Oklahoma State could soon have a new conference opponent and that could have a significant impact on Cowboys basketball.
On Friday, reports emerged that UConn is in negotiations with the Big 12 as early as 2026. If the Huskies make that move, their first season would be Steve Lutz’s third in Stillwater.
While the Cowboys hope they can be a competitive team in the conference by then, there are no guarantees. Lutz takes over a program with a roster that is unrecognizable from last season and has only made one NCAA Tournament appearance in the last seven seasons.
The Big 12 is already the premier league in college basketball, meaning adding two-time consecutive winners could add to the burden on the Cowboys. With a 20-game conference schedule starting next season, the Big 12 schedule will be as grueling as ever.
Theoretically, the best case scenario would be that a UConn game would simply replace a second game against another top team like Kansas or Baylor. Of course, the opposite could also happen, as a second game against UConn would mean losing a game against a bad team in some seasons.
OSU has played UConn just three times, going 2-1. After beating the Huskies in 1970, the Cowboys have played them twice in the last decade. Jawun Evans’ 35 points in the 2016-17 season helped the Cowboys win in Hawaii.
The first meeting on either campus was at UConn in 2022-23, where OSU lost to the eventual national champions. If UConn joins the conference, campus games would be the norm and Stillwater would have a chance to see the Huskies for the first time.
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