Posts tagged Oklahoma State
MGM Grand to Host CU mens basketball vs. Ok. St. State
Jul 25th
Coaches vs. Cancer basketball benefit Dec. 21
LAS VEGAS, Nev. – Four Top 25 college basketball programs will be on display at MGM Grand (www.mgmgrand.com) in Las Vegas on Saturday, Dec. 21, 2013 in an inaugural nationally televised doubleheader benefitting Coaches vs. Cancer, an initiative spearheaded by the National Association of Basketball Coaches (www.nabc.com) and the American Cancer Society (www.cancer.org).
The MGM Grand Showcase tips with reigning Mountain West champion New Mexico taking on Marquette at 7:00 p.m. (MT) in the opener, televised live on ESPNU. The University of Colorado Buffaloes will face former Big 12 Conference foe the Oklahoma State Cowboys in the nightcap on ESPN2 at 9:30 p.m. (MT).
The two games will be played at the 16,800-seat MGM Grand Garden Arena, home of the biggest names in sports and entertainment including many of boxing’s premier championship bouts over the past two decades. The CU/OSU game will be broadcast to more than 100 million homes on ESPN2.
bd Global, LLC, a Lexington, Ky.-based sports marketing firm, has signed an exclusive three-year contract with MGM Grand to provide college basketball content. The Showcase is the first of several new regular season college basketball events at MGM Grand over the next few seasons. In 2012, the resort played host to the Holiday Hoops Classic and this past March partnered with the Pac-12 Conference to become its new home for the annual Pac-12 Men’s Basketball Tournament.
Colorado went 21-12 during the 2012-13 campaign advanced to its second straight NCAA Tournament (second round) and finished 10-8 in the Pac-12 at the fifth place slot. The Buffs feature 2013 World University Games and first team selection Spencer Dinwiddie. CU also plays its Pac-12 Conference tournament at the MGM Grand.
“We’re excited to play against a storied program, and certainly a Top 25 team like Oklahoma State,” CU head coach Tad Boyle said. “It’s going to be a great opportunity for us.”
The Cowboys were 24-9 last season and finished tied for third in the Big 12 Conference with a 13-5 record. OSU also made the NCAA Tournament last March (second round) and feature All-American Marcus Smart.
CU/OSU played one another on a regular basis from 1948-2011 when both were members of the Big Seven, Big Eight and Big 12 Conferences. The Cowboys lead the all-time series, 60-48, however are 6-6 on neutral courts. The Buffs won the last game between the two programs on Jan. 15, 2011 in Boulder (75-71).
“Many thanks to MGM Grand for its commitment to helping us launch this annual event benefitting a cause that college basketball passionately supports,” said Brooks Downing, president of bd Global (www.bdglobalsports.com), the event promoter. “With four of the nation’s top teams for next season, it will definitely have a March Madness atmosphere that day at MGM Grand.”
Tickets ranging from $30 – $250 (courtside seating), not including applicable service charges and taxes, go on sale Thursday, July 25 at 10 a.m. and will be sold at all Las Vegas Ticketmaster locations (select Smith’s Food and Drug Centers and Ritmo Latino). Ticket sales are limited to eight (8) per person. To charge by phone with a major credit card, call Ticketmaster at (800) 745-3000. Tickets also are available for purchase at www.mgmgrand.com or www.ticketmaster.com.
Complete event information can be found at wwwmgmgrandshowcase.com. For group sales or sponsorship opportunities, interested parties should contact bd Global at 859-951-6141.
New Mexico returns to Las Vegas after winning the Mountain West Conference Tournament at UNLV last March. The Lobos, coming off a 29-6 season, return four starters for new head coach Craig Neal. Senior guard Kendall Williams led the team in scoring last season at 13.3 points per game and junior center Alex Kirk averaged 12.1 per contest to go along with 8.1 rebounds.
Coach Buzz Williams has Marquette primed for another strong year following last season’s run to the Elite Eight. The Golden Eagles captured a share of the Big East regular season title in 2012-13 and advanced to the NCAA Tournament East Regional Final before falling to Syracuse. MU will be led by 6-8, 290 lb. Davante Gardner, a senior forward that averaged 11.5 points and 4.8 rebounds last year.
Oklahoma State and head coach Travis Ford received an unexpected boost when Smart, a National Player of the Year candidate, opted to return for his sophomore season despite being an expected top-five selection in the NBA Draft. The Cowboys return three other starters, including Le’Bryan Nash.
CU head coach Tad Boyle has quickly positioned his Buffs among the elite of the Pac-12 with back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances since moving to the league in 2011. CU returns four starters from a team that won 21 games a year ago, including Dinwiddie (15.3 points, 3.0 assists) and Askia Booker (12.4 points, 3.5 rebounds).
A portion of every ticket sold for the MGM Grand Showcase will directly benefit Coaches vs. Cancer. The program provides critical mission outreach while raising funds in support of the American Cancer Society’s lifesaving efforts to help people stay well and get well, fund groundbreaking research into cancer’s causes and cures, and fight back through legislative action at the local, state, and national levels. Since 1993, high school and college coaches across the country have raised more than $87 million to support the American Cancer Society’s fight against cancer.
Reggie Minton, NABC deputy executive director, said, “Our NABC coaches have championed the Coaches vs. Cancer program for 20 years now. We are very appreciative for the support we receive for this initiative in the hope of finding a cure for cancer.”
