Oklahoma State Cowboys Men's Basketball
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Oklahoma State University Oklahoma (; Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a state in the South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the north, Missouri on the northeast, Arkansas on the east, New ...
in
Stillwater, Oklahoma Stillwater ( iow, Ñápinⁿje, ''meaning: "Water quiet"'') is a city in, and the county seat of, Payne County, Oklahoma, United States. It is located in north-central Oklahoma at the intersection of U.S. Route 177 and State Highway 51. As of t ...
,
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
in
NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest level of College athletics, intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major ...
men's
basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
competition. All women's teams at the school are known as Cowgirls. The
Cowboys A cowboy is a professional pastoralist or mounted livestock herder, usually from the Americas or Australia. Cowboy(s) or The Cowboy(s) may also refer to: Film and television * ''Cowboy'' (1958 film), starring Glenn Ford * ''Cowboy'' (1966 film), ...
currently compete in the
Big 12 Conference The Big 12 Conference is a college athletic conference headquartered in Irving, Texas, USA. It consists of ten full-member universities. It is a member of Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) for all sports. Its ...
. In 2020, CBS Sports ranked Oklahoma State the 25th best college basketball program of all-time, ahead of such programs as Oklahoma and Texas. Oklahoma State men’s basketball has a very rich history of success, having won more national titles and advanced to the NCAA Championship, Final Four, Elite Eight and Sweet Sixteen more times than any Big 12 program other than
Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the ...
. Oklahoma State has won a combined 23 regular season conference titles and conference tournament titles, which is the most of any program in the state of Oklahoma. NBA greats from Oklahoma State include Cade Cunningham (the number One overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft), Tony Allen (whose number was retired by the Memphis Grizzlies), John Starks (all-time leader in three pointers in New York Knicks history),
Desmond Mason Desmond Tremaine Mason (born October 11, 1977) is an American painter and former professional basketball player. He played as a shooting guard and small forward. Mason has also found success as an artist, working in a variety of media. Currently, ...
(2001 NBA Slam Dunk Champion) and
Marcus Smart Marcus Osmond Smart (born March 6, 1994) is an American professional basketball player for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Oklahoma State Cowboys. Smart was drafted with the ...
(2022 NBA Defensive Player of the Year, 2x NBA All-Defensive First Team). Several people associated with the program in some form have been inducted into the
Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is an American history museum and hall of fame, located at 1000 Hall of Fame Avenue in Springfield, Massachusetts. It serves as basketball's most complete library, in addition to promoting and pres ...
.
Eddie Sutton Edward Eugene Sutton (March 12, 1936 – May 23, 2020) was an American college basketball coach. A native of Bucklin, Kansas, Sutton played college basketball at Oklahoma A&M (later Oklahoma State) and was a head coach at the high school, junio ...
, who was inducted as a coach, is both a former player and former coach for the program.
Don Haskins Donald Lee Haskins (March 14, 1930 – September 7, 2008), nicknamed "The Bear", was an American basketball player and coach. He played college basketball for three years under coach Henry Iba at Oklahoma A&M (now Oklahoma State University). He w ...
and Bill Self are former Cowboys players inducted as coaches for other programs.
Bob Kurland Robert Albert Kurland (December 23, 1924 – September 29, 2013) was a American basketball center, who played for the two-time NCAA champion Oklahoma A&M Aggies (now Oklahoma State Cowboys) basketball team. He led the U.S. basketball team to go ...
was inducted as a player and
Hank Iba Henry Payne Iba (; August 6, 1904 – January 15, 1993) was an American basketball coach and college athletics administrator. He served as the head basketball coach at Northwest Missouri State Teacher's College, now known as Northwest Missouri S ...
was inducted as a coach at Oklahoma State Since 1938, the team has played its
home A home, or domicile, is a space used as a permanent or semi-permanent residence for one or many humans, and sometimes various companion animals. It is a fully or semi sheltered space and can have both interior and exterior aspects to it. H ...
games in
Gallagher-Iba Arena Gallagher-Iba Arena, also once known as ''"The Rowdiest Arena in the Country"'' and ''"The Madison Square Garden of the Plains”'', is the basketball and wrestling venue at Oklahoma State University in Stillwater, Oklahoma, United States. Origi ...
. Prior to 1957, the school was known as Oklahoma A&M College, and the teams were nicknamed the Aggies. On March 21, 2016, Brad Underwood was hired as
head A head is the part of an organism which usually includes the ears, brain, forehead, cheeks, chin, eyes, nose, and mouth, each of which aid in various sensory functions such as sight, hearing, smell, and taste. Some very simple animals may ...
coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...
at Oklahoma State, replacing the fired
Travis Ford Travis Ford (born December 29, 1969) is an American college basketball coach, who is currently the head coach of the Saint Louis Billikens men's basketball team. He was also previously the head coach at Campbellsville University, Eastern Kent ...
. Just short of one year, on March 18, 2017, Underwood left the program for Illinois. Assistant
Mike Boynton Michael Boynton Jr. (born January 17, 1982) is an American basketball coach. He is the head men's basketball coach at the Oklahoma State University–Stillwater. Playing career A native of Brooklyn, New York, Boynton led his high school basketb ...
was promoted to head coach on March 24.


