Oklahoma State Shows Grit, Late-Game Heroics in Thrilling Win Over Kansas State
STILLWATER - When the game was hanging by a thread, Oklahoma State didn’t flinch. Down late, with the clock winding down and momentum teetering, the Cowboys found a way to fight through the chaos and steal a dramatic 84-83 win over Kansas State - a victory that felt as much about toughness as it was about execution.
It all came down to the final possession, and Oklahoma State made every second count. Christian Coleman kept the Cowboys alive with a hustle play that turned what looked like a turnover into a salvaged possession.
Moments later, Parsa Fallah battled on the offensive glass, forcing the ball out of bounds off Kansas State. That effort gave OSU one more shot to win it.
The first look didn’t fall. With eight seconds left, the Cowboys missed what could’ve been the game-winner.
But Vyctorius Miller was in the right place at the right time. He grabbed the rebound, stepped behind the arc, and drew a foul on a three-point attempt with just 2.8 seconds to go - the kind of moment that separates players who want the spotlight from those who thrive in it.
Miller, a career 78% free-throw shooter, stepped to the line with the game on his shoulders. Ice cold.
Three for three. Ballgame.
“Only in my dreams,” Miller said afterward. “As a kid, you dream of those moments - national championship, game on the line, it’s just you.
I didn’t shoot well tonight, but a lesser man would’ve folded. I knew my team believed in me.”
That belief mattered. Miller had struggled from the field, but with the game on the line, he delivered.
And considering no one on the team has made more free throws this season, he was exactly who OSU wanted at the stripe. Only Anthony Roy owns a better percentage - but Miller’s volume speaks for itself.
“VJ took advantage of the moment,” said head coach Steve Lutz. “They didn’t want to give up the three, and he sold the shot fake. The defender bit, and that’s the game.”
This one was tight from start to finish. For the final 14 minutes, neither team led by more than four points. The Cowboys went cold from deep in the second half, hitting just 3-of-12 from beyond the arc, but they made up for it with grit and rebounding.
That’s where Fallah came in.
“We didn’t shoot great as a team today,” Fallah said. “But when shots aren’t falling, that’s when your true identity shows. You’ve got to do the dirty work - rebound, hustle, fight - and I think we did that as a team tonight.”
Fallah was relentless in the paint, finishing with nine rebounds - seven of them on the offensive end - and 17 points. His second-chance efforts were a game-changer. OSU turned 16 offensive boards into 23 points, outpacing Kansas State’s 16 second-chance points off 13 offensive rebounds.
It wasn’t just Fallah doing damage. The Cowboys went big for long stretches, and it paid off.
Andrija Vukovic tied his career high with 11 points, making his presence felt early and often. At one point in the first half, he was the team’s leading scorer - a testament to how important his minutes were in this one.
Anthony Roy, meanwhile, didn’t start for the first time in 11 games, but that didn’t slow him down. The senior poured in a game-high 23 points, extending his streak to 12 straight games with at least 14 points. He’s become a consistent scoring force, no matter his role in the rotation.
With the win, head coach Steve Lutz notched his 100th career victory - a milestone moment in a game that demanded every ounce of coaching and composure.
“I never thought I’d be lucky enough to be the head coach at Oklahoma State, coaching in the Big 12,” Lutz said. “But I believe in this team. If we can tighten up defensively, we can make a run in the Big 12 and get to the NCAA Tournament.”
Up next, Oklahoma State hits the road to face TCU - a team stuck in a four-game skid and reeling from a narrow loss to Utah, the Big 12’s lowest-ranked team in the NET by a wide margin. It’s a chance for the Cowboys to build momentum and chase win No. 101 for Lutz.
But for now, the Cowboys can savor this one. It wasn’t pretty, and it wasn’t perfect. But when it mattered most, they stood tall, trusted each other, and delivered - one free throw at a time.