Markel Brown has hot hand for OSU
BY KELLY HINES World Sports Writer
Wednesday, February 06, 2013
2/06/13 at 7:51 AM
STILLWATER - On Monday, Oklahoma State guard Markel Brown jokingly told reporters he's become a better shooter than former teammate Keiton Page.
At least temporarily, Brown has a higher 3-point percentage than the Pawnee Pistol did in his senior season. Boosted by 7-of-10 shooting behind the arc Saturday at Kansas, Brown is up to 39 percent on treys, compared to Page's 38.6 percent last year.
"My teammates found me in spots and I made a lot of shots that I didn't think I was going to make," Brown said of his performance Saturday. "I don't think I ever made that many 3s in a row before."
While hitting his first five 3-pointers, Brown helped the Cowboys build a 14-point first-half cushion. By halftime, he had 22 points, and in the 85-80 upset he finished with 28 points - the most by an OSU player this season.
"I didn't even know how many points I had going into the half," he said. "I just kept shooting it. I think halftime kind of slowed me down a little bit, kind of like (the delay) slowed the Ravens down in the Super Bowl."
But the success he had against the then-No. 2 team in the country showed Brown he could light it up against anybody, and it is a good time for him to gain confidence. At 6 p.m. Wednesday, OSU has an ESPN-televised rematch with Baylor in Stillwater, 17 days removed from a 64-54 loss in Waco.
In that game, Brown was held to a season-low two points on 1-of-10 shooting.
"I had a lot of open shots," Brown said. "I just didn't make them count. I don't think it will happen again. I've been shooting a lot more and focusing on my shot. As you can tell on Saturday, it worked out on me."
Identified by KU coach Bill Self as the most athletic player in the Big 12, Brown surprisingly has more 3-pointers (32) than highlight-reel dunks (20) this season, although before Saturday he hadn't hit more than four 3s in a game.
"I always thought he could (hit 3-pointers) if it became an emphasis for him," coach Travis Ford said at the start of the year, "and it's become an emphasis for him."
Scoring is not new to Brown, who averaged 32 points while leading Peabody Magnet High School to an undefeated season and a Louisiana state title as a senior. But he spent a lot of time in the gym in the offseason working on his long-range shooting.
"I put up more shots and I also put up game shots," Brown said. "(Coaches) say it's not always about the quantity; it's about the quality of shots you take. I took a lot of quality game shots and most of the time, that's what I worked on."
Brown's improvement has been obvious throughout the season. As a junior, he is leading the team in scoring and averaging 17.4 points per game in conference play.
"I knew it was going to be balanced from me, Marcus (Smart) and Le'Bryan (Nash), but I never thought I'd be leading the team in scoring," Brown said. "I guess that's what comes when (defenses) focus on Marcus and LB a lot. Hopefully I can continue to stay consistent for the team."
With attention on his McDonald's All-American teammates, Brown doesn't mind floating under the radar.
"I kind of like no attention on me," he said. "(I can) go out there and make a couple of shots, surprise them."
Baylor (14-7, 5-3 Big 12)
| | Ht. | Pt. | Reb. |
| F | Jefferson | 6-9 | 12.3 | 8.2 |
| C | Austin | 7-1 | 14.5 | 9.4 |
| G | Heslip | 6-2 | 8.3 | 1.4 |
| G | Walton | 6-1 | 7.3 | 3.8 |
| G | Jackson | 5-10 | 19.1 | 5.9* |
Oklahoma State (15-5, 5-3)
| | Ht. | Pt. | Reb. |
| F | Nash | 6-7 | 13.2 | 4.2 |
| F | Cobbins | 6-8 | 6.7 | 5.3 |
| C | Jurick | 6-11 | 3.7 | 7.2 |
| G | Brown | 6-3 | 15.5 | 4.4 |
| G | Smart | 6-4 | 14.2 | 5.8 |
Up next
At Baylor
6 p.m. Wednesday
TV: ESPN-25
Radio: KFAQ am1170
Original Print Headline: Brown has hot hand for OSU
Kelly Hines 918-581-8452
kelly.hines@tulsaworld.com
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