Stormin in Norman
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Oklahoma basketball: Lon Kruger’s 5 worst Sooner losses

By Chip Rouse

NORMAN, OK - FEBRUARY 17: Head Coach Lon Kruger of the Oklahoma Sooners questions a call with a referee during the game against the Texas Longhorns at Lloyd Noble Center on February 17, 2018 in Norman, Oklahoma. The Longhorns defeated the Sooners 77-66. (Photo by Brett Deering/Getty Images)
NORMAN, OK - FEBRUARY 17: Head Coach Lon Kruger of the Oklahoma Sooners questions a call with a referee during the game against the Texas Longhorns at Lloyd Noble Center on February 17, 2018 in Norman, Oklahoma. The Longhorns defeated the Sooners 77-66. (Photo by Brett Deering/Getty Images) /
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LAWRENCE, KS – FEBRUARY 19: Trae Young
LAWRENCE, KS – FEBRUARY 19: Trae Young /

#3 – Kansas 104, Kansas 74, Feb. 19, 2018

This game will be painfully fresh in the minds of Sooner fans, because it happened just three weeks ago.

Less than a month before, Oklahoma had upset 13-time defending Big 12 champion Kansas 85-80 in Norman, coming from behind in the late going to defeat the Jayhawks in Norman for the third time in the last six games there between these two longtime conference rivals.

Since the Jan. 23 win over Kansas, however, the Sooners had won just once in eight games, and Allen Fieldhouse is the last place you want to be riding a five-game losing streak. That six-game losing streak pales, however, by Oklahoma’s losing streak playing at Kansas. Coming into this contest, the Sooners had lost 16 consecutive games on the road at Kansas. OU’s last win in Lawrence was 25 years ago.

Kansas was out for bear, having lost the earlier game to Oklahoma. This game was no contest right from the start. The Jayhawks raced out to a 10-0 lead before the Sooners scored their first point, and widened the advantage to 20-4 