North Texas holds off Oklahoma St., moves to NIT semifinals

Atin Wright scored 15 points Tuesday night and visiting North Texas survived a frightening final minute to hold off Oklahoma State for a 61-59 win in the NIT quarterfinals in Stillwater.

In beating the Cowboys (17-18) at this stage for the second time in three years, the Mean Green (27-8) earned a bid to the semifinals on April 1 in Indianapolis against the winner of the UAB-UC Irvine game, which will be played Wednesday night.

Jasper Floyd and reserve Brenen Lorient added 10 points each for North Texas, which led 61-52 with 1:11 left and nearly blew it as Oklahoma State took advantage of turnovers.

The Cowboys got within two on a bucket by Bryce Thompson with 41.7 seconds remaining and had a chance to tie or win.

Coach Steve Lutz took a timeout with 0.7 seconds on the clock to rescue the last possession. Oklahoma State got Brandon Newman open for a 3-pointer from the wing before time expired, but his shot banged off the iron.

Newman and Thompson each finished with 17 points, while Arturo Dean added 12. The team's second-leading scorer, Abou Ousmane, made only two of seven shots and scored just four points -- eight under his average.

A pregame storyline centered on Oklahoma State's ability to force North Texas, which plays at one of the slowest tempos in Division I, into a faster pace. The answer in the first half was a definite no.

The Mean Green owned the tempo and the advantage, in part because they were able to make 3-pointers and force turnovers. Wright, their leading scorer, converted his first three 3-pointers to help them establish a 15-11 lead.

Meanwhile, the Cowboys not only struggled to make shots but also failed to take care of the ball. They made just 32.3 percent from the field and coughed up eight turnovers, enabling North Texas to take a 27-22 edge to halftime.

--Field Level Media