by KANSAS CITY, MO- Lindy Waters’ Oklahoma State Cowboys survived a thriller in the opening round of the Big 12 Men’s Basketball Championship, with a 72-71 win over Iowa State on Wednesday. That was not the biggest story of the day though.
The NCAA announced that the Men’s Basketball Tournament will not allow fan attendance, expect for family and essential personnel. The Big 12 later followed suit, applying it to the conference Men’s and Women’s Basketball Championships beginning Thursday.
In the Cowboys win over Iowa State, Waters finished the night with seven points.
As Waters’ continues his final Big 12 Championship run, his squad will face the top-ranked Kansas Jayhawks at 2pm CT on Thursday in the Quarterfinals.
Typically, Sprint Center in Kansas City is known as Allen Fieldhouse East with the large amount of Kansas fans making the short drive over from Lawrence.
With just 125 tickets given to each team, Waters said he was pleased to not have to deal with a hostile Kansas crowd stating, “It is much easier than being in Lawrence. They’ll have a similar amount of family and friends there. At the end of the day, it is about what happens on the court.”
