2017–18 Oklahoma State Cowboys basketball team

The 2017–18 Oklahoma State Cowboys basketball team represented Oklahoma State University in the 2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. They were led by first-head coach Mike Boynton Jr. The Cowboys were members of the Big 12 Conference and played their home games at Gallagher-Iba Arena in Stillwater, Oklahoma. They finished the season 21–15, 8–10 in Big 12 play to finish in a four-way tie for sixth place. They defeated Oklahoma in the first round of the Big 12 tournament before losing in the quarterfinals to Kansas. They were invited to the National Invitation Tournament where they defeated Florida Gulf Coast and Stanford before losing in the quarterfinals to Western Kentucky.

2017–18 Oklahoma State Cowboys basketball
NIT, Quarterfinals
Conference	Big 12 Conference
Record	21–15 (8–10 Big 12)
Head coach	Mike Boynton Jr. (1st season)
Assistant coaches	Scott Sutton John Cooper David Kontaxis
Home arena	Gallagher-Iba Arena
Seasons ← 2016–17 2018–19 →

2017–18 Big 12 men's basketball standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		PCT			W		L		PCT
No. 4 Kansas †	13	–	5		.722			31	–	8		.795
No. 14 Texas Tech	11	–	7		.611			27	–	10		.730
No. 15 West Virginia	11	–	7		.611			26	–	11		.703
Kansas State	10	–	8		.556			25	–	12		.676
TCU	9	–	9		.500			21	–	12		.636
Baylor	8	–	10		.444			19	–	15		.559
Texas	8	–	10		.444			19	–	15		.559
Oklahoma State	8	–	10		.444			21	–	15		.583
Oklahoma	8	–	10		.444			18	–	14		.563
Iowa State	4	–	14		.222			13	–	18		.419
† 2018 Big 12 Tournament winner Rankings from AP poll [1]

Previous season

The Cowboys finished the 2016–17 season with 20–13, 9–9 in Big 12 play to finish in fifth place. They lost to Iowa State in the quarterfinals of the Big 12 tournament. They received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament as the No. 10 seed in the Midwest region where they lost to Michigan in the first round.

On March 18, 2017, head coach Brad Underwood left the school to accept the head coaching position at Illinois after one year at OSU.^[2] The school promoted assistant coach Mike Boynton Jr. to head coach on March 24.^[3]

FBI investigation

Main article: 2017 NCAA Division I men's basketball corruption scandal

On September 26, federal prosecutors in New York announced charges of fraud and corruption against 10 people involved in college basketball, including Oklahoma State assistant coach Lamont Evans. The charges allege that Evans and others allegedly received benefits from financial advisers and others to influence student-athletes to retain their services. Following the news, Evans was suspended and relieved of all duties. Evans was sentenced to three months in prison in June 2019 for his participation in the scheme, which he also conducted at the University of South Carolina.^[4]

In June 2020, a press release by the NCAA announced that the men’s basketball team will be prohibited from participating in 2020-21 postseason competition and the university will self-impose a fine of $10,000 plus 1 percent of the men’s basketball program’s budget.^[5][6]

Departures

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Notes
Jawun Evans	1	G	6'1"	185	Sophomore	Dallas, TX	Declared for 2017 NBA draft. Drafted by Philadelphia 76ers and traded to Los Angeles Clippers.
Phil Forte III	13	G	5'11"	195	RS Senior	Flower Mound, TX	Graduated
Leyton Hammonds	23	F	6'8"	215	Senior	North Richland Hills, TX	Graduated, signed a pro team in Finland.
Tyler Underwood	32	G	6'2"	240	RS Freshman	Stillwater, OK	Transferred to Illinois.
Will Lienhard	34	F	6'7"	255	Sophomore	Oklahoma City, OK	Walk-on, Transferred to Oklahoma Christian

Incoming Transfers

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Notes
Kendall Smith	1	G	6'3"	190	RS Senior	Antioch, CA	Transferred from Cal State Northridge. Will be eligible to play immediately since Smith graduated from Cal State Northridge.
Michael Weathers	23	G	6'2"	170	Sophomore	Roeland Park, KS	Transferred from Miami (OH). Will redshirt the 2017-18 season due to NCAA transfer rules.
Yankuba Sima	35	F/C	6'11"	225	RS Junior	Girona, Spain	Transferred from St. John's. Will be eligible to play immediately for one year.

Recruits

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes

Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	Commit date
Zack Dawson G	Miami, FL	South Miami High School	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	185 lb (84 kg)	Jun 15, 2016
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN:   ESPN grade: 84
Overall recruiting rankings:
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2017 Team Ranking". Rivals.com.

Future recruits

2018-19 team recruits

US college sports recruiting information for 2018 recruits
Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	Commit date
Duncan Demuth PF	Seminole, FL	Seminole HS	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	215 lb (98 kg)	Oct 22, 2017
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN: N/A
Yor Anei PF	Lenexa, KS	Lee's Summit West HS	6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)	205 lb (93 kg)	Oct 26, 2017
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN: N/A
Overall recruiting rankings:
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2018 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved October 23, 2017.

