Oklahoma State’s summer run through Puerto Rico ended the right way Wednesday night, with a 100-92 win over the LBP All-Stars to cap a 3-0 trip in which the Cowboys played three games in four nights.
Steve Lutz used the trip to get a long look at the roster he pieced together this offseason, and he didn’t waste many opportunities. With the exception of the finale, when fifth-year point guard Kanye Clary did not appear, Lutz played all 14 guys in each game. Clary also logged only nine minutes in the second game, which suggested he might have been dealing with an injury, though nothing was reported.
The bigger picture from the trip is simple enough: Lutz now has a much clearer sense of the mix he’s working with, even if July basketball only reveals so much. The roster includes four holdovers from last season, four incoming freshmen and six transfer additions, and the coach spent the week testing different combinations to see what fits.
That part stood out most. Lutz kept rotating lineups and leaning into the flexibility of a group that gives him plenty of options.
He has size everywhere - 10 players on the roster are 6-foot-5 or taller - and he also has enough skill to stretch defenses. Jordan Burks, listed at 6-9, and 6-11 Andrija Grbovic both showed they can step out and make 3s.
Burks, in particular, made a strong impression. He averaged 14.3 points per game on the trip and hit 6 of 9 from beyond the arc across the three games. After a solid season at UCF, the former prized recruit looks like he could be one of the key pieces Lutz builds around.
In Other News...
Oklahoma State Is Still Alive For An In-State Recruit Fans Need
Recruiting in-state always matters in Stillwater, and Oklahoma State is still in the mix for one of the biggest names in the next wave. Kamieon Compton-Nero, the top-ranked athlete in the Class of 2028 and a standout from Owasso, is among the programs top 15 targets, a sign the Cowboys remain firmly in the conversation for a player who has already drawn attention on both sides of the ball.
Compton-Nero has put up eye-catching numbers as both a quarterback and a defensive player, which only adds to the intrigue around how he might be used at the next level. For Oklahoma State, the appeal goes beyond talent alone: the staff is tracking a local prospect who could become a major piece in the future, even with a quarterback room that already includes one 2027 commit and two true freshmen on campus. [Read more 🡒]
NCAA Twist Could Reopen Several Oklahoma State Careers
A federal judge in Colorado has thrown a fresh wrinkle into the NCAAs eligibility rules, ordering the association to declare eligible all high school class of 2022 athletes who used up four seasons of eligibility this spring. The ruling comes amid legal challenges to the NCAAs newer age-based "five-for-five" standard, and it has immediate implications for several student-athletes who suddenly have another path to keep competing.
For Oklahoma State, the decision touches three players and could reopen careers that looked finished at the end of the spring. The bigger picture for the Cowboys is obvious: roster planning, scholarship management and even offseason expectations can all shift when athletes who seemed out of eligibility may be able to return for another college season. [Read more 🡒]
Oklahoma State May Have Found A Breakout Answer In The Secondary
Eric Morris has spent his first months reshaping Oklahoma State with an avalanche of transfers, nearly 90 in all, as he builds a roster that looks very different from the one he inherited. The group includes quarterback Drew Mestemaker and former UCLA linebacker Isaiah Chisom, but one of the quieter additions could end up mattering just as much on the defensive side: Vincent Holmes, a safety who arrived from Washington looking for a reset.
Holmes was once a four-star recruit, but his time in Seattle never really took off, leaving him with little game action and a lot to prove. In Stillwater, he is trying to turn that pedigree into production in Skyler Cassitys 4-2-5 defense, where the structure gives him a real chance to push for a starting safety role and carve out the kind of breakout opportunity that never came before. [Read more 🡒]