History

Oklahoma State University (then Oklahoma A&M College) began varsity intercollegiate competition in men's basketball in 1908. The Cowboys (including the predecessor Aggies teams) rank 35th in total victories among all
NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest level of College athletics, intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major ...
college basketball In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...
programs, with an all-time win–loss record of 1517–1053 (.590) at the end of 2010–11 season. The Cowboys (including the predecessor Aggies teams) have made 28 total appearances in the NCAA tournament (37–21 overall record), reaching the NCAA Final Four six times (1945, 1946, 1949, 1951, 1995, 2004) and the NCAA regional finals (
Elite Eight In the NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship or the NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Championship, the "Elite Eight" comprises the final eight teams, representing the regional finals, or national quarterfinals. In Division I and Divis ...
) eleven times. Oklahoma State (then Oklahoma A&M College) won the
NCAA Championship The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges and ...
in 1945 and 1946. The Cowboys rank tenth (tied with three other programs) in all-time Final Four appearances and seventh (tied with seven others) in total NCAA Championships.


The early years (1907–34)

Under nine head coaches in this period Oklahoma A&M found very little success, with only six winning seasons. Very little success was found early on and after a six-win 15-loss season under first-year coach
John Maulbetsch John Frederick Maulbetsch (June 20, 1890 – September 14, 1950) was an All-American football halfback at Adrian College in 1911 and for the University of Michigan Wolverines from 1914 to 1916. He is also a member of the College Football Hal ...
things were not looking well. However, in the next three seasons Maulbetsch turned around the program, leading the Aggies to a 41–20 record culminating with a first-place finish in their last season in the
Southwest Conference The Southwest Conference (SWC) was an NCAA Division I college athletic conference in the United States that existed from 1914 to 1996. Composed primarily of schools from Texas, at various times the conference included schools from Oklahoma an ...
. The move to the
Missouri Valley Conference The Missouri Valley Conference (also called MVC or simply "The Valley") is the third-oldest collegiate athletic conference in the United States. The conference's members are primarily located in the midwest. History The MVC was established ...
in 1925 would halt the progress under this budding coach. After Maulbetsch resigned from the positions of football, baseball and basketball coach the Aggies would not have another winning season until
Henry Iba Henry Payne Iba (; August 6, 1904 – January 15, 1993) was an American basketball coach and college athletics administrator. He served as the head basketball coach at Northwest Missouri State Teacher's College, now known as Northwest Missouri St ...
took the reins in 1934. However, despite an overall record of 7–9, the Aggies did win the Missouri Valley Conference Co-Championship in 1930-31 under Coach
George E. Rody George Edward Rody (1899 - September 13, 1956) was the team captain and leading scorer of the 1921–22 Kansas Jayhawks men's basketball team, which is recognized as the first national championship basketball team at the University of Kansas. He ...
with a conference record of 5–3. This period in Oklahoma State basketball history was marked with mainly football coaches heading the football, baseball and basketball teams. Oklahoma State 2010–2011 Preview
/ref>


