Oklahoma State avoids hangover on buzzer-beater to edge Baylor
STILLWATER, Okla. -- Oklahoma State talked about avoiding a "Kansas hangover."
Baylor just wanted to shake its ills, which had produced its first two-game losing streak of the season.
It took overtime Wednesday night at Gallagher-Iba Arena, but the No. 22-ranked Cowboys shook off a ragged performance to finish feeling good, barely, prevailing 69-67 and running their winning streak to four games.
With the game tied 67-67 in the closing seconds, OSU's Michael Cobbins blocked a driving A.J. Walton shot, Markel Brown grabbed the rebound and started off on a coast-to-coast drive and a layup for the winning basket with :00.2 remaining.
"I just figured we had come too far to give up a layup at the end," said Cobbins, who grabbed a game-high 13 rebounds to go with nine points and two blocks. "I just went up and tried to get it. Thank god I got it."
When Brown clutched the ball under the Baylor basket, just :04.7 seconds remained. Still, he dribbled the length of the floor and attacked the goal, just beating the buzzer.
"I took one glance at (the clock) -- wait, I took two glances at it -- and I was just trying to beat the clock as fast as I could."
The Cowboys improved to 16-5 overall, 6-3 in the Big 12, but was sloppy from the outset in their first game after knocking off then-No. 2 Kansas on Saturday.
Baylor dropped to 14-8 and 5-4, seeing its losing streak stretch to three games. The latest one, in overtime, after the Bears had rallied from 14 points down in the second half, might hurt the most.
"Stinks to be on this end of it," said Baylor coach Scott Drew.
The Cowboys led by 13 points, 56-43, with 6:53 remaining before Baylor went on a 12-0 run to close to within one.
The Bears never led down the stretch in regulation but tied it twice, at 57-57 and at 59-59 on Pierre Jackson's two free throws with :06.5 remaining.
OSU had a shot to win it at the end of regulation, but Brown's 3-pointer from the corner clanged off the rim.
Jackson did all he could to bail out Baylor, finishing with 24 points, 20 of which came in the final 10:45. He scored six of the Bears' eight points in overtime on two 3-pointers.
"I just needed to do something for my team," said Jackson, who finished with 11 turnovers. "I didn't provide much throughout the whole game. They called on me. I just tried to deliver."
And he nearly did deliver.
"We don't make that comeback if he doesn't bring his play late," Drew said.
Marcus Smart led the Cowboys with 14 points despite enduring his roughest shooting performance of the season, going 4-for-21 from the floor. Smart added eight rebounds, seven assists and four steals, with no turnovers.
Brown added 13 points and Le'Bryan Nash 10.
Cory Jefferson scored 18 points and added 11 rebounds for the Bears, who also got seven points and 12 boards from Isaiah Austin.
While the game provided late drama, it was hardly artistic, especially at the start.
Baylor shot just 41.9 percent (26 of 62) from the field and OSU was worse at 36.1 percent (26 of 72).
The Cowboys made but one of their first 14 shots, yet somehow managed a 24-22 lead at the half, getting a boost from two reserves -- Brian Williams and Kamari Murphy -- who each scored six points off the bench.
"I thought it was a gutsy performance by our team," said Cowboys coach Travis Ford. "I thought both teams played hard. I think both teams would probably say they didn't play their best offensively.
"Glad we won. It's one of those games where you just kind of move on and get ready for the next one."
Notes: OSU's Williams, who missed the first 18 games of the season following surgery for a broken wrist, scored his first points of the season. A projected starter, the Cowboys are hoping Williams provides a boost down the stretch. ... Baylor, which ranked second in the Big 12 in scoring offense at 75.8 points per game, managed just 22 in the first half. ... With 16 wins, the Cowboys eclipsed their 15 victories for all of last season -- with nine conference games still to play.