STILLWATER — Oklahoma State players have heard the rumors about their coach, and about Kansas' coach. The rumors that Sean Sutton's job might not be secure, and that Bill Self is on OSU's wish list.
They're hoping that the noise they created by beating the No. 4 Jayhawks 61-60 on Saturday – and the late charge they're putting together by winning four of their last five games – will drown out that talk.
"I've been hearing things, that Coach Sean is out at the end of the season, and I don't want that to happen,” junior Byron Eaton said. "So I'm gonna try to do whatever I can for my coach to stay here. If they still do that it happens, it happens. But I'm gonna fight for my coach.”
Playing his third straight stellar game, Eaton led OSU past the Jayhawks on Saturday. He scored 26 points and hit 16-of-18 free throws. With 12 points, Obi Muonelo was the only other OSU player to score in double figures. Darnell Jackson led Kansas with 16 points and 10 rebounds, but he had five turnovers, helping Kansas to a season-worst 21 turnovers.
As the turnovers would indicate, OSU won ugly — there were 47 fouls called in a game that couldn't find a rhythm — and it was unsightly from the beginning.
Five minutes into the game players got into a scuffle, and double-technical fouls were called on Ibrahima Thomas and Darrell Arthur. Marcus Dove, Terrel Harris and Thomas all sat with foul trouble, and Thomas and Arthur both eventually fouled out.
"It was nasty,” Eaton said. "I could tell it wasn't gonna be a pretty game the way it started off, with the scuffle. They thought they were gonna come in here and push us around, and we had to let them know we're gonna fight. You're in our house.”
OSU had a nine-point lead — tying its biggest lead of the afternoon — with 10 minutes to play. Kansas came back in a charge led by Brandon Rush, tying the game with 5:10 to play and taking a four-point lead with 3:23 to go on a Rush jumper.
OSU cut the Kansas lead to one on an off-balance Martavius Adams layup, and the Cowboys regained the lead 60-58 when Marcus Dove hit an open 3-pointer at the top of the key with one minute to play.
"That was a great shot and one he'll remember for the rest of his life,” Sutton said.
At the other end, Jackson scored inside to create the eighth tie score of the game, and on the Cowboys' next possession, Eaton drove to the basket, was fouled by Sasha Kaun and hit one of two free throws to put
