February 20, 1999
STILLWATER, Okla. (AP) - Oklahoma State relied on Adrian Peterson and
effective long-range shooting to pull out its first victory over a ranked
opponent in almost two years.
The Cowboys (18-8, 9-5 Big 12 Conference) got 20 points from Peterson and
went on a 21-5 second-half run to overpower No. 22 Missouri 84-68 on Saturday.
"That was about as well as we have played all year," Oklahoma State coach
Eddie Sutton said. "When you shoot the ball well, like we were shooting it
during that stretch, everything else tends to look a little better than it
actually is."
The last time Oklahoma State beat a ranked team was in March 1997 with a
67-63 victory over No. 13 Iowa State.
The Cowboys trailed Missouri (18-7, 9-5) by one point with 12:19 to play,
but the Cowboys connected on five 3-pointers to lead 71-56 with 6:19 left.
"If we got there late, it was not even a second late," said Brian Grawer,
who had 13 points for Missouri. "It's kind of contagious. When one person
starts throwing the ball in the hole and you're at home, everyone starts
feeling it too."
Saturday's loss was the second straight for Missouri, playing without Kenyon
Dooling, who was out with a sprained ankle.
Missouri coach Norm Stewart said the game was more competitive than the
score indicated.
"They shot 7-of-11 from 3-point range," Stewart said. "Half of them, I'd
say, we were there. We had some confusion on defense and we didn't get to the
guy."
Glendon Alexander added 16 points for the Cowboys and Doug Gottlieb dished
out 13 assists.
The final 13 points by the Cowboys came from free throws. Missouri was held
scoreless during a three-minute stretch close to the game's end.
Albert White led Missouri with 25 points and six rebounds.
Oklahoma State built a 24-13 lead on a tip-in by Brian Montonati with 7:44
to go in the first half. But the Tigers used back-to-back dunks from White to
pull to 26-20 with 4:29 to go.
"We just seemed to quit playing," Sutton said. "We lost some of our
aggressiveness on defense. When you lose momentum you want to get a good shot
on every trip. We shot the ball a little quickly during that stretch, and all
of a sudden you're down two points at halftime."
Grawer's layup at the buzzer put Missouri ahead 34-32 at halftime, its first
lead of the game.
Oklahoma State, which had snapped a three-game losing streak Wednesday at
Nebraska, outrebounded Missouri, 43-27, including 10 from Brian Montonati.
By JEAN YAEGER
Associated Press Writer
