After a three-week absence, Cade Cunningham returned to the lineup and scored 21 points to lead Oklahoma State over Arkansas 81-77 on Saturday.

It was a meeting of two of the nation’s top freshmen in Cunningham and Arkansas’ Moses Moody (16.5), who were high school teammates. Cunningham was in his first game since Jan. 12. OSU had postponed two games because of COVID-19 protocols and Cunningham sat out two more after that.

“Part of the knock on him, ‘can he take over as a scorer?’” OSU coach Mike Boynton said. “The answer was a resounding yes today.”

Cunningham is averaging 18.1 points a game, best in the Big 12.

I kind of gravitate toward the ball, especially in big moments,” Cunningham said. “I want to assert myself more. And my team, they do a really good job of finding me, making sure I’m allowed to do what I do.”

Cunningham, who has been projected as the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft this year, is getting better.

“You can tell the confidence in his scoring mindset has definitely come a long way,” Boynton said. “We need him to be more assertive earlier in games, but that’s not really who he is.”

The game included a “Remember the Ten” tribute in memory of the 10 persons killed in a charter plane crash while returning from an OSU game at Colorado on Jan. 27, 2001. Two players were killed along with other members of the OSU program. The coach of that squad, Hall of Famer Eddie Sutton, who died last May, was also remembered by both teams with special warmup shirts. Sutton led both Arkansas and Oklahoma State to Final Four appearances.

Oklahoma State unveiled an addition under the “Eddie Sutton Court” signature to honor former Arkansas and Oklahoma State head coach Sutton’s induction into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Also, both teams wore matching shooting shirts to honor the late Coach Sutton.