Henry Iba era (1934–70)

Henry Iba Henry Payne Iba (; August 6, 1904 – January 15, 1993) was an American basketball coach and college athletics administrator. He served as the head basketball coach at Northwest Missouri State Teacher's College, now known as Northwest Missouri St ...
came to Oklahoma A&M College in 1934 and remained for 36 years. He retired after the 1969–70 season. For most of his tenure at A&M/OSU, he doubled as athletic director. Iba's teams were methodical, ball-controlling units that featured weaving patterns and low scoring games. Iba's "swinging gate" defense (a man-to-man with team flow) was applauded by many, and is still effective in today's game. He was known as "the Iron Duke of Defense". Iba's Aggies became the first to win consecutive NCAA titles (1945 and 1946). His 1945–46 NCAA champions were led by
Bob Kurland Robert Albert Kurland (December 23, 1924 – September 29, 2013) was a American basketball center, who played for the two-time NCAA champion Oklahoma A&M Aggies (now Oklahoma State Cowboys) basketball team. He led the U.S. basketball team to go ...
, the game's first seven-foot player. They beat
NYU New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then-Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, the ...
in the 1945 finals and
North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...
in the 1946 finals. He was voted coach of the year in both seasons. His 1945 champions also defeated National Invitation Tournament champion, DePaul, and 6' 9" center
George Mikan George Lawrence Mikan Jr. (; June 18, 1924 – June 1, 2005), nicknamed "Mr. Basketball", was an American professional basketball player for the Chicago American Gears of the National Basketball League (NBL) and the Minneapolis Lakers of ...
in a classic Red Cross Benefit game. Iba's 1949 and 1951 teams also reached the Final Four of the NCAA Tournament. Oklahoma A&M/Oklahoma State teams won 655 games, 14 Missouri Valley Championships, and one Big Eight Championship, in 36 seasons with Iba as head men's basketball coach. "Mr. Iba," as he is still popularly known at OSU, remained a fixture on campus until his death in 1993, often giving advice to players during practice. One seat in the southeast concourse level of
Gallagher-Iba Arena Gallagher-Iba Arena, also once known as ''"The Rowdiest Arena in the Country"'' and ''"The Madison Square Garden of the Plains”'', is the basketball and wrestling venue at Oklahoma State University in Stillwater, Oklahoma, United States. Origi ...
(which was renamed in his honor in 1987) remains unused in his honor.


1970–90

The mostly subpar results of Iba's final decade in Stillwater largely remained the status quo for Oklahoma State during the two decades following his retirement. From the 1970–71 to 1989–90 seasons, the Cowboys finished with winning records only six times, finished in the top half of the Big Eight Conference standings only three times, and earned a berth in the NCAA tournament only once.


Eddie Sutton era (1990–2006)

