STILLWATER, OK — Marcus Carr scored 12 points to help No. 6 Texas defeat Oklahoma State 56-46 Saturday in the Longhorns’ first game since coach Chris Beard was fired.
Texas (13-2, 2-1 Big 12) improved to 6-1 under interim coach Rodney Terry.
Bird has been charged with domestic violence in connection with a December 12 incident involving his fiancée. Beard has been suspended without pay since he was arrested and fired on Thursday, with the school saying he is “not right” for the position. The Travis County District Attorney’s office is reviewing the case.
Kalib Boon scored 16 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for the Oklahoma State (9-6, 1-2) team, which narrowly lost to No. 3 Kansas on Dec. 31 to a landslide victory over West Virginia before losing on Saturday. Moussa Cisse of Oklahoma State missed the game with an ankle injury; The 7-foot-1 forward leads the Big 12 with 9.9 rebounds and 2.7 blocks per game.
Texas led 32-24 at halftime despite hitting 32.1% before halftime. Eight Longhorns scored in the first half, but none scored more than five points. Texas held Oklahoma State with 33.3% shooting and outscored the Cowboys 12–7 from the free throw line in the first 20 minutes.
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Buna’s dunk cut Texas’ lead to 43–41 and Caleb Asberry followed with a 3-pointer to give the Cowboys a 44–43 lead with 8:20 left.
Texas responded and a Brock Cunningham three-pointer put the Longhorns 53–46 up with about two minutes left.
It was a good defensive try for the Longhorns after a game in which they lost 116 points to Kansas State, the most they have ever allowed in a Big 12 game.
Even without one of their best players, the Cowboys held on tight against a top 10 team that was averaging 84.1 points.
Texas will face TCU at 8:00 pm Wednesday at the Moody Center. Oklahoma State’s next game will be in Kansas State on Tuesday.