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CU men’s golfs team in sixth at NCAA Central Regional
May 16th
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — The University of Colorado men’s golf team opened strong here Thursday in the NCAA Central/Fayetteville Regional, with the Buffaloes in sixth place and definitely in contention for a top five finish and the berth into the NCAA Finals that comes with it.
No. 33 Illinois leads the pack with a 6-under 282 score, thanks to the efforts of two true freshmen that combined to go 11 strokes under what some call the “happy side of par.” No. 4 Texas is second (285), followed by No. 11 Oklahoma State (286), No. 22 Kent State (288) and No. 12 and host Arkansas (290).
The Buffaloes, ranked No. 58 by GolfStat and No. 67 by Golfweek, turned in a 4-over 292 to stand in sixth. No. 20 SMU is five back of CU, with the remaining seven teams in the field all at 300 or higher.
The top five teams out of 14 competing will advance to the NCAA Finals, set for May 28-June 2 in Atlanta, Ga., as will the top two individuals not associated with the five teams that qualify.
The four Buffs who contributed to the team score made the turn at 1-over; they had a collective hiccup on the first four holes on the front side (4-over), but played the last five at 1-under. The end result was Colorado placing four in the top 25 through 18 holes, matched only by Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas, three of the nation’s top 12 teams.
“It was definitely a good start, which we chalk up to our primary focus today being was to be patient and have a great attitude,” head coach Roy Edwards said. “The guys were phenomenal with that. I’m really proud of them, and that’s really the main reason we enjoyed a solid round.
“We need to do the same thing for tomorrow,” he continued. “That’s to be patient, take it one shot at a time. Right now, they’re only thinking about their first tee shot (Friday). You cannot get ahead of yourself here. It rained overnight and the course was really soft, so it played as easiest as it’s going to get today. The scores are likely not going to be as low, so the emphasis will be on the importance of being patient. That’s what we’ll stress.”
Sophomore David Oraee led the Buffaloes with a 1-under 71, which has him tied for ninth individually. He had a steady round with four birdies and 11 pars against three bogeys; the four birds tied for 10th most in the field. Playing to even par much of the round, he finished with birdies on Nos. 7 and 9 with a bogeys sandwiched in-between to get it into red numbers on the 7,251-yard, par-72 The Blessings Golf Club course layout.
Freshman Philip Juel-Berg continued his stellar rookie season, posting a 1-over 73, which has him tied for 20th. He had three birdies, 11 pars and four bogeys on his day, as he made the turn at 3-over but played the front side at 2-under, thanks to birds on Nos. 6 and 9. There are 14 freshmen in the field; Juel-Berg finished currently is seventh among them, with three of the six ahead of him recording even-par rounds of 72.
CU’s No. 1 player and stroke average leader, senior Jason Burstyn, fashioned a 2-over 74, tying him for 25th; he had four birdies like Oraee, along with nine pars, four bogeys and one double. The latter came on No. 6, a 418-yard, par-4 that played as the day’s fourth toughest hole; that pushed him to 4-over on the day, but he bounced back and closed with birdies on Nos. 7 and 9.
Senior Derek Fribbs also shot a 74, with three birdies and 11 pars against three bogeys and a double. He got off to one of the hot starts of the day, standing 3-under after he birdied Nos. 12, 13 and 15 – a par-5, a par-4 and a par-3, respectively – but came back down to Earth with bogeys on No. 17 and then on Nos. 1 and 4. He was cruising along at even par until his final hole of the day, the 535-yard, par-5 No. 9, where he doubled after hitting his drive into a hazard. It was his first double bogey in six rounds.
“I was hitting it in their close and utilizing the slopes,” Fribbs said of his start. “But after a while, the putts weren’t falling. I still had opportunities on the back nine, I just couldn’t make any putts to take full advantage of things. The course played a little easier today than expected because you could hold your shots better than we thought, but we also had good course management today.”
Junior Johnny Hayes shot an 8-over 80, tying him for 60th, as he recorded two birdies and nine pars against five bogeys, a double and a triple. He scored the latter two in his first four holes to get to 5-over quickly, but settled down over the final 14 holes.
“Johnny had a rough start, but regrouped and then held it together pretty well for a bad start,” Edwards said. “For the most part, any time anyone made a mistake, they worked hard to make a bogey and nothing worse.”
Hayes certainly wasn’t alone in his struggles; the average score by the non-scorer for all 14 teams on Thursday was an 81.6; he actually tied for the fourth lowest as only three managed to break 80. Despite his troubles, he played the par-3 holes at a collective 1-under, tied for eighth best in the field.
Illinois freshman Charlie Danielson turned in the best round of the day to take the individual lead, as the 2012 Wisconsin state high school champion opened on the back nine and shot a 30, including five birdies over a seven hole span; he added two more birdies on the front side to finish with a 7-under 65. Freshmen dominated the top of the leaderboard Thursday, with Oklahoma State’s Jordan Niebrugge tied for second (67) and Illinois’ Thomas Detry fourth (68).
The field has been re-paired according to score for the second round; Colorado, the No. 10 seed here, will tee it up off the No. 1 tee beginning at 7:20 a.m. MDT with Kent State (No. 5 seed) and Arkansas (No. 2), who occupy the fourth and fifth spots ahead of the Buffs. The final round is set for a 7:50 a.m. start on Saturday.
CU media release
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