After being an assistant for the Cowboys in 195859,
Eddie Sutton Edward Eugene Sutton (March 12, 1936 – May 23, 2020) was an American college basketball coach. A native of Bucklin, Kansas, Sutton played college basketball at Oklahoma A&M (later Oklahoma State) and was a head coach at the high school, junio ...
returned to Oklahoma State in
1990 File:1990 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1990 FIFA World Cup is played in Italy; The Human Genome Project is launched; Voyager I takes the famous Pale Blue Dot image- speaking on the fragility of Humankind, humanity on Earth, Astroph ...
to coach. In the years leading up to his hiring, the team had made postseason play only three times since joining the Big Eight Conference in 1957. The Pokes began to turn around almost immediately with Sutton's presence, and in
1991 File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phil ...
, Oklahoma State returned to the NCAA Tournament, winning their first NCAA Tournament game since making the Elite Eight in 1965. Sutton’s Cowboys advanced all the way to the Sweet Sixteen during his first two seasons. In
1995 File:1995 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: O.J. Simpson is O. J. Simpson murder case, acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman from the 1994, year prior in "The Trial of the Century" in the United States; The ...
, the Pokes, under the leadership of Bryant "Big Country" Reeves and Randy Rutherford, captured the Big Eight Conference Tournament and won a bid to the
1995 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament The 1995 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament involved 64 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began on March 16, 1995, and ended with the championsh ...
. They advanced to the Final Four in
Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is a port, seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the county seat, seat of King County, Washington, King County, Washington (state), Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in bo ...
, where they lost to eventual champion UCLA. It was the Cowboys' deepest advance in the tournament since 1951. Led by
John Lucas III John Harding Lucas III (born November 21, 1982) is an American professional basketball coach and former player who is currently an assistant coach for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketba ...
,
Joey Graham Joseph Graham (born June 11, 1982) is an American former professional basketball player who played six seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). College career Graham played college basketball for the University of Central Florida (2 ...
, and 2004
Big 12 The Big 12 Conference is a college athletic conference headquartered in Irving, Texas, USA. It consists of ten full-member universities. It is a member of Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) for all sports. Its f ...
Player of the Year Tony Allen, Sutton's 2003–04 team finished with a school-record 31 wins (31–4), won both the Big 12 regular season and tournament championships, and advanced to the Final Four as a No. 2 seed in the 2004 NCAA tournament. The Cowboys finished the season ranked No. 4 in the final AP poll and Coaches' Poll. In his 16 seasons in Stillwater, the Cowboys reached the postseason 15 times (having declined an NIT bid in Sutton's sixth season as head coach), including 13 NCAA Tournament bids and two Final Four appearances. They also captured three regular-season conference titles and three conference tournament championships. Sutton finished his career at OSU as the second-winningest coach in school history, behind only his mentor, Iba.


2001 plane crash

On January 27, 2001, one of three planes carrying Oklahoma State staff and players crashed in a snow storm near Byers,
Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...
, killing all 10 on board. The plane was on its way back from a loss against the
University of Colorado The University of Colorado (CU) is a system of public universities in Colorado. It consists of four institutions: University of Colorado Boulder, University of Colorado Colorado Springs, University of Colorado Denver, and the University of Co ...
. Those killed included Nate Fleming, a redshirt freshman guard; Dan Lawson, a junior guard; Bill Teegins, radio sportscaster of OSU basketball and sports anchor on CBS affiliate
KWTV KWTV-DT (channel 9) is a television station in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States, affiliated with CBS. It is the Flagship (broadcasting), flagship broadcast property of locally based Griffin Media, and is co-owned with MyNe ...
-9 in
Oklahoma City Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, it ranks 20th among United States cities in population, a ...
; Kendall Durfey, television and radio engineer; Will Hancock, media relations coordinator; Pat Noyes, director of basketball operations; Brian Luinstra, athletic trainer; Jared Weiberg, student assistant; Denver Mills, pilot; and Bjorn Falistrom, co-pilot. Since 2007, Oklahoma State has honored these ten during an annual 5k and 10K
race Race, RACE or "The Race" may refer to: * Race (biology), an informal taxonomic classification within a species, generally within a sub-species * Race (human categorization), classification of humans into groups based on physical traits, and/or s ...
called the Remember the Ten Run.


Sean Sutton era (2006–08)

Eddie Sutton's son,
Sean Sutton Sean Patrick Sutton (born October 4, 1968) is an American college basketball coach. He is currently the advisor to the head men's basketball coach at Texas Tech University. Sutton served as the head men's basketball coach Oklahoma State Univers ...
, also a former Cowboy player, took over head coaching duties in
2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...
. Following a record of 39–29 during his first two seasons, Sutton resigned under pressure after a March 31, 2008, meeting with Athletic Director Mike Holder.


