Tramel's ScissorTales: Oklahoma State Cowgirl basketball celebrates with 5-year-old Riley Kilpatrick

Oklahoma State coaches often have been known for their game-day fashion.

Pat Jones wore the vintage “Aggies” sweatshirts, which resonated with football fans from the olden days.

The late Kurt Budke introduced the bright orange blazer that was a hit at OSU women’s basketball games.

Mike Boynton’s orange sneakers are the pride of his ample shoe collection.

But Jacie Hoyt took the fashion to a new level — for the best of reasons — Saturday as the Cowgirl basketball team routed Baylor 77-56 at Gallagher-Iba Arena.

Hoyt wore a pink-and-orange wide-striped jacket. Orange for the Cowgirls, pink for the Pink-out game raising awareness for breast cancer.

And OSU had a special connection to the subject.

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The Tuesday ScissorTales look at the rescinded trade that changed Thunder history, offer the NCAA championship odds by conference and note Todd Monken’s return to the National Football League.

But we start with OSU women’s basketball and a very special day.

Early last week, 5-year-old Riley Kilpatrick wrote a letter to the Cowgirls. Riley is the daughter of the late Kendra Kilpatrick, who died last November of breast cancer.

“I love nature, I love basketball and I love OSU,” Riley wrote. “My mommy was the basketball coach at Stillwater High School.

“I’m five years old. My basketball team name is Pink Unicorns. I play at SASA (Stillwater Area Sports Association), and my coach’s name is Mrs. Kelle. Go Cowgirls.

“Love, Riley Kilpatrick.”

OSU’s promotions department quickly reached out and brought Riley to campus for a promotional video.

The OSU-Baylor game was the Cowgirls’ Play4Kay event, honoring the late coaching great Kay Yow, who died of breast cancer in 2009.

Hoyt said being part of the Riley Kilpatrick video “was an honor of a lifetime for Cowgirl basketball. We showed that video before shootaround” Saturday.

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“We kind of had to regroup as a team, because it’s so emotional. Our team understands that today was bigger than basketball. They were playing for something much bigger, and I think we all saw that in their performance.”

The Cowgirls swept Baylor for the first time since 1999. They raised their record to 18-7 and moved into third place in the Big 12 at 8-5.

So it was a monumental Saturday anyway. But to be part of the Kilpatrick story — Kendra Kilpatrick spent 13 years at Stillwater High School, the last six as head coach, before she stepped down last March — made the day quite memorable.

"Coach Kilpatrick, the legacy that she left, the battle she had to fight, and to see Riley just go about life the way that she does, that’s so inspirational,” Hoyt said.

“For all of those who are going through that battle or have lost that battle, it just truly is inspiring. It was really neat today to have such a big platform and give our thanks back and honor them.”

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Rescinded Tyson Chandler trade changed NBA history

The Golden State Warriors have held their nose and accepted the trade that brought Gary Payton II from the Portland Trail Blazers, though the Warriors allege that the Blazers weren’t forthcoming about Payton’s health status.

And long-time Thunder fans had to shiver all over again.

Only twice in the last 15 years has a trade-deadline deal been rescinded over health issues.

In 2016, the Pistons backed out of a trade for center Donatas Motiejunas, over concerns about his back. Detroit had acquired Motiejunas and guard Marcus Thornton in the three-team trade, with Houston getting a protected first-round draft pick and the rights to forward Chukwudiebere Maduabum, and Philadelphia getting center Joel Anthony.

In the grand scheme of NBA history, no big deal.

But in 2009, the Thunder rescinded a trade for 7-foot Tyson Chandler, over concerns about his toe.

In the grand scheme of NBA history, big deal. Very big deal.

That February, in the Thunder’s first Oklahoma City season, New Orleans traded Chandler for veteran forwards Joe Smith, Chris Wilcox and the draft rights to Devon Hardin.

Chandler in 2009 was a 26-year-old, athletic center who was quite the force. This was before the NBA’s explosion of stretch centers whose outside shooting mattered. Chandler never was much of a scoring threat beyond three feet, but he was a rebounding force, a dynamic defender and a floor-running big man for athletic teams. Which the Thunder was.

Chandler seemed perfect for a team that featured 20-year-olds Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook, 22-year-old Jeff Green, with defensive whiz Thabo Sefolosha having just joined the team and 19-year-old draft pick Serge Ibaka about to come over from the EuroLeague.

