STILLWATER — With one regular-season game left, one of the coveted top four seeds in the Big 12 Tournament is still well within reach for the Oklahoma State Cowgirls.
Numerous scenarios could land OSU in the top four, giving it a first-round bye for the first time in school history.
The least complicated being a win tonight at No. 8 Baylor, where the Lady Bears are undefeated this season. Tipoff is 7 p.m.
A win would clinch a top four spot for OSU, regardless of the results of other Big 12 games.
"If you can't get excited about playing at Baylor, then I don't know what will get you motivated,” OSU coach Kurt Budke said. "We have to make sure we get to them early, and that the crowd doesn't get to us.”
History is reason enough to strive for a first-round bye, as only one team (OU in 2003-2004), has gone on to win the Big 12 Tournament after finishing outside the top four.
A top four spot, though, would benefit the Cowgirls for a different reason: An extra day of rest before a possible three games against Big 12 opponents in three days.
"I think everyone is tired right now,” Budke said. "No one in the country is making all of their shots and playing with fresh legs.”
Junior Taylor Hardeman said an extra day of rest would benefit the Cowgirls after facing Baylor, Oklahoma and Texas A&M—all ranked opponents—in less than two weeks.
"It would be nice to watch a little basketball that first day rather than playing,” Hardeman said. "I think the teams that don't play until the second day are a lot more fresh, and we really haven't had much of a break.”