Travis Ford era (2008–16)

On April 16, 2008,
Travis Ford Travis Ford (born December 29, 1969) is an American college basketball coach, who is currently the head coach of the Saint Louis Billikens men's basketball team. He was also previously the head coach at Campbellsville University, Eastern Kent ...
was hired as the 18th men's basketball head coach at Oklahoma State. He resigned from the same position with the
UMass Minutemen The UMass Minutemen are the athletic teams that represent the University of Massachusetts Amherst; strictly speaking, the ''Minutemen'' nickname applies to men's teams and athletes only — women's teams and athletes are known as ...
to take the position. At the time of his hiring, he had a Division I coaching record of 123–115. Ford also coached at
Eastern Kentucky Eastern may refer to: Transportation *China Eastern Airlines, a current Chinese airline based in Shanghai * Eastern Air, former name of Zambia Skyways * Eastern Air Lines, a defunct American airline that operated from 1926 to 1991 * Eastern Air ...
and
Campbellsville University Campbellsville University (CU) is a private Christian university in Campbellsville, Kentucky. It was founded as Russell Creek Academy and enrolls more than 12,000 students. The university offers associate, bachelor's, and master's degrees. In 2 ...
(NAIA). As a player, he was coached by
Norm Stewart Norman Eugene Stewart (born January 20, 1935) is a retired American college basketball coach. He coached at the University of Northern Iowa (then known as State College of Iowa) from 1961 to 1967, but is best known for his career with the Univers ...
at the
University of Missouri The University of Missouri (Mizzou, MU, or Missouri) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbia, Missouri. It is Missouri's largest university and the flagship of the four-campus Universit ...
as a freshman. He transferred after his freshman season and played for three years (1992–94) at the
University of Kentucky The University of Kentucky (UK, UKY, or U of K) is a Public University, public Land-grant University, land-grant research university in Lexington, Kentucky. Founded in 1865 by John Bryan Bowman as the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Kentu ...
under
Rick Pitino Richard Andrew Pitino (born September 18, 1952) is an American college basketball coach who is the head coach for Iona College. He was also the head coach of Greece's senior national team. He has been the head coach of several teams in NCAA ...
. Ford was fired on March 18, 2016 after a season in which the Cowboys went 3–15 in Big 12 play and 12–20 overall. Although he led the Cowboys to five NCAA tournaments in his eight seasons in charge, he never finished higher than third in conference play, and finished sixth or worse in the Big 12 seven times.


Brad Underwood era (2016–2017)

Three days after Ford's firing, Oklahoma State hired Brad Underwood from Stephen F. Austin State University (SFA). He began his coaching career at
Kansas State Kansas State University (KSU, Kansas State, or K-State) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Manhattan, Kansas, United States. It was opened as the state's land-grant college in 1863 and was the first public instit ...
, first serving as director of basketball operations for a season and then serving as an assistant for five more. Underwood then went to
South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...
as an assistant for a season before being hired to his first head coaching post at SFA. During his three seasons in charge, the Lumberjacks went 89–14 overall and 53–1 in
Southland Conference The Southland Conference, abbreviated as SLC, is a collegiate athletic conference which operates in the South Central United States (specifically Texas and Louisiana). It participates in the NCAA's Division I for all sports; for football, it ...
regular-season play, making the NCAA tournament all three seasons and advancing to the second round twice. Underwood's 89 wins tie him with
Brad Stevens Bradley Kent Stevens (born October 22, 1976) is an American basketball executive and former coach who is currently the president of basketball operations for the Boston Celtics. Born and raised in Zionsville, Indiana, Stevens starred on the Zio ...
for the most wins by a men's basketball head coach in his first three seasons at an NCAA school. He is also the first coach to be named Southland Conference Coach of the Year three consecutive times. On March 18, 2017 Brad Underwood was hired at Illinois. During the 2016-17 season, Associate head coach Lamont Evans was engaged in bribery scheme that came to light in 2017. Evans was sentenced to three months in prison in June 2019 for his participation in the scheme, which he also conducted at the University of South Carolina. In June 2020 press release, the NCAA announced a postseason ban for 2020–21.


Mike Boynton era (2017–present)

The school promoted assistant coach Mike Boynton Jr. to head coach on March 24.


Postseason


NCAA tournament results

The Cowboys have appeared in the NCAA tournament 29 times. Their combined record is 39–28. They won the tournament in 1945 and 1946.


