There’s no telling how the Big 12 men’s basketball race will play itself out the next couple of months.

But when all is said and done in March, both Kansas and Oklahoma State might look back on tonight’s marquee matchup as one that had a huge impact on, and maybe even decided, the 16-game conference chase.

“It is a big one right out of the chute,” KU coach Bill Self said of the pending battle between the No. 6 Jayhawks (13-2) and No. 9 Cowboys (15-1).

Tip is 8 p.m. at Allen Fieldhouse with a live telecast on ESPN2 (channels 34, 234) and a replay at 10:30 p.m., on cable channel 6.

“I’ll like it if we win. I’ll probably think it’s a terribly scheduled game if we don’t. I would say if Oklahoma State came in here and was successful, that’s a pretty big statement,” Self said of the ability to bag an important road victory.

“The last two years we’ve lost a (league) game at home. The year before that we were undefeated at home. It’s more a statement when you go on the road and win than at home.”

Home or road, it’s important to win games against the contenders. The Big 12 preseason media poll had KU ranked No. 1 and the Cowboys third, with Texas A&M sandwiched in between.

“I don’t think we’ve played to that level,” Self said. “I think we have gotten better. The Boston College and South Carolina games were improvements. I don’t see our league as having a clear-cut favorite right now. I think we can play to that. You can make a case so could Oklahoma State, Texas A&M and some other people as well.”

Oklahoma State, which is led by the 1-2 punch of Mario Boggan (21.9 ppg) and JamesOn Curry (18.9) has already played, and won, a conference game. The Cowboys, who because of injuries and suspensions are down to just eight players, downed Baylor, 81-77, on Saturday in Stillwater, Okla. KU delayed its start of conference play and waxed South Carolina, 70-54, the same day in Columbia, S.C.

OKLAHOMA STATE GUARD JAMESON CURRY catches Kansas University's Russell Robinson with an elbow during last year's Big 12 Conference tournament. Curry enters tonight's showdown at Allen Fieldhouse averaging 18.9 points per game.

“I wish this game was like the Texas game, the last game of conference, just because there’s so much buildup in this game – us being two of the top teams in the league,” sophomore Brandon Rush said.

A year ago, Texas beat KU in a Feb. 25 showdown in Austin, the Jayhawks rallying to win their final two games and share the crown with the Longhorns.

“I wish this was a little bit later, but you’ve just got to play them as they come,” junior guard Russell Robinson said. “It’s scheduled. So you have to handle it like that.

“I think we are the league favorites,” Robinson added. “Some teams are trying to close the gap a bit as far as expectations. We’ve got to take it game by game.”

The Cowboys tonight will play their second true road game of the season. OSU, which beat Auburn and Missouri State at the South Padre Invitational, Syracuse at the Jimmy V. Classic in New York and Pittsburgh in Oklahoma City, lost to Tennessee, 79-77, on Dec. 18 in Nashville. That was the Cowboys’ first game without freshman standout Obi Muenolo, who is out for the season with an ankle injury.

“Nobody scores the ball as well as Oklahoma State of the teams we’ve played, with the exception of Florida,” Self said of Sean Sutton’s first Cowboy team, which averages 84.9 points a game while allowing 68.2.

“Coach Sutton (Eddie, Sean’s predecessor) used to be strictly a motion coach. They’ve become a team that runs a ton of sets. I think they are playing faster. They are very creative offensively. Defensively they get after you. I think there will be some guys flying around Wednesday night.”

OSU’s top player has been Boggan, a 6-foot-7, 240-pound senior from Durham, N.C., who has made 62.4 percent of his shots and 80 percent of his free throws. Capable of stepping out on the floor, he’s thus far made just five of 32 threes for 15.6 percent.

“Most teams choose to guard him with a big guy,” Self said, not tipping his hand as to which Jayhawk will draw the opening assignment. “He is so good away from the basket. He is powerful enough and good enough to score over big guys.

“He may have the best inside-out game as far as scoring as anybody in our league. We’ll try to eliminate his touches in places he wants to catch it. You for the most part have to play good one-on-one defense against him.”

Curry, a 6-3 junior from Pleasant Grove, N.C., has made 48.3 percent of his shots, including 43 of 102 threes for 42.2 percent. Terrel Harris, a 6-5 sophomore guard, who is playing despite an eye injury, has made 24 of 48 threes while averaging 11.6 points a game.

Byron Eaton, a 5-11 sophomore point guard, has 61 assists against 47 turnovers.

“I’ve seen them play a few times. They’ve got an inside presence, an outside presence. They will be physical,” Robinson said.

But are the Cowboys deep enough to play with the Jayhawks?

Self said he hadn’t decided whether he’d use more than the usual eight or nine-man rotation tonight.

“Chemistry is probably at an all-time high,” Self said of the Cowboys. “They all know they are going to play plenty. As long as they are able to stay healthy they’ve got enough guys. They are so thin right now. Losing Obi hurt them from a depth standpoint, but they will have five good players on the floor at all times.”

Self said the Jayhawks will have to bring their A-game tonight. He challenges the usual sellout crowd of 16,300 to do the same. KU’s games at OSU during the Self era have been played before incredibly loud Gallagher-Iba crowds, and the Jayhawks are 1-1 in Stillwater under KU’s fourth-year coach.

“There will be more intensity in this game than any we’ve played so far,” said Self, who played college ball at OSU. “Fans need to understand that too. We can tighten it up. They can tighten it up too. We have unbelievable fan support every night. I think it will be great Wednesday night. It should be an exciting game.”