Cowboys Blow Out South Carolina

South Carolina struck first on Friday night in Gallaher-Iba Arena to take a 2-0 lead 36 seconds into the game.

That was where the good news ended for the Gamecocks in this Big 12/SEC Challenge matchup.

No. 9 Oklahoma State immediately went on a 27-3 run and held USC to just 15 first-half points en route to a 79-52 victory in front of a rowdy gathering in Stillwater.

The Cowboys bounced back in a big way from last week's loss against Memphis, dominating this contest from buzzer to buzzer to improve 8-1 on the season and 6-1 at home.

Le'Bryan Nash led the Pokes with 16 points on 5-of-7 shooting, as all five starters scored in double figures.

Marcus Smart had 13 points, five assists, four rebounds and two steals coming off his worst game of the year so far against the Tigers. Smart scored 11 of his 13 in the first half as the Pokes amassed their big lead. Markel Brown had 11 points and four boards, while Michael Cobbins and Brian Williams added 10 point each.

Phil Forte and Kamari Murphy each scored eight points off the bench and Stevie Clark had three points in his first game back from a four-game suspension.

OSU held the Gamecocks to a season-low in points and led by as much as 26 in the first half when the score was 35-9 with 5:29 remaining in the opening 20 minutes.

Jayden Shaw led USC (2-3) with 13 points off the bench, while guard Tyrone Johnson was the only other Gamecock to reach double figures with 12.

The Cowboys' offense was good enough to win on Friday, shooting 44.6 percent from the field and making 24-of-32 free throws, but it was OSU's defense that made this game ugly.

OSU held South Carolina to just 35.6 percent shooting – just 20 percent in the first half – and forced the Gamecocks into 24 turnovers, including 10 steals, which resulted in 33 points for the Pokes. OSU committed just seven turnovers.

Oklahoma State hits the road again for its next contest, as the Cowboys travel to face Louisiana Tech at 1 p.m. on Dec. 14.