Oklahoma State basketball notebook: Cowboys 'Remember The 10,' visit with Eddie Sutton

“A few times the ball got turned lose and the guy on him left and that left him open,” Harris said. “Other times he shouldn't have gotten any shots off. We just did dumb stuff. All he does is shoot.”

JURICK'S PRESENCE NOTED

While Forte and Markel Brown were the obvious scoring story lines, combining for 50 points, center Philip Jurick added eight points — and a game-high 12 rebounds, several on putbacks.

“He was terrific,” Ford said. “The eight points is a bonus for us. But I really loved the rebounds he was getting early in the game, bringing that presence in the lane.”

DEFENSIVE SWITCH SPURS COWBOYS

OSU prefers man-to-man defense.

But in times of need — like Saturday — Ford will flip to a zone. Against the Mountaineers, Ford went to a 2-3 zone and stuck with it.

“The zone really helped us,” Ford said. “It changed momentum a little bit.

“We always have it ready. We work on it periodically, not a whole lot.”

Not only did the zone affect WVU's offense, it aided the Cowboys' offense, with Mountaineers misses leading to fast-break opportunities.

“You get them shooting longer shots, they rebound a little longer and we get out on the fast break,” Ford said. “Getting out on the break was huge, really big for us. When we were struggling in the half-court, to get out and get a few baskets really helps your confidence.”

NEXT 3

Wednesday: vs. Iowa State, 7 p.m.

Saturday: at Kansas, 3 p.m.

Feb. 6: Baylor, 6 p.m.