NIT results

The Cowboys have appeared in the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) 12 times. Their combined record is 9–13.


Facilities


Gallagher-Iba Arena

Gallagher-Iba Arena, once dubbed “
Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as The Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh and Eighth avenues from 31st to 33rd Street, above Pennsylva ...
of the Plains”, is the
basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
and
wrestling Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat ...
venue at
Oklahoma State University Oklahoma (; Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a state in the South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the north, Missouri on the northeast, Arkansas on the east, New ...
in
Stillwater, Oklahoma Stillwater ( iow, Ñápinⁿje, ''meaning: "Water quiet"'') is a city in, and the county seat of, Payne County, Oklahoma, United States. It is located in north-central Oklahoma at the intersection of U.S. Route 177 and State Highway 51. As of t ...
. Originally completed in 1938 and named the 4-H Club and Student Activities Building, it was soon renamed Gallagher Hall to honor wrestling coach, Ed Gallagher. After renovations in 1987, the name became Gallagher-Iba Arena, as a tribute to longtime basketball coach and innovator,
Henry Iba Henry Payne Iba (; August 6, 1904 – January 15, 1993) was an American basketball coach and college athletics administrator. He served as the head basketball coach at Northwest Missouri State Teacher's College, now known as Northwest Missouri St ...
. Gallagher-Iba Arena was named the best college gymnasium by
CBS SportsLine.com CBSSports.com (formerly CBS SportsLine.com and SportsLine USA) is an American sports news website operated by Paramount Streaming, itself a division of Paramount Global. It is the website for CBS's CBS Sports division that features news, high ...
in August 2001. The first basketball game was played on December 9, 1938, when Iba's Oklahoma A&M Aggies beat
Phog Allen Forrest Clare "Phog" Allen (November 18, 1885 – September 16, 1974) was an American basketball coach. Known as the "Father of Basketball Coaching,"Kansas Jayhawks The Kansas Jayhawks, commonly referred to as simply KU or Kansas, are the athletic teams that represent the University of Kansas. KU is one of three schools in the state of Kansas that participate in NCAA Division I. The Jayhawks are also a mem ...
, 21–15, in a battle between two of the nation's early basketball powers. In its original configuration, seating was limited to 6,381. Though small by today's standards, it was the largest collegiate facility in the country when completed. The original maple floor, still in use today, was the most expensive of its kind in America when it was installed in 1938. Oklahoma State completed a $55 million expansion of Gallagher-Iba Arena prior to the 1999–2000 Cowboy basketball season. Rather than build a new, off-campus arena to accommodate the need for additional seating, the decision was made to expand Gallagher-Iba Arena itself to more than double its original capacity (from its 6,381-seat capacity to its current 13,611 seats). The old sightlines and the original white maple floor were kept (it remains the oldest original basketball court floor still in use). On January 15, 2005, the court was officially named after
Eddie Sutton Edward Eugene Sutton (March 12, 1936 – May 23, 2020) was an American college basketball coach. A native of Bucklin, Kansas, Sutton played college basketball at Oklahoma A&M (later Oklahoma State) and was a head coach at the high school, junio ...
as Eddie Sutton Court.


Notable players

*
Anthony Hickey Anthony Hickey (born November 22, 1992) is an American professional basketball player for Hapoel Haifa from the Israeli Basketball Premier League. High school career In high school, Hickey was named the 2011 Kentucky Mr. Basketball winner whi ...
(born 1992), basketball player for
Hapoel Haifa Hapoel Haifa Football Club ( he, מועדון הכדורגל הפועל חיפה, ''Moadon HaKaduregel Hapoel Haifa'') is an Israeli football club located in the city of Haifa. The club won one championship (1998–99) and 4 Israeli cups (1 ...
in the
Israeli Basketball Premier League Ligat HaAl ( he, ליגת העל, lit., ''Supreme League or Premier League''), or the Israeli Basketball Premier League, is the top-tier level league of professional sports, professional competition in Israeli sports club, club basketball, making ...


References


External links

* {{Big 12 Conference men's basketball navbox