But Chandler, the No. 2 overall pick in the 2001 draft, had a history of injury problems, and he had missed 12 straight games at the time of the trade. When Thunder doctors found a toe issue, they recommended to Sam Presti that the trade be scrapped.

Presti took the advice, in part because Chandler was in the fourth year of a six-year contract, with the final two seasons guaranteeing Chandler $12.3 million and $13.2 million. Lot of money 14 years ago.

You know the rest. The Thunder blossomed anyway. James Harden arrived in the draft four months later, Presti uncorked a trade-deadline deal in 2011 that brought in Kendrick Perkins to play center, and OKC was on its way. Ten playoff series advancements over a six-year period.

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Chandler was on his way, too. After the trade rescission, Chandler played 11 more NBA seasons, starting 522 of 623 games. He averaged 26.6 minutes, 8.2 points, 9.0 rebounds and shot 63.8% from the field.

Chandler was a key part of the Dallas Mavericks’ 2011 NBA title team, was the 2012 NBA Defensive Player of the Year and a 2013 All-Star.

But what might the Thunder have done with Chandler? He was an athletic fit for the OKC roster. He didn’t cost franchise cornerstone Jeff Green, who was sent to Boston for Perkins.

Sub out Perkins for Chandler and Green on the Thunder’s Western Conference Finals teams of 2011, 2012, 2014 and 2016, and it’s easy to imagine an NBA title flag flying over Reno Avenue.

Teams are loath to abandon trades. The Warriors’ deal for Payton was a four-team affair.

Golden State traded James Wiseman to Detroit, which traded Saddiq Bey to Atlanta and Kevin Knox to Portland, which traded five second-round picks to the Warriors.

Scrap that trade, and that’s a lot of ballplayers headed back to franchises that just traded them. Awkward.

The Warriors reportedly would like to get back at least one draft pick. They allege that the Blazers didn’t inform Golden State that Payton was using a painkilling medication for his abdomen.

Because it was a deadline deal, no changes could be made to any part of the trade. All or nothing. The possible returned draft pick would be a penalty, not an adjustment.

Payton started a game for the Blazers the night before the trade, but now Golden State figures Payton will miss a month or so.

Rescinding a trade is a difficult decision. Most of the time, it’s not worth it. And rescinding the Tyson Chandler trade perhaps changed the course of 21^st-century NBA history.

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Ravens hire Todd Monken

Todd Monken is brutally honest. He left OSU, the first time, to follow Les Miles to Louisiana State, because Monken didn’t believe the Cowboys had a chance to win every game.

Monken returned to OSU seven years later because he said the Cowboys’ status had changed.

Monken still likes the notion of having a chance to win every game.

And now he’s leaving the top college football program in the nation to join one of the best franchises in the NFL.

The Baltimore Ravens announced Tuesday they have hired Monken as offensive coordinator. He’s leaving the University of Georgia, where in the final two seasons of his three years on the job as o-coordinator, the Bulldogs won back-to-back national championships.

“Todd's leadership and coaching acumen were evident from the beginning,” Ravens coach John Harbaugh said in a statement. "He has a proven track record for designing and teaching offensive systems that allow players to succeed at the highest level. We're excited to get to work and begin building an offense that will help us compete for championships."

Monken, 57, grew up in small-town Illinois and attended Knox College in Galesburg, Illinois. He comes from a family of coaches — Monken's dad and his dad’s four brothers were football coaches, Monken’s two brothers are football coaches, and Monken’s cousin, Jeff, is the head coach at Army.

Monken was an assistant coach at Grand Valley State (for Brian Kelly), Eastern Michigan and Louisiana Tech. Miles brought Monken to the OSU staff in 2002.

“When I left, I didn’t think we had a chance to win every game,” Monken told The Oklahoman upon his 2011 return. “From a coaching perspective, I’ve said this a number of times. I want to be somewhere where you have a chance to win every game. And when that isn’t reality, then I don’t want to be a part of it.”

OSU in 2011 qualified. Those Cowboys went 12-1, won the Fiesta Bowl, finished No. 3 in the final polls and came within a whisker of making the national championship game.

The Ravens qualify, too, as a consistent winner in the NFL.

Monken has NFL experience. He coached at Jacksonville (wide receivers 2007-10), Tampa Bay (2016-18, the final year as offensive coordinator) and Cleveland (2019 offensive coordinator).

