Cowboys Headed To The Final Four

Oklahoma State headed to
San Antonio and the Final Four
for the first time since 1995
No. 2 seed Cowboys (31-3) will play
No. 3 seed Georgia Tech (27-9)
in the national semifinals inside
the Alamodome at 5:07 p.m. on Saturday
radio - Cowboy Radio Network Â• internet - okstate.com Â• TV - CBS

Pokes headed to the Final Four
Oklahoma State travels to San Antonio, Texas, this week for the Final Four. The Cowboys will face Georgia Tech, winner of the St. Louis Regional, on Saturday, April 3, at 5:07 p.m. inside the Alamodome. OSU earned the right to play in the Final Four by winning the East Rutherford Regional this past weekend. The Cowboys defeated ninth-ranked Pittsburgh, 63-51, in the regional semifinals before handing No. 5 Saint Joseph's its second loss of the season, 64-62, in the regional finals. Oklahoma State is ranked third in the USA Today/ESPN Coaches' Poll and was ranked No. 4 in the final Associated Press poll. Georgia Tech is ranked 15th in the Coaches' Poll and was ranked No. 14 in the final AP Poll. The other two teams in the Final Four are Connecticut and Duke.

East Rutherford Regional Champs
Junior John Lucas hit one of the biggest shots in his career last Saturday night, connecting on a three-pointer with 6.9 seconds remaining, and the Cowboys defeated the Saint Joseph's Hawks, 64-62, in the regional finals to advance to the Final Four. Lucas was just 7-of-20 from the floor for the game, including just 3-of-12 from long range. But, with the Cowboys down by one and under 10 seconds to go, Joey Graham attempted to drive the lane and, in doing so, lost control of the ball. He grabbed the loose ball and passed it to Lucas, who was waiting uncovered on the wing. National Player of the Year Jameer Nelson attempted a 16-footer following Lucas' clutch shot, but was guarded well by Daniel Bobik, and the shot fell short. OSU advanced to the Final Four for the second time under Coach Eddie Sutton.

Cowboys earn East Rutherford Regional honors
Cowboy junior John Lucas was named the Most Outstanding Player at the East Rutheford Regional in a vote by the United States Basketball Writers' Assn. Lucas was joined on the all-tournament team by senior Tony Allen and junior Joey Graham, along with Saint Joseph's Jameer Nelson and Delonte West.

The road to the Final Four
Oklahoma State is the No. 2 seed in the East Rutherford Regional, and took the most difficult road of all the Final Four participants. The Cowboys played every seed they were expected to, starting with the No. 15 seed Eastern Washington Eagles. OSU dispatched of EWU, 75-56, but not without a scare. The score was tied, 36-36, at halftime. In the second round, Oklahoma State faced No. 7 seed Memphis. Joey Graham outscored the Tigers, 20-19, on his own in the first period, and the Cowboys breezed to a 70-53 victory. OSU took on a physical Pittsburgh team in the Sweet 16 and, despite trailing at the half, came out on top with a 63-51 victory over the No. 3 seed. In the regional finals, it was No. 1 vs. 2 with Oklahoma State taking on Saint Joseph's and the national Player of the Year Jameer Nelson. It was a wire-to-wire matchup, with OSU pulling out the 64-62 win on John Lucas' game-winning trey with 6.9 seconds remaining.

Headed back to the Final Four
Oklahoma State is making its first appearance at the Final Four since 1995, and its sixth appearance overall to the national semifinals. Oklahoma A&M College won the national title in both 1945 and 1946, and finished as the NCAA runnerup in 1949. In 1951, the Aggies lost to Illinois, 61-46, in the national third-place game. Under the current NCAA Tournament format, Oklahoma State advanced to the Final Four in 1995, when the Bryant Reeves-led Cowboys won the East Regional final, also in East Rutherford, N.J., to advance to the national semifinals in Seattle, Wash. The Pokes lost to UCLA, 74-61.

Lucas, Allen named All-Americans
A pair of Oklahoma State Cowboys earned All-America status last week. The United States Basketball Writers' Association named John Lucas a third-team All-American, while Tony Allen garnered third-team All-America accolades.

Big 12 Tournament Champions
Oklahoma State won the Big 12 Tournament last weekend, the school's first league tournament title since 1995. It is first time that OSU has won both the regular-season championship and the tournament title in the same season. OSU defeated Iowa State, 83-75, in the quarterfinals of the tournament, and staved off a blistering Red Raider run as the Cowboys defeated Texas Tech, 82-77, in the semifinals. Oklahoma State defeated the Texas Longhorns for the third time this season in the finals with a 65-49 victory. Tony Allen was named the MVP of the tournament, while Joey Graham and John Lucas were also named to the all-tournament team.

Regular-Season Champions
Oklahoma State won the conference championship for the first time since 1990-91, when the Cowboys were co-champs with Kansas that year with a 10-4 record. The last time OSU won an outright league title was 1964-65. It is Oklahoma State's 17th regular-season conference title, and the second under Coach Eddie Sutton.

Cowboys ranked fourth in final AP poll
The Associated Press released its final poll prior to the NCAA Tournament, and the Cowboys were ranked fourth. It is the highest that OSU has been ranked in the AP poll since the 1991-92 season, when the Pokes were ranked as high as second in mid-February, and it is the highest ranking Oklahoma State has achieved in the final poll since 1950-51, when the Aggies were ranked second in the final Associated Press poll. Oklahoma State was ranked fourth in the final Coaches poll in 1995. However, the Coaches final poll comes out following the NCAA Tournament has wrapped up. That year, the Cowboys made the Final Four.

Something Special
This season has been quite a year for the Cowboy Basketball team. The 31 victories so far this season tie for the most ever by an OSU squad. The NCAA Champions of 1946 were 31-2 that year. The 24 wins in the regular season are the most by an OSU squad since the 1991-92 team went 24-4. The 24-3 record is the best mark by percentage since the 1947-48 season, when the then Oklahoma A&M Aggies went 27-3 in the regular season. The Cowboys' 14 conference victories are the most in a single season in school history, and the 15-0 record at home in Gallagher-Iba Arena is the best perfect record all-time for OSU. It is only the 12th time that the Cowboys have gone undefeated at home, and the third time OSU has won 15 games in a single season at home. The Pokes' two losses on the road are the fewest since the 1953-54 squad that went 11-2, the last time OSU finished four games over .500 in league road games.

Allen, Lucas named Co-Big 12 Players of the Year
In a rare occurance, Oklahoma State's Tony Allen and John Lucas were both named the Big 12 Conference's Player of the Year. Allen was the coaches selection as the most valuable player, while Lucas received the writers' vote as the best player in the league. It is the second year in a row that there were two players named Player of the Year in the league (Nick Collison of KU was the coaches selection last year, while OU's Hollis Price was the AP's selection), and the sixth time in Big 12/Big Eight history. However, it is the first time that two players from the same team were named Co-Players of the Year in conference history. This marks the fourth time in league history that a Cowboy was named the conference player of the year. Byron Houston shared the honor with Missouri's Doug Williams in 1991, while Bryant Reeves was the POY in 1993. Reeves shared the accolade in 1995 with Oklahoma's Ryan Minor.

Sutton earns district Coach of the Year award
Oklahoma State head coach Eddie Sutton is one of 15 coaches named a 2004 National Association of Basketball Coaches District Coach of the Year, it was announced last weekend. Coach Sutton is the COY for District 12. Other coaches that were honored include St. Joseph's Phil Martelli, Rick Stansbury of Mississippi State, Memphis' John Calipari, Mike Montgomery of Stanford and Arizona's Lute Olson.

Sutton consensus league Coach of the Year
Head Coach Eddie Sutton has been named the consensus Big 12 Coach of the Year. It is his third such honor since returning to Oklahoma State. He shared the honor in 1993 with Kansas State's Dana Altman (coaches), and was the consensus Big 12 Coach of the Year in 1998. Coach Sutton is now an eight-time conference coach-of-the-year selection (1975, 77, 79, 81, 86, 93, 98, 2004). This year, the Cowboys were picked fifth in the preseason polls by both the league coaches and the writers that regularly cover the conference. The Cowboys exceeded all expectations, winning both the regular season and tournament title.

