Stormin in Norman
Fansided

Oklahoma Basketball: Bedlam Takes Center Stage Saturday in Sooner State

By Chip Rouse

Jan 30, 2017; Norman, OK, USA;Oklahoma State Cowboys guard Jawun Evans (1) drives to the basket betwen Oklahoma Sooners guard Christian James (3) and Oklahoma Sooners forward Kristian Doolittle (11) during the first half at Lloyd Noble Center. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 30, 2017; Norman, OK, USA;Oklahoma State Cowboys guard Jawun Evans (1) drives to the basket betwen Oklahoma Sooners guard Christian James (3) and Oklahoma Sooners forward Kristian Doolittle (11) during the first half at Lloyd Noble Center. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit

Rivalry week continues for Oklahoma basketball as the Sooners head to Stillwater on Saturday for a Bedlam rematch with Oklahoma State.

Jan 30, 2017; Norman, OK, USA; Oklahoma State Cowboys guard Phil Forte III (13) looks to pass the ball by Oklahoma Sooners guard Rashard Odomes (1) during the first half at Lloyd Noble Center. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 30, 2017; Norman, OK, USA; Oklahoma State Cowboys guard Phil Forte III (13) looks to pass the ball by Oklahoma Sooners guard Rashard Odomes (1) during the first half at Lloyd Noble Center. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports /

Before their first meeting this season, on Jan. 30 in Norman, Oklahoma had won seven consecutive games against its in-state rival and nine out of the last 10.

The Cowboys, however, snapped a 12-game losing streak in Norman with a 68-66 win on a three-point bomb by OSU’s three-ball artist Phil Forte with 11 seconds to go that erased a one-point Sooner lead and seized victory from the jaws of defeat.

Oklahoma also has had recent success in Stillwater, where the Sooners have won the last three times they have played at Gallagher-Iba Arena. OU won 74-72 there last season.

Nine of the Sooners’ 16 losses this season have been by 10 points or less, and seven of the losses have been by five or less.

OU is coming off a 70-66 victory earlier this week over Lone Star State archrival Texas, putting a stop to a seven-game losing skid for the Sooners. That was only the Sooners’ ninth win of the season overall and just their third in 13 games in the Big 12.

Arguably the biggest win of the season for Oklahoma came on Thursday, when highly-touted recruit Trae Young committed to the Sooners . Young, the No. 2 point guard in the country, according to ESPN, is expected to play immediately at OU at point guard, beginning in the 2017-18 season.

Jan 28, 2017; Norman, OK, USA; Oklahoma Sooners guard Kameron McGusty (20) and Florida Gators forward Kevarrius Hayes (13) chase a loose ball out of bounds during the first half at Lloyd Noble Center. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 28, 2017; Norman, OK, USA; Oklahoma Sooners guard Kameron McGusty (20) and Florida Gators forward Kevarrius Hayes (13) chase a loose ball out of bounds during the first half at Lloyd Noble Center. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports /

The Sooners won’t have the Norman North star on the court in Stillwater on Saturday, but the news of his choice of Oklahoma over Kansas and Oklahoma State should provide an added boost to this young Sooner team that has gone through plenty of growing pains and growing up in 2016-17.

With one more win, Lon Kruger will become the 33rd college men’s head coach to reach 600 wins in his career. Of his current 599 victories, 120 have come at Oklahoma.

Three Things to Know About the Sooners for This Game

  • With senior Jordan Woodard out for the remainder of the season with a torn ACL, the biggest part of the Sooners’ offensive production now comes from two freshmen and a sophomore (Kameron McGusty, Kristian Doolittle and Rashard Odomes). In the win over Texas, however, another sophomore, Jamuni McNeace had his first career double-double, scoring a career-high 14 points and 14 rebounds.
  • Kristian Doolittle leads the team with 162 rebounds (112 of which have been on the offensive end), an average of six boards per game. Khaddem Lattin is next with 150.
  • Bad news: The Sooners are the worst shooting team in the Big 12, percentage-wise, averaging 42 percent. Better news: Oklahoma State’s opponents are shooting 47 percent on the season, the worst field-goal defense in the conference.

Three Things to Know About the Cowboys for This Game

  • Oklahoma State leads the Big 12 in scoring offense, averaging 85.8 points per game. The Sooners have scored that many points just seven times this season.
  • The Cowboys are led in scoring by a pair of 18-point scorers. Jawun Evans is averaging right at 18 points per game, and Jeffrey Carroll is just under that, at 17.5. The pair are second and third in the Big 12 in scoring, trailing only Frank Mason of Kansas.
  • Oklahoma State is averaging 40 percent as a team from behind the three-point line. That is second best on the Big 12.

Game Prediction

Oklahoma State began its Big 12 schedule this season dropping its first six games. Since then, however, the Cowboys are 6-1 and playing some of the best basketball in the conference. The Cowboys, though, are just 2-4 this season playing at home against Big 12 opponents. Oklahoma is going to have to find a way to get stops on the defensive end against a very potent OSU offense that can put up plenty of points in a hurry. The Sooners have not been consistent on either end of the court, and I’m afraid that is what will hurt them in Stillwater on Saturday.

Oklahoma State 76, Oklahoma 69

Home/OU Basketball