Georgia responded to Monken’s departure by promoting Mike Bobo, from an analyst role to coordinator. Bobo quarterbacked Georgia in 1996 and 1997. He was the Bulldogs’ offensive coordinator from 2007 to 2014, then was Colorado State's head coach from 2015 to 2019, South Carolina's offensive coordinator in 2020 and Auburn’s offensive coordinator in 2021.

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The List: Conference odds for NCAA Tournament

Sportsbetting.ag has released odds for each major conference to produce the NCAA basketball champion. Warning: the numbers don’t always make sense. Vegas hasn’t caught up to either OSU’s success or OU’s slide.

1. Big 12 3:1: The current odds in the Big 12 include Kansas 14:1, Baylor 16:1, Texas 25:1, Texas Christian 35:1, Kansas State 45:1, Iowa State 45:1, OSU 150:1, West Virginia 150:1, OU 200:1, Texas Tech 500:1.

1. American 3:1: Houston is the national favorite at 7:1, Memphis 150:1, Cincinnati 500:1.

3. Big Ten 4:1: Purdue 8:1, Indiana 20:1, Illinois 75:1, Rutgers 100:1, Michigan State 125:1, Iowa 150:1, Maryland 150:1, Ohio State 150:1, Michigan 200:1, Penn State 200:1, Wisconsin 400:1, Nebraska 500:1.

3. Pac-12 4:1: UCLA 12:1, Arizona 16:1, Oregon 150:1, Southern Cal 175:1, Arizona State 200:1, Utah 200:1, Colorado 500:1, Washington 500:1, Washington State 500:1.

3. Southeastern 4:1: Alabama 8:1, Tennessee 22:1, Arkansas 55:1, Miami 55:1, Duke 66:1, Kentucky 80:1, Auburn 100:1, Texas A&M 125:1, Missouri 150:1, Mississippi State 200:1, Florida 300:1.

6. Field 8:1: Gonzaga 35:1, St. Mary’s 40:1, San Diego State 100:1, Boise State 200:1, Dayton 200:1, Florida Atlantic 200:1, Utah State 200:1, New Mexico 250:1, Drake 300:1, Nevada 300:1, Alabama-Birmingham 300:1, Brigham Young 500:1, Charleston 500:1, Colorado State 500:1, Saint Louis 500:1, Virginia Commonwealth 500:1, Nevada-Las Vegas 500:1.

7. Big East 25:1: Connecticut 22:1, Creighton 22:1, Marquette 40:1, Xavier 40:1, Providence 100:1, St. John’s 300:1, Villanova 300:1, Seton Hall 500:1.

8. Atlantic Coast 9:1: Virginia 28:1, North Carolina 75:1, Pittsburgh 150:1, Clemson 175:1, Wake Forest 200:1, North Carolina State 200:1, Virginia Tech 300:1, Syracuse 500:1.

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Mailbag: Chiefs’ Super Bowl

The Chiefs’ second Super Bowl title over a four-season span has Kansas City fans delirious.

Patrick: “Ending our 50-year Super Bowl drought and winning three years ago was fantastic, but yesterday’s win was even sweeter! Jalen had a hell of a game, but Patrick proved once again he is best and has a legitimate shot at GOAT before he retires someday!”

Tramel: First off, let me take this opportunity to say how much I hate the term GOAT. Greatest of all time? No problem with the phrase. GOAT? Silly. But I digress.

Chief fans who claim this Super Bowl is even sweeter than ending a 50-year drought are the ultimate example of recency bias.

Kansas City literally went half a century between Super Bowls; between beating the Vikings 23-7 in Super Bowl 4 and Mahomes’ arrival in 2017, the Chiefs had four playoff wins.

So beating the Eagles, as great as it was, is somehow sweeter than beating the 49ers, in Super Bowl 54? Sorry, I don’t buy it. The Chiefs trailed the 49ers 20-10 in that Super Bowl, yet won 31-20 with a phenomenal rally that included touchdown drives of 83 yards, 65 yards and 42 yards in the final minutes.

The Chiefs could play football another thousand years and not have a victory like Super Bowl 54.

Berry Tramel: Berry can be reached at 405-760-8080 or at btramel@oklahoman.com. He can be heard Monday through Friday from 4:40-5:20 p.m. on The Sports Animal radio network, including FM-98.1. Support his work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today. 

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OSU women's basketball honors daughter of late Stillwater coach