STILLWATER, Okla. (AP) — No. 15 Oklahoma State refused to overlook an inferior opponent.

With three key Big 12 games beginning next week, it might have been human nature to look past lowly Kansas, but the Cowboys rolled 42-6 Saturday.

Clint Chelf completed 19 of 37 passes for 265 yards and three touchdowns and Justin Gilbert returned the opening kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown as Oklahoma State (8-1, 5-1 Big 12) won its fifth straight game.

”It was a good win for our team,” Cowboys coach Mike Gundy said. ”I thought our defense was consistent in our play. Offensively, we were good at times and very sluggish at times. We have a lot of work ahead of us.”

Next weekend, Oklahoma State plays at Texas, with subsequent games against No. 5 Baylor and No. 12 Oklahoma.

The Cowboys already lost a game they were expected to win this year, a 30-21 defeat at West Virginia back on Sept. 28, and they were determined not to let it happen again.

”Coming off the West Virginia loss, that was a game we were supposed to win,” said receiver Tracy Moore, who caught six passes for 77 yards and two touchdowns on virtually identical fade passes. ”Coach Gundy was telling us all week to stay focused, ignore the record and realize Kansas is better than people give them credit for. We came out ready to play.”

The Cowboys overcame the loss of top receiver Josh Stewart, who injured his leg on a punt return less than three minutes into the game and did not return. Utilizing their depth, OSU had eight different receivers make catches, including sophomore David Glidden, who had a career-high six receptions for 73 yards.

”You’re always trying to get Josh the ball, but you adapt and you overcome,” OSU offensive coordinator Mike Yurcich said. ”We’re really proud of our team for responding, because one guy goes down and then the next guy’s got to step up. With a little adversity comes some opportunity.”

Montell Cozart threw for 58 yards while rushing for 55 on 18 carries for Kansas (2-7, 0-6), which lost its sixth in a row. Tony Pierson returned from a three-game absence due to a concussion and gained 87 yards on six rushes.

”Whenever Tony touches the ball and we get him in space, you can see that’s like our passing game,” Kansas coach Charlie Weis said. ”That’s where we get our chunks. He had two long runs – that’s like our form of throwing the ball down the field. And when Cozart started playing more, he kind of bailed us out a number of times in the run game.”

Gilbert put the Cowboys ahead immediately, receiving the opening kickoff in his own end zone and zig-zagging his way through multiple defenders for the touchdown.

”When I first got the ball, I saw a big hole and I knew that’s where I was going from the beginning, so I hit it,” said Gilbert of the Cowboys’ first kickoff return TD of the season. ”We saw on film that they didn’t squeeze those gaps really well and we did a good job of opening those gaps up.”

Weis said: ”Can you pick a worse way to start a game? It was the absolute worst way,” said Kansas coach Charlie Weis. ”It was deflating, but it was just the first play.”

Aided by Kevin Peterson’s interception and 38-yard return, the OSU offense made it 14-0 on Desmond Roland’s 3-yard run with 8:28 left in the first quarter.

Chelf connected with a wide open Roland for the 19-yard TD pass with 9:25 remaining in the first half to make it 21-0.

”We worked that play all week,” said Roland, who gained 44 yards on 16 rushes. ”(Receiver Charlie Moore) did a great job picking up that safety that came under, and I was wide open.”

The Cowboys extended their advantage to 28 points with just 15 seconds left before halftime, when Chelf lofted a fade pass to the left corner of the end zone, where a leaping Tracy Moore held on for a 4-yard touchdown.

”It’s something me and Clint work on after practice,” Moore said of the fade passes. ”It’s kind of hard to simulate it in practice, what you’re going to get in a game, especially with a guy that’s 6-1 like the corner was tonight, but credit Clint, he threw the ball well.”

— Associated Press —

LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — Andrew Wiggins got the ball on the wing, made a nifty spin move and then let go with a soft floater from about 10 feet that swished through the net in Allen Fieldhouse.

