STILLWATER, OKLA. ? Oklahoma State coach Eddie Sutton said Saturday he expects to be recovered from an offseason back injury in time to be on the sidelines when the Cowboys start their campaign to get back to the Final Four.

Sutton, who cracked bones in his lower back in a fall, toted a wooden cane on the sidelines as the Cowboys held an open practice, three-point shootout and slam dunk contest for about 10,000 fans at Gallagher-Iba Arena in a celebration leading up to the Cowboys’ homecoming football game.

“It’ll heal,” said Sean Sutton, Eddie Sutton’s son and the Cowboys’ head coach designate. “The best thing he can do is rest.”

Eddie Sutton drew laughs from the crowd of about 10,000 gathered at Gallagher-Iba Arena when he joked that he had the cane so he could trip referees that made objectionable calls and play the role of Chester in a reprisal of the old television show “Gunsmoke.”

But Sutton reassured the crowd that he would be back healthy to lead the Cowboys in the regular season.

Sean Sutton said his father’s participation in preseason practices might be limited because the sessions typically last about three hours.

“He’ll be there,” Sean Sutton said. “He might not be able to stay the entire time.”

Eddie Sutton, 68, required stitches to his nose after being bumped on an escalator and falling at the Los Angeles International Airport in July. Sean Sutton said his father injured his back in a separate fall back in Oklahoma.

Tigers look to future

Columbia, Mo. — Nearly everything about the Missouri basketball program is new this season. With a revamped coaching staff, five new players and the $75 million Paige Sports Arena, the Tigers opened practice Saturday with a new look.

After struggling to meet lofty expectations and finishing 16-14 with a first-round loss in the NIT last season, the Tigers dealt with an NCAA investigation, the results of which will be announced soon.

Coach Quin Snyder said he is ready to move on.

“I don’t feel like there’s all that much going on right now,” Snyder said. “We’ve got a new building and we’ve got a pretty good team. I’d like to stop talking about all that’s going on. What’s going on is that we’re practicing.”

UConn misses Price

Storrs, Conn. — Thousands of fans cheered as the defending national champions Connecticut Huskies burst into the gym.

But there was one player who missed all of that at 12:01 a.m. Saturday when college basketball practice officially started. Freshman guard A.J. Price is recovering from an intracranial hemorrhage he suffered nearly two weeks ago.

“There is one Husky not with us and we don’t know when he will be,” Calhoun told the fans. “But hopefully it will be sometime soon. By the time he’s done here, he’s going to be one of the greatest players in UConn history.”

Kentucky, Indiana, North Carolina, Maryland and Michigan State all had their traditional starts to practice on Saturday morning.