Roster

2017–18 Oklahoma State Cowboys men's basketball team
Players	Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown G 0 Brandon Averette 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) 185 lb (84 kg) So Richardson Richardson, TX G 1 Kendall Smith 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 190 lb (86 kg) RS Sr Deer Valley HS CSUN Antioch, CA G 2 Zach Dawson 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Fr South Miami Miami, FL G 4 Thomas Dziagwa 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 180 lb (82 kg) So Tampa Catholic Tampa, FL G/F 5 Tavarius Shine 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 200 lb (91 kg) RS Jr MacArthur FUMA Irving, TX F 12 Cameron McGriff 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 220 lb (100 kg) So South Grand Prairie Grand Prairie, TX F/C 14 Lucas N'Guessan 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 220 lb (100 kg) So Canarias Basketball Academy De Lier, Netherlands G 21 Lindy Waters III 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 205 lb (93 kg) So Norman North Norman, OK G 23 Michael Weathers  6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 170 lb (77 kg) So Shawnee Mission North Miami (OH) Roeland Park, KS G/F 24 Davon Dillard 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Jr Our Savior New American School Gary, IN G/F 30 Jeffrey Carroll 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 220 lb (100 kg) RS Sr Rowlett Rowlett, TX F 33 Trey Reeves (W) 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 215 lb (98 kg) So Muldrow Gans, OK F/C 35 Yankuba Sima 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 225 lb (102 kg) RS Jr Elev8 Institute St. John's Girona, Spain F 41 Mitchell Solomon 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 250 lb (113 kg) Sr Bixby Bixby, OK	Head coach Mike Boynton, Jr. (South Carolina) Assistant coach(es) Scott Sutton (Oklahoma State) John Cooper (Wichita State) David Kontaxis (South Florida) Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible (W) Walk-on Injured Current redshirt Roster

Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Rank#	Opponent#	Result	Record	Site (attendance) city, state
Exhibition
Nov 3, 2017* 7:00 pm, FSOK+		Arkansas–Monticello	W 85–65		Gallagher-Iba Arena (4,204) Stillwater, OK
Regular season
Nov 10, 2017* 7:30 pm, FCS		Pepperdine Legends Classic regional game	W 78–47	1–0	Gallagher-Iba Arena (5,386) Stillwater, OK
Nov 13, 2017* 7:00 pm, FSOK+		Charlotte	W 83–65	2–0	Gallagher-Iba Arena (4,387) Stillwater, OK
Nov 16, 2017* 7:00 pm, FSOK+		Oral Roberts Legends Classic regional game	W 91–48	3–0	Gallagher-Iba Arena (4,268) Stillwater, OK
Nov 20, 2017* 6:00 pm, ESPN2		vs. No. 16 Texas A&M Legends Classic semifinals	L 55–72	3–1	Barclays Center (5,904) Brooklyn, NY
Nov 21, 2017* 2:30 pm, ESPNU		vs. Pittsburgh Legends Classic Consolation Game	W 73–67	4–1	Barclays Center (5,081) Brooklyn, NY
Nov 26, 2017* 2:00 pm, FSOK		Houston Baptist	W 101–74	5–1	Gallagher-Iba Arena (4,325) Stillwater, OK
Nov 29, 2017* 7:00 pm, FSOK+		Austin Peay	W 79-63	6-1	Gallagher-Iba Arena (4,697) Stillwater, OK
Dec 3, 2017* 2:00 pm, FSOK+		Mississippi Valley State	W 83–62	7–1	Gallagher-Iba Arena (4,564) Stillwater, OK
Dec 9, 2017* 3:00 pm, ESPN2		No. 6 Wichita State	L 66–78	7–2	Gallagher-Iba Arena (9,655) Stillwater, OK
Dec 16, 2017* 1:00 pm, FS2		vs. No. 19 Florida State Orange Bowl Classic	W 71–70	8–2	BB&T Center (9,152) Sunrise, FL
Dec 19, 2017* 8:00 pm, FSOK		Tulsa	W 71–59	9–2	Gallagher-Iba Arena (5,412) Stillwater, OK
Dec 22, 2017* 12:00 pm, FSOK		Texas–Rio Grande Valley	W 102–83	10–2	Gallagher-Iba Arena (5,287) Stillwater, OK
Dec 29, 2017 6:00 pm, ESPNU		No. 7 West Virginia	L 79–85	10–3 (0–1)	Gallagher-Iba Arena (8,257) Stillwater, OK
Jan 3, 2018 8:00 pm, ESPNU		at No. 7 Oklahoma Bedlam Series	L 89–109	10–4 (0–2)	Lloyd Noble Center (11,390) Norman, OK
Jan 6, 2018 3:00 pm, ESPNU		Iowa State	W 96–87 OT	11–4 (1–2)	Gallagher-Iba Arena (5,568) Stillwater, OK
Jan 10, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPNews		at Kansas State	L 82–86	11–5 (1–3)	Bramlage Coliseum (7,470) Manhattan, KS
Jan 13, 2018 4:00 pm, ESPNews		Texas	W 65–64	12–5 (2–3)	Gallagher-Iba Arena (6,707) Stillwater, OK
Jan 15, 2018 8:00 pm, ESPNU		at Baylor	L 60–76	12–6 (2–4)	Ferrell Center (6,078) Waco, TX
Jan 20, 2018 1:00 pm, ESPN		No. 4 Oklahoma Bedlam Series	W 83–81 OT	13–6 (3–4)	Gallagher-Iba Arena (13,611) Stillwater, OK
Jan 23, 2018 6:00 pm, ESPNews		at No. 14 Texas Tech	L 70–75	13–7 (3–5)	United Supermarkets Arena (12,585) Lubbock, TX
Jan 27, 2018* 5:00 pm, ESPN2		at Arkansas Big 12/SEC Challenge	L 65–66	13–8	Bud Walton Arena (18,057) Fayetteville, AR
Jan 30, 2018 6:00 pm, ESPNU		TCU	L 66–79	13–9 (3–6)	Gallagher-Iba Arena (6,250) Stillwater, OK
Feb 3, 2018 11:00 am, CBS		at No. 7 Kansas	W 84–79	14–9 (4–6)	Allen Fieldhouse (16,300) Lawrence, KS
Feb 6, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPNU		Baylor	L 56–67	14–10 (4–7)	Gallagher-Iba Arena (6,017) Stillwater, OK
Feb 10, 2018 11:00 am, ESPN		at No. 19 West Virginia	W 88–85	15–10 (5–7)	WVU Coliseum (13,057) Morgantown, WV
Feb 14, 2018 6:00 pm, ESPNU		Kansas State	L 72–82	15–11 (5–8)	Gallagher-Iba Arena (7,017) Stillwater, OK
Feb 17, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN2		at TCU	L 70–90	15–12 (5–9)	Schollmaier Arena (6,588) Fort Worth, TX
Feb 21, 2018 6:00 pm, ESPNU		No. 6 Texas Tech	W 79–71	16–12 (6–9)	Gallagher-Iba Arena (7,092) Stillwater, OK
Feb 24, 2018 1:00 pm, LHN		at Texas	L 64-65	16-13 (6-10)	Frank Erwin Center (12,316) Austin, TX
Feb 27, 2018 6:00 pm, ESPNU		at Iowa State	W 80–71	17–13 (7–10)	Hilton Coliseum (14,258) Ames, IA
Mar 3, 2018 3:00 pm, ESPN2		No. 6 Kansas	W 82–64	18–13 (8–10)	Gallagher-Iba Arena (12,482) Stillwater, OK
Big 12 tournament
Mar 7, 2018 6:00 pm, ESPNU	(8)	vs. (9) Oklahoma First Round	W 71–60	19–13	Sprint Center (17,752) Kansas City, MO
Mar 8, 2018 1:30 pm, ESPN2	(8)	vs. (1) No. 9 Kansas Quarterfinals	L 68–82	19–14	Sprint Center (17,903) Kansas City, MO
NIT
Mar 13, 2018* 8:00 pm, ESPN2	(2)	(7) Florida Gulf Coast First Round – USC Bracket	W 80–68	20–14	Gallagher-Iba Arena (5,305) Stillwater, OK
Mar 19, 2018* 6:00 pm, ESPNU	(2)	(3) Stanford Second Round – USC Bracket	W 71–65	21–14	Gallagher-Iba Arena (9,635) Stillwater, OK
Mar 21, 2018* 7:00 pm, ESPN	(2)	(4) Western Kentucky Quarterfinals – USC Bracket	L 84–92	21–15	Gallagher-Iba Arena (11,308) Stillwater, OK
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Central Time.

References

1. "2019-20 Big 12 Men's Basketball Record Book" (PDF). Big 12 Conference. pp. 26–30. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
2. "In a stunning move, Brad Underwood leaves Oklahoma State for Illinois". kansascity. Retrieved March 21, 2017.
3. "Boynton Jr. named OK State head coach". ESPN.com. Retrieved March 27, 2017.
4. Denney, Andrew (June 7, 2019). "Another ex-NCAA coach gets prison time in bribery scandal". New York Post. Retrieved June 10, 2020.
5. James, Emily (June 5, 2020). "Former Oklahoma State coach's acceptance of bribes violated NCAA ethical conduct rules" (Press release). National Collegiate Athletic Association. Retrieved June 10, 2020.
6. Anderson, Greta (June 8, 2020). "Oklahoma State Punished for Ex-Coach's Bribery Scheme". Inside Higher Ed. Retrieved June 10, 2020.