Anthony Roy poured in 24 points, Christian Coleman impressed with 17 points and 14 rebounds and 14-seed Oklahoma State went on to a 92-83 victory over 11-seed Colorado in the first round of the Big 12 tournament Tuesday night at the T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, Mo.
The Cowboys (19-13) advance to face 6-seed TCU on Wednesday night.
Jaylen Curry added 15 points and five rebounds for the Cowboys, who had a decisive edge inside by winning the rebounding battle, 44-34, and outscoring the Buffaloes 40-30 in points in the paint.
Oklahoma State overcame a slow start, battling back from an early nine-point deficit in a first half that featured nine lead changes. The Cowboys used a 12-2 run to take a 25-24 lead on a layup by Isaiah Coleman at the 7:40 mark, and took a 41-40 lead into the break.
Oklahoma State stayed in front the entire second half, courtesy of a 7-0 spurt to open it. That stretch was capped with a 3-pointer by Roy to push the Cowboys ahead 48-40 at the 17:42 mark.
Oklahoma State extended its lead to 12 on Kanye Clary’s 3 for a 76-64 lead at the 6:06 mark. The Cowboys went on to lead by as many as 14 as an alley-oop dunk by Christian Coleman made it 85-71 with just over two minutes left.
Oklahoma State also had a 20-point advantage at the free-throw line, going 29-of-35 compared to Colorado’s 9-of-16. The Cowboys doubled the Buffaloes in bench points, 28-14, too.
Colorado was led by Bangot Dak, who had 22 points and grabbed eight rebounds. Barrington Hargress finished with 18 points and nine assists, and Isaiah Johnson added 14 points with three rebounds and four assists for the Buffaloes.
Colorado dropped to 17-15 on the season and will miss the NCAA Tournament for the second straight season.
