College Basketball

Oklahoma State Basketball: Takeaways From KU

Updated Mar. 4, 2020 6:39 p.m. ET

Fansided, Jake Lanier/FanSided via Pokes Post

Dec 30, 2016; Stillwater, OK, USA; Oklahoma State Cowboys guard Phil Forte III (13) dribbles past West Virginia Mountaineers guard Teyvon Myers (0) during the second half at Gallagher-Iba Arena. WVU won 92-75. Mandatory Credit: Rob Ferguson-USA TODAY Sports

You don’t often come away from a loss feeling better about your season than you did before the game, but that’s exactly what happened for the Cowboys today.

Oklahoma State lost to Kansas on the court Saturday. A loss that stung, not going to lie, it stung. But we are okay. We’re getting better under a first year head coach in arguably the best conference in the nation. Yes we are 0-5 in the Big 12. But 3 of those 5 loses came against teams currently ranked in the top 10. Two of those were on the road. One of those happened today, and here are my takeaways from the loss.

Nov 22, 2016; Lahaina, Maui, HI, USA; Oklahoma State Cowboys forward Mitchell Solomon (41) takes a shot against North Carolina Tar Heels guard Joel Berry II (2) during the Maui Jim Maui Invitational at the Lahaina Civic Center. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports

No. 5: Mitchell Solomon was an animal today

The 6-foot-9 junior big man from Bixby, Oklahoma played the best game of his 2 1/2 year career at Oklahoma State Saturday. Solomon had a career high 16 points, shooting 6-6(!) from the field and adding 4 more points at the line. The numbers for Solomon don’t jump off the page at you but it’s important to have context on his stats. Solomon scored 0 points in the first half, and only had 6 points with 6 minutes left in the game. After the 6 minute mark, Solomon went on a personal 10 point run scoring all of the Cowboys points, while adding in 3 offensive rebounds, a steal, and a massive, crowd silencing block on the defensive end of the court. For about a 3 minute stretch late in the game Mitchell took over. The announcers compared him to Big Country. Then he fouled out on a questionable call and Kansas extended their lead and never looked back. If Big Mitch can continue to play the way he has in the past 2 games, he could make a real difference for the Cowboys down the stretch.

Jan 27, 2016; Stillwater, OK, USA; Oklahoma State Cowboys guard Jawun Evans (1) during the second half against the Baylor Bears at Gallagher-Iba Arena. Baylor won 69-65. Mandatory Credit: Rob Ferguson-USA TODAY Sports

No. 4: It’s starting to feel like Jawun Evans will be back next year

Our star point guard continues to struggle since he injured his shoulder in mid-December. While he did have 15 points and 6 assists, the 15 points came on 6-22 shooting from the field. That’s not going to get the job done. Your best player cannot shoot under 30% and expect to help win games. Along with the poor shooting, Evans turned the ball over 4 times, which does not seem like too high over a number on the surface but a few of those turnovers were in very key situations for the Cowboys. At times Evans shows us that he is one of the top guards in the country. At times he looks almost lost on the court. Frank Mason had his way with Evans guarding him in the second half. I think Evans would benefit greatly from another season of Brad Underwood’s tutelage.

iDec 14, 2016; Stillwater, OK, USA; Oklahoma State Cowboys guard Lindy Waters III (21) shoots the ball defended by Arkansas-Pine Bluff Golden Lions forward Marquis Cunningham (12) during the second half at Gallagher-Iba Arena. Cowboys won 102-66. Mandatory Credit: Rob Ferguson-USA TODAY Sports

No. 3: The Freshman

This freshman class will do great things for OSU basketball one day, but we must be patient with them. Averette, Waters, and N’Guessan all played more than 10 minutes and all had good moments and bad ones. Waters hit a huge 3 to stop a Kansas run in the second half but also had two bad turnovers and was even called for a flagrant 1 late in the game. Averette had the most positive impact on the game out of the Cowboy’s freshman as he played 15 minutes without a turnover. We need more from N’Guessan but what we need from him isn’t something he is capable of at the moment. He’s just too skinny right now, he gets pushed around in the paint sometimes and ends up fouling when he can’t defend a bigger player. Yes all of the freshman have struggled and will continue to have growing pains, this class seems to have that “it” factor that is so important in sports. Lindy Waters three that I previously mentioned was a big boy shot, and he will continue to improve through conference play. As will the rest of the freshman. Underwood is setting the Cowboys up for big things in the future by throwing so many freshman into the fire this year. Trust the process.

Nov 23, 2016; Lahaina, Maui, HI, USA; Oklahoma State Cowboys forward Jeffrey Carroll (30) lays the ball in against the Georgetown Hoyas during day three of the Maui Jim Maui Invitational at the Lahaina Civic Center. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports

No. 2: Jeffrey Carroll continues to shine

Carroll lead all scorers with 23. He added 7 boards and 3 assists as he continues to be the Cowboy’s most consistent player offensively. Carroll has made a one year leap unlike any Cowboy in recent memory. After averaging 8.2 PPG on 41% shooting a year ago, Carroll has upped those numbers to 16.4 PPG on 57% shooting from the field. It seems like when Carroll has the ball in his hand and he looks to attack the basket, he cannot be stopped. Add in his 40% shooting from behind the arc, and you’re looking at one of the best players in the Big 12 this year. I want to see the ball in his hands more in crunch time moving forward. I know Evans gets all the attention and accolades, but Carroll is playing at a much more consistent level right now and is healthier than Evans. If he can continue at this level of play and Evans gets back on track then we have a shot at ending this season on a high note.

Mar 1, 2014; Stillwater, OK, USA; Oklahoma State Cowboys fans storm the court after the game against the Kansas Jayhawks at Gallagher-Iba Arena. Oklahoma State beat Kansas 72-65. Mandatory Credit: Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports

No. 1: Officiating

You really thought we weren’t going to bring this up? It was horrific down the stretch. No Cowboy who played today had less than 2 fouls. That includes Cam McGriff who had 2 fouls in only 4 minutes of action. The Jayhawks shot 45 free throws today. The Cowboys shot 14. That is not a typo, Kansas really shot 31 more free throws than we did. Kansas’s star freshman Josh Jackson took 16 free throws by himself Saturday. He out shot the entire Cowboy team from the line. Kansas actually missed more free throws, 15, than the Cowboys took all game. Yes Kansas is better than us. Yes we are one of the worst teams nationally in terms of fouls per game, but in no game, college or professional should the difference in free throws taken be 31. That’s home cooking at it’s finest.