Stormin in Norman
Fansided

Former OU Basketball Stars Hoop It up in Annual Legends Alumni Game

By Chip Rouse

March 24, 2016; Anaheim, CA, USA; Oklahoma Sooners guard Christian James (3) and guard Buddy Hield (24) celebrate a scoring play against Texas A&M Aggies during the second half of the semifinal game in the West regional of the NCAA Tournament at Honda Center. Mandatory Credit: Robert Hanashiro-USA TODAY Sports
March 24, 2016; Anaheim, CA, USA; Oklahoma Sooners guard Christian James (3) and guard Buddy Hield (24) celebrate a scoring play against Texas A&M Aggies during the second half of the semifinal game in the West regional of the NCAA Tournament at Honda Center. Mandatory Credit: Robert Hanashiro-USA TODAY Sports /
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With football picking up a head of steam charging toward the opening weekend of the season, the Sooner sports scene took a brief step back into the past on Saturday with a friendly little competitive game of alumni basketball.

April 20, 2016; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Clippers forward Blake Griffin (32) controls the ball against the Portland Trail Blazers during the first half at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
April 20, 2016; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Clippers forward Blake Griffin (32) controls the ball against the Portland Trail Blazers during the first half at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports /

Some familiar Sooner basketball names from as far back as the early 1960s were in town in Norman for the sixth annual Legends Alumni Game at Lloyd Noble Center.

Blake Griffin and Buddy Hield, two of the greatest Oklahoma basketball players of all time and the last two Sooners to be named Player of the Year in college basketball, were back in town during the NBA offseason to serve as coaches of the Crimson and Cream teams, respectively.

Griffin’s Crimson squad withstood a late run by Hield’s Cream team to preserve a 96-89 victory behind Ebi Ere’s 22 points and 19 by Dinjiyl Walker. Ere was a star on Oklahoma’s 2002 Final Four team, while Walker was a member of the Sooners’ 2016 Final Four team along with Hield.

The Crimson team stormed off to a 19-point lead in the opening half, but the Cream team slowly kept chipping away at the deficit and, nearing the midpoint of the second half, had cut the Crimson lead down to six points, at 73-67.

Isaiah Cousins, who is hoping to make the roster of the Sacramento Kings as the 59th player selected overall in the 2016 NBA Draft, put on a shooting clinic for the approximately 4,000 fans who attended the annual alumni game. Cousins, playing for Hield’s Cream squad, led all scorers in the game with 33 points, one shy of the alumni game record.

Said Sooner men’s head coach Lon Kruger to SoonerSports.com: To have Buddy (Hield) on one bench and Blake (Griffin) on the other, not many programs can put two players of the year against each other in an alumni game. It was great to see that

Ere, who played for Nigeria in the just-concluded Rio Summer Olympic Games, was named the Most Valuable Player in the game, the third time in the last four years he has earned the honor.

Along with Ere (2002-03) and Walker (2015-16), the Crimson team included Terry Evans (1990-93), Brent Price (1991-92), Darryl “Choo” Kennedy (1984-87), Kelley Newton (1999-00), Bryatt Vann (1992-93), James Fraschilla (2012-15), Beau Gerber (2009-10) and Michael Neal (2006-07).

Members of the Cream team included Tyler Neal (2011-14), Skeeter Henry (1989-90), Aaron McGhee (2001-02), William Davis (1989-90), Chris Black (1993), Sam Grooms (2012-13), David Godbold (2005-08) and Kermit Holmes (1989-91).

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