The Oklahoma State freshman and his teammates got what they wished for — a win over Texas Tech in the first round of the Big 12 Tournament — but the game wasn't gift-wrapped by any means as the Cowboys had to make some critical plays down the stretch to get the 76-72 victory.
Anderson, who finished with 18 points, eight rebounds, two assists, two blocks and zero turnovers, was in on a number of those big plays at the end. The freshman got off to a tremendous start to the season, but his scoring averaged dropped more than six points in conference play. On Thursday he appeared to be back in early-season form, or perhaps like he is starting to adjust to the Big 12.
"In terms of his most complete game, this is probably the best game he's played since we started the Big 12,” OSU coach Sean Sutton said.
OSU trailed by three points with 6:37 to play when Anderson stripped Tech for an offensive rebound on Obi Muonelo's miss and somehow sunk a one-handed shot as he fell down.
"I didn't know if it (went in) or not, I just heard the crowd,” Anderson said.
With 38 seconds to play, OSU up three points, Anderson blocked a Charlie Burgess layup. "A great defensive play,” Sutton said.
To cap off his big afternoon, Anderson knocked down both free throws with 4.8 seconds remaining to put the game out of Tech's reach.
"I came out and made big plays and picked up our defense from where I had been playing earlier in the year,” Anderson said. "I think it was one of my best games this year.”
It was certainly the best game in months for OSU's entire freshman class.
Ibrahima Thomas had five rebounds in the first half, Martavius Adams scored 10 points on 3-of-4 shooting and Nick Sidorakis hit a significant 3-pointer to put OSU up two points in the middle of the second half. Thomas, Anderson, Sidorakis and Adams combined for 37 points and 15 rebounds.
"I'm really proud of our freshmen, not knowing how they were going to react for the first time in post-season play,” Sutton said.
What did not please Sutton was his team's defensive effort. Tech shot 55 percent from the floor. In the first half, both teams scored in runs — OSU opened with a 6-0 run, Tech gained a lead with a 14-0 run, OSU tied the score with an
