to play well.''
HE SAID IT
''I don't want to jinx it, but maybe we're growing,'' Oklahoma State coach Brad Underwood said of his team's winning streak after a six-game skid. ''We've (opened up early leads) in some other games and we've let our guard down. We talk about that at length, growing up, and playing the possession for what it's worth and not playing the scoreboard. I hope we're growing up. I'm not going to say I'm sold on it yet, but we're getting there.''
UP NEXT
Arkansas resumes SEC play on Wednesday at home against Alabama.
Oklahoma State returns to Big 12 action on Monday, traveling cross-state to take on rivals Oklahoma in what is locally known as a ''Bedlam'' matchup.
