Oklahoma State has the postseason in its sights after being banned final season.
The NCAA punished the Cowboys after former assistant coach Lamont Evans accepted as much as $22,000 so he may assist steer athletes to sure monetary advisers. Evans was arrested as a part of a federal corruption investigation in 2017, and he pleaded responsible in 2019.
Oklahoma State performed within the NCAA Tournament in 2021 whereas the case was being appealed. The attraction was denied final November. With no shot on the NCAA Tournament and even the Big 12 Tournament, the Cowboys struggled and completed with a 15-15 file.
“It was a really, really difficult season for our team to go through last year with that already on the forefront before we ever played a game, no question about it,” Oklahoma State coach Mike Boynton mentioned.
Boynton thought the penalty was unfair, particularly as a result of the exercise occurred earlier than he turned head coach. Judging by the way in which related violations have been handled since, he believes the penalty may need been the final of its variety.
“It sucks to now be a footnote in history,” he mentioned. “We’ll probably be (the answer to) a trivia question: ‘Who is the last team to suffer a postseason ban over a recruiting violation?’ The answer will probably be the 2021-22 Oklahoma State men’s basketball team.”
The Cowboys are prepared to maneuver ahead, and guard Avery Anderson leads the cost. The preseason All-Big 12 choice averaged 12.1 factors per sport final season. He scored 34 factors at dwelling in opposition to Iowa State and 25 at Oklahoma.
Moussa Cisse is again to guard the rim. The 7-foot-1 junior was one of many three gamers who shared Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year honors final season. He averaged 7.2 factors, 6.5 rebounds and a conference-leading 1.9 blocks.
Boynton mentioned Cisse, who got here to Oklahoma State as a uncooked athlete, turned extra polished within the offseason. The Cowboys might be trying for him on offense extra typically this season.
“We feel like if we can make some steps in terms of being able to throw it in the air every four or five possessions and getting a positive result, it will make the game easier for the guys he’s on the court with,” Boynton mentioned.
The two cogs give Boynton hope that this crew might be profitable.
“I’m excited about this group,” he mentioned. “We’ve got some experience, probably the most experienced team that I’ve had since my first year (2017-18). … The guys have worked really, really hard, like all these teams. And obviously we’re just chomping at the bit to start competing.”
ONE TWIN
Kalib Boone is again for Oklahoma State, despite the fact that his twin brother and former teammate, Keylan, transferred to Pacific.
Kalib completed second within the Big 12 with 1.3 blocks per sport final season, regardless of preventing via early accidents. The 6-foot-9 ahead scored a season-best 20 factors within the win over North Carolina State on Nov. 17 and averaged 5.8 factors, down from 9.4 the earlier season.
IMMEDIATE IMPACT
Boynton expects important contributions from two transfers.
Caleb Asberry was an All-Sun Belt first crew choice at Texas State final 12 months. He averaged 13.6 factors per sport, began each sport and led the crew in minutes performed, steals and 3-point targets.
John-Michael Wright was a three-time All-Big South choice at High Point. He led the league with 18.4 factors per sport and added 4.4 rebounds and three.4 assists.
YEAR TWO
Guard Bryce Thompson is again after averaging 10.6 factors per sport in his first 12 months with the Cowboys after transferring in from Kansas. More is anticipated this 12 months.
“He is certainly somebody that we’re going to look to to lead us from a scoring standpoint,” Boynton mentioned. “He and Avery Anderson will probably be our two kind of spearheads in the backcourt there. So he’s going to do, hopefully, what he was expected to do out of high school, which is be an impact player in the best conference in America.”
QUOTABLE
Boynton on navigating the switch portal: “We have transfers ourselves, so I don’t want to sit up here and be hypocritical. But we try to be very intentional about the type of kids we bring into our program and helping them understand what our program is about and why they can have success and why our program will have success with them.”
SCHEDULE
The Cowboys open at dwelling in opposition to Texas-Arlington. They go to Connecticut on Dec. 1 within the Big 12/Big East Battle. The Cowboys open convention play at Kansas on Dec. 31. They will host Ole Miss on Jan. 28 within the Big 12/SEC Challenge.
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Follow Cliff Brunt on Twitter: twitter.com/CliffBruntAP
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