Sutton honored by Naismith Foundation
Before the Cowboys' regular-season finale with Texas A&M, Coach Eddie Sutton was named a recipient of the Naismith Good Sportsmanship Award. The award, the most prestigious presented by the Naismith Foundation, has been given to only 31 people, including Michael Jordan, Red Auerbach, John Wooden, Oscar Robertson and Pat Summit. The Naismith award weighs 80 pounds and is 3-1/2 feet tall. An eight-inch bronze sculpture of James Naismith in a gym with replica peach baskets is featured on the upper tier. On the base, six plaques contain the original rules of basketball.

Lucas a Wooden Award finalist
John Lucas is one of 20 players nationally that has been named to the official voting ballot for the 2004 Wooden Award All-America team and Player of the Year, presented annually to the nation's top collegiate basketball player. The All-America team will be announced on March 30, and the top-five candidates will be invited to Los Angeles for the awards ceremony. The winner will be announced on Saturday, April 10, and each finalist will receive a contribution from the John R. Wooden Award Scholarship fund in their name to their university's general scholarship fund. Lucas is one of three Big 12 student-athletes on the list, joining Andre Emmett of Texas Tech and Kansas' Wayne Simien. A pair of Lucas' former teammates (Emeka Okafor at Bellaire HS and Lawrence Roberts at Baylor) are also on the finalist list.

Cowboys earn All-Big 12 accolades
While a complete list of postseason honors can be found elsewhere in this release, it is safe to say that the Oklahoma State Cowboys have earned a multitude of accolades this season. Several publications have released their All-Big 12 teams, as well as individual honors, and several Cowboys are listed. The Associated Press released its All-Big 12 team, and both Tony Allen and John Lucas were named to the first team. Juniors Ivan McFarlin and Joey Graham were named honorable mention All-Big 12. In the coaches balloting, Allen and Lucas were both first-team All-Big 12, while Joey Graham earned third-team honors and Ivan McFarlin was an honorable mention selection.

Graham Big 12 Newcomer of the Year
For the second-consecutive season, a Cowboy was named the Big 12 Conference's Newcomer of the Year. Last season, Tony Allen was a unanimous selection. This year, junior Joey Graham was the Big 12 Coaches' pick for newcomer of the year.

Big 12 Specialty teams
Oklahoma State had several players named to the Big 12 All-Specialty teams, selected by sportswriters who regularly cover the league. Joey Graham was named to the all-newcomer team, while John Lucas was named to the all-improved squad. Both Tony Allen and Ivan McFarlin were named to the all-defense team.

Allen, Lucas named All-District
Senior Tony Allen and junior John Lucas were both named first-team All-District 12 by the National Association of Basketball Coaches, it was announced on Feb. 18. That gave the Cowboys two players on the first team of their respective all-district team, one of 10 teams in the country to share that distinction. Both players are now listed as candidates for the NABC's All-America teams.

Cowboys garner honors in the classroom
Three Oklahoma State Cowboys earned Academic All-Big 12 honors, it was announced last week by the league office. Stephen Graham, a junior majoring in aviation sciences, was named first-team Academic All-Big 12. Stephen's twin brother, Joey, who is also majoring in aviation sciences, was named second-team Academic All-Big 12, as was junior Terrence Crawford, who is majoring in marketing.

Top-10 ranking becomes the norm
Although Oklahoma State may not be considered one of the the “elite” basketball schools, the past few seasons have shown that the Cowboys can rank right up there with the best. With a current No. 4 national ranking, OSU has made it into the top 10 of the Associated Press poll in four of the last five seasons. In 1999-2000, OSU was ranked as high as eighth nationally in mid-February. in 2001-02, the Cowboys broke into the top 10 in early December, reached as high as No. 5 by the end of the calendar year, and was in the top 10 for a total of 11 games that season. Last year, OSU was No. 9 for a pair of games against Iowa State and Texas before dropping out of the top 10. This week marks the eighth straight that OSU has been in the top 10 this season.

20 win seasons not that rare at OSU
While many programs thrive to win 20 games in a single season, since Coach Sutton's return to Stillwater, OSU Basketball has become synonymous with 20-win seasons. Before Coach Sutton's tenure, OSU had a total of 15 20-victory seasons in school history, with all but one of those coming prior to 1966. Since Sutton's return in 1990, the Cowboys have rattled off 12 20-win seasons, including the last seven consecutive, the longest such streak in OSU history. OSU's 30 wins is a little more rare. This season marks just the second in school history that a Cowboy squad has reached the 30-victory plateau. The only other team to accomplish that feat was the 1946 team that went 31-2 and won the national championship.

Sutton surpasses Phog Allen
Oklahoma State Coach Eddie Sutton has 755 career victories in his 34 seasons as a head coach. That figure ranks as the ninth-most wins in a coaching career. Coach recently surpassed Phog Allen, who coached 48 years to reach 746 wins. Only Dean Smith won more games in his first 34 years as a head coach. Bob Knight had 744 victories in his first 34 seasons and is third in that category.

About Georgia Tech
Georgia Tech is 27-9 overall this season and advanced to the Final Four by way of the St. Louis Regional. The Yellowjackets defeated Northern Iowa, 65-60, in the first round, and Boston College, 57-54, in the second. In the regional semifinal, the Ramblin' Wreck defeated upstart Nevada, 72-67, and in the regional finals, Tech beat Kansas of the Big 12, 79-71, in overtime. Georgia Tech was the No. 3 seed in the St. Louis Regional. The Yellowjackets are led by junior B.J. Elder, who is averaging 15.3 points per game. Sophomore guard Jarrett Jack leads the team in assists, averaging 5.7 per game, and is second on the squad in scoring, chipping in 12.7 points per contest. Senior guard Marvin Lewis is tossing in 11 points per game. As a team, Georgia Tech is averaging 77 points per game, and outrebounding their opponents by an average of 13.2 points per contest. They are shooting 46.7 percent from the floor, and 36.7 percent from long range while averaging seven treys per game. Georgia Tech was 8-5 vs. top-25 teams this season.

Series History vs. Georgia Tech
Oklahoma State is 2-0 all-time vs. Georgia Tech. Both games were played at neutral sites. The first was played on Dec. 19, 1981, in El Paso, Texas, in the Sun Bowl Classic. OSU won, 59-57. The other game was played on Nov. 29, 1991. An 11th-ranked OSU squad defeated the No. 18 Yellowjackets, 78-71, in the finals of the Preseason NIT in New York City.

Looking ahead
Should Oklahoma State defeat Georgia Tech, there are two opponents looming on the horizon Â— Connecticut and Duke. OSU is 1-0 all-time vs. UConn, having defeated the Huskies on Dec. 18, 1970, 80-64, in the Bayou Classic in Lafayette, La. The Cowboys are 1-1 all-time vs. the Duke Blue Devils, having defeated Duke, 51-41, on Dec. 19, 1939, in Baltimore. The third-ranked Blue Devils defeated OSU, 79-73, on March 15, 1998, in the second round of the NCAA Tournament in Lexington, Ky.

NCAA Tournament Notes
Here are some tidbits regarding Oklahoma State's Final Four appearance in San Antonio this weekend:
Â• This is Oklahoma State's 21st appearance in the NCAA Tournament, including the 12th under Coach Eddie Sutton. It is also Oklahoma State's seventh-consecutive appearance in the postseason tourney.
Â• This year marks the Cowboys' 13th appearance in the regional semifinals (Sweet 16), 11th appearance in the regional finals (Elite Eight), and the sixth appearance in the national semifinals (Final Four). OSU has appeared in the national championship game on three previous occasions (1945, 1946, 1949).
Â• OSU owns the record for the highest field-goal percentage by a team in an NCAA Tournament game. The Cowboys shot 80 percent (28-of-35) vs. Tulane on March 22, 1992, in the second round in Atlanta, Ga.
Â• Oklahoma State's No. 2 seed is its second since the seeding process began. OSU was also a No. 2 seed in 1992, when the Cowboys advanced to the Sweet 16. That year, the Pokes defeated No. 15 Georgia Southern, 100-73, in the first round, but fell to a sixth-seeded Michigan, 75-72, in Lexington, Ky.
Â• This is OSU's sixth top-four seed under Coach Sutton.
Â• OSU is 35-19 all-time in the NCAA Tournament.

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