The Big 12 has lined up its media days, and Oklahoma State will send a mix of returners, newcomers and head coaches to Kansas City next week.
The Cowboys and Cowgirls are set for Wednesday’s session at T-Mobile Center, the same building that will host both the men’s and women’s conference tournaments in March. The league announced the attendees for all 32 teams that will take part in basketball media days.
For Oklahoma State’s men, head coach Steve Lutz will be joined by forward Jordan Burks, guard Kanye Clary and center Parsa Fallah. On the women’s side, head coach Jacie Hoyt will appear with center Audi Crooks, guard Stailee Heard and guard Liv McGill.
Lutz is heading into his third season with the Cowboys, who are still chasing a return to the NCAA Tournament. Oklahoma State has not reached March Madness since 2021, when Cade Cunningham led the way before becoming the future No. 1 overall pick.
The Cowboys have taken a step forward in wins from Lutz’s first season to his second, adding three victories, but they still have not finished in the top eight of the Big 12 in either year. That matters in a league where the top eight teams in the final standings at least earn a single bye in the Big 12 Tournament.
For now, Oklahoma State’s men have spent Lutz’s first two seasons in the postseason NIT rather than the NCAA field.
There’s some continuity in the men’s group. Clary is back after starting at guard a season ago.
Fallah is also a returner and is working back from the torn ACL he suffered late last season. He is also currently eligible on a waiver while his case for an additional year of eligibility is being heard.
Burks arrives as a transfer from UCF, so he already knows the Big 12 terrain.
The Cowgirls, meanwhile, arrive with plenty of buzz. Hoyt is entering her fifth season and has already guided Oklahoma State to three NCAA Tournament trips in four years. The missing piece has been a breakthrough run past the first weekend, and she’s hoping the portal haul she brought in over the summer changes that.
The Big 12 coaches picked Oklahoma State as the preseason favorite, a clear sign of how highly the Cowgirls are regarded entering the year.
Crooks is the headliner. She spent the past three seasons at Iowa State and came into the transfer cycle viewed as the No. 1 player in the portal. McGill, another major addition, was ranked No. 2 in the portal and will also be in Kansas City.
Heard is the lone holdover from last year’s team. She’s about to begin her fourth season in Stillwater and has earned all-Big 12 honors in each of her first three years.
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