Austin Peay State University men’s basketball team weathered an impressive start by Oklahoma State before mounting a second-half comeback that brought the Governors to within eight points late in the second half before ultimately 79-63 at Gallagher-Iba Arena, Wednesday.
Oklahoma State (6-1) came out hot from beyond the arc, hitting nine first-half threes, including five in the first eight minutes. That allowed the Cowboys to seize control heading into the break, despite a solid first-half effort from Terry Taylor (nine points).
The second half, the Governors ramped up the defense, to impressive dividends. Pressing off made baskets, Austin Peay hassled the Cowboys into 13 second-half turnovers, curbing Oklahoma State’s three-point shooting (2-of-6) and creating chances for easy buckets.
After Oklahoma State’s first bucket of the second half pushed the deficit to 22 points, the Govs reeled off a 25-11 run over the ensuing 9:27 to get back in the game in a true team effort—five Govs scored at least four points during this stretch, with junior Steve Harris netting all six of his to help the Govs get back in the contest.
The deficit would remain largely in single digits until the last four minutes, when a 10-5 Oklahoma State run put the game out of reach for Austin Peay.
(Courtesy APSU Athletics)