His career wasn’t even a minute old and Wiggins was already leaving his mark on Kansas.

While he disappeared at times, the highly touted freshman dazzled at others, finishing with 16 points in leading the fifth-ranked Jayhawks to an 80-63 victory over Louisiana-Monroe on Friday night.

”He did some good things,” Jayhawks coach Bill Self said. ”I think he can be more aggressive, but I think all the guys can be more aggressive.”

Aggressive may not have been such a good thing on this night, though. New rules designed to clamp down on hand-checking resulted in 58 fouls and a slew of free throws.

It also resulted in a herky-jerky affair for both sides.

”I’m telling them not to freak out. That’s what I’m telling them,” Warhawks coach Keith Richard said. ”The players have to adjust and not lose their minds. It’s not going away, and so it’s difficult. It sure is. And there were some bad calls tonight, pitiful, but both ways.”

Andrew White III and Perry Ellis finished 12 points each for the youthful Jayhawks, who won’t have a whole lot of time for all their freshmen to work out the kinks. Kansas, which is replacing all five starters from last season, plays No. 4 Duke on Tuesday night in Chicago.

”It’s going to be a pretty good matchup, two high-profile teams,” White said, ”but we’re not paying too much attention to the hype that’s out there.”

Marvin Williams had 19 points and six rebounds to lead the Warhawks, who sure didn’t look like a team that won just four games last season. They trailed 47-41 early in the second half before the quicker more physical Jayhawks finally went on a 15-5 run to seize control.

Williams fouled out with 8:16 left in the game, and Louisiana-Monroe struggled the rest of the way as Wiggins and Co. made the final score appear much more comfortable.

”Obviously we want to come out and win bigger than we did, and finish the game off stronger, but we’re still fresh,” senior transfer Tarik Black said. ”We’re still learning each other.”

The Jayhawks started three freshmen in Wiggins, Selden and Frank Mason, who got the nod at point guard with junior Naadir Tharpe serving a one-game suspension for playing in an unauthorized summer league game. Black also was in the starting lineup after arriving from Memphis.

That left Perry Ellis as the only holdover from last season in the starting five.

Still, the unknown of all the fresh faces resulted in the same kind of energy inside Allen Fieldhouse that has accompanied just about every other home opener – Kansas has won 42 of them in a row. Students waited in lines hours before the doors opened before rushing to their seats.

All that fervor quickly subsided when it became apparent how far Kansas has to go.

Consecutive dunks by Williams in the first half, the second one after a turnover by Wiggins at the other end, gave the Warhawks a 15-13 lead and forced the Jayhawks to call a timeout.

”I definitely felt like we were in the game,” Williams said.

Making waves of substitutions, Kansas methodically regained the lead, and then pulled away on a jumper by Brannen Greene and a parade of free throws. But it was still just 42-32 at halftime, and Self’s jaw was clenched as he followed his team to the locker room.

He wasn’t any happier early in the second half, when the Warhawks had closed to within 47-41 and Mason was whistled for a foul on a loose ball. Self stomped up the sideline, his face red in fury, and screamed at the officials while the crowd roared their disapproval.

Asked whether he was surprised that he didn’t get called for a technical foul, Self replied: ”I would say that would be an accurate observation. Yeah, probably so.”

His impassioned tirade finally woke the Jayhawks from their slumber.

Black scored moments later to kick off a 15-5 spurt that allowed Kansas to seize control. Wiggins coasted to the rim for two layups during the run, and White knocked down a 3-pointer off a feed from Connor Frankamp, then converted a conventional three-point player.

Louisiana-Monroe got into foul trouble down the stretch – Tylor Ongwae picked up his fifth with 14:40 to go, and Williams picked up his fifth 6 minutes later.

The Jayhawks took advantage of the Warhawks’ lack of depth to put the game away.

”It’s an entire team of young’uns, and it’s going to be frustrating from time to time,” Self said, ”but hopefully it will be very rewarding at the end.”

— Associated Press —