Oklahoma State No. 20 in AP basketball poll after big win
BY Staff Reports
Tuesday, November 20, 2012
11/20/12 at 4:32 AM
For the first time in the Travis Ford era, Oklahoma State's basketball team is ranked. The Cowboys are No. 20 in the latest Associated Press basketball poll released Monday.
The Cowboys are 4-0 after defeating then-No. 6 North Carolina State 76-56 in the championship game of the Puerto Rico Tip-Off Tournament.
The Cowboys are No. 22 in the USA Today Coaches poll, released Monday afternoon.
This marks the first time that OSU has been ranked in either poll since the week of Feb. 12, 2007. That week, the Cowboys were ranked No. 18 in the AP poll and 20th in the Coaches poll. The debut at No. 20 in the Associated Press poll is also tied for the fourth-largest jump in the polls for the Cowboys since the poll began in 1948.
Freshman Marcus Smart was named MVP of the Puerto Rico tournament and was joined on the all-tournament team by Le'Bryan Nash. On Sunday, the McDonald's All-Americans combined for 43 points. On Monday, Nash was named Big 12 player of the week while Smart was named rookie of the week.
Nash averaged 20 points and 6.7 rebounds as Oklahoma State defeated Akron, Tennessee and North Carolina State to win the Puerto Rico Tip-Off. Smart, a freshman guard, averaged 17 points and 8.3 rebounds in the three wins.
In the rest of the AP poll, Indiana is still a runaway No. 1 and Louisville is again a solid second. Then come the changes, with Kentucky dropping five spots to eighth.
The Hoosiers (3-0) received 46 first-place votes Monday from the 65-member national media panel. The Cardinals (5-0) got the other 19 No. 1 votes.
Here's how World Sports Writer Kelly Hines voted:
1. Indiana
2. Louisville
3. Ohio State
4. Michigan
5. Duke
6. Syracuse
7. Kentucky
8. Florida
9. UNC
10. Arizona
11. Kansas
12. UCLA
13. Missouri
14. N.C. State
15. Creighton
16. Michigan State
17. Memphis
18. UNLV
19. Gonzaga
20. Oklahoma State
21. Colorado
22. Baylor
23. Connecticut
24. Cincinnati
25. Wisconsin
Original Print Headline: Cowboys No. 20 in AP poll after win
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