The Oklahoma State Cowgirls are getting a bigger national stage than expected this season, and it starts with the Big 12’s new television slate.
What looked like a marquee nonconference matchup against South Carolina now feels like part of a much larger television haul. The conference announced its women’s basketball national TV selections, and Oklahoma State released the broadcast details for its remaining games, with the Cowgirls landing on national television 10 times in 18 Big 12 games. Add in two December nonconference games with national windows, and OSU’s schedule is loaded with exposure.
That Big 12 package is a big step up across the league, too. The conference said it will have 29 selections it controls on national television, the most in its history and a 45% jump from last year. CBS Sports Network is joining ESPN and Fox in the mix.
Oklahoma State’s conference run on TV begins Jan. 3, when West Virginia comes to Gallagher-Iba Arena at 7 p.m. The Mountaineers are the defending Big 12 Tournament champions, while the Cowgirls were picked in the Big 12 preseason poll to win the league.
Several of OSU’s biggest league matchups are set for national broadcast. Both games against Iowa State made the cut, with the trip to Ames set for 7 p.m. on Jan. 9 on FS1 and the return game in Stillwater at 1:30 p.m. on Feb. 27, also on FS1. New Cowgirls center Audi Crooks played at Iowa State for three seasons before she transferred, and Cyclones coach Bill Fennelly recently said this season will be his last before retirement.
The Cowgirls’ games against TCU and Baylor are also on the national slate. TCU visits Stillwater on Jan. 28 at 7 p.m. on ESPN.
Baylor will host OSU on Feb. 21 at 3 p.m. on either ESPN or ESPN2. The Horned Frogs have won the last two regular season titles.
December gives Oklahoma State a couple more national showcases. The Cowgirls travel to Columbia, S.C., to face South Carolina on Dec. 6 at 3 p.m. on ABC, and they’ll meet Oklahoma in Oklahoma City on Dec. 12 at 11 a.m. on ESPN2.
The Big 12 Tournament runs March 3-7 in Kansas City. Oklahoma State has never won it, and the program’s last conference tournament title came in 1991, back when it was in the Big Eight Conference.
Home games in Bold; *-denotes Big 12 Game; times central
Nov. 22 vs. Wichita State (at Kansas City, Mo.), 4 p.m.
Nov. 27 vs. Coconut Hoops (at Fort Myers, Fla.), 12:30 p.m., EDG Live
Nov. 29 vs. Coconut Hoops (at Fort Myers, Fla.), 12:30 p.m., EDG Live
Dec. 12 vs. Oklahoma (at Oklahoma City, Okla.), 11 a.m., ESPN2
Feb. 24 at Texas Tech*, 5:30 p.m., CBS Sports Network
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