Oklahoma St. wins 5th straight at home, beats K-State 69-63

STILLWATER, Okla. (AP) — Cameron McGriff scored 14 points and had five rebounds to help lead Oklahoma State to a 69-63 victory over Kansas State on Wednesday night.

Thomas Dziagwa scored 11 points and Isaac Likekele had nine points, 10 rebounds and five assists for Oklahoma State (16-14, 6-11 Big 12). The Cowboys won their fifth straight home game and six of their last nine following a stretch in which they went 1-8.

Cartier Diarra scored 16 points to lead Kansas State (9-21, 2-15). Mike McGuirl scored 11 points and Xavier Sneed had 10 points and seven rebounds.

K-State has lost 10 in a row since its last triumph, 61-53 over Oklahoma on Jan. 29. The Wildcats are also 1-10 on the road and will end the season 0-9 in Big 12 play – they haven’t been winless on the road in the Big 12 since 2003.

After Oklahoma State turned a 26-23 halftime advantage to a six-point lead early in the second half, Kansas State used a 15-5 run to pull ahead 48-44 with 10:16 left. But the Cowboys responded with an 18-3 run of their own over the next six-plus minutes to regain the lead and take control of the contest.

Sneed’s 3-pointer from the right corner pulled K-State back to within 67-63 with 40 seconds remaining, but that was as close as the Wildcats would get.

BIG PICTURE

Kansas State: Despite their abysmal Big 12 record, the Wildcats have been in a lot of close games and this one was no different. Over their 10-game losing streak, K-State has lost seven by 10 points or less, including a disappointing 62-58 defeat to No. 1 Kansas on Saturday and a 73-67 loss to then-No. 1 Baylor on Feb. 3. Overall, they have lost 12 games by single digits, Kansas State’s most in a season since they had 13 in 2003. This one was close throughout, with six lead changes and six ties through the first half as Oklahoma State took a 26-23 lead into halftime.

Oklahoma State: After a terrible 0-8 start to their Big 12 schedule, the Cowboys are in the midst of finishing the regular season solidly. Oklahoma State will still probably end up the Big 12’s No. 8 seed for the post-season tournament next week, likely facing Iowa State in the No. 9 slot. Part of the reason for the resurgence has been the play of McGriff, who has hit double digits in each of the last 11 contests, averaging 15.5 points and 7.1 rebounds per game over that span.

UP NEXT

Kansas State: The Wildcats complete their disappointing season at home on Saturday against Iowa State.

Oklahoma State: The Cowboys finish the Big 12 regular season on the road on Saturday at Texas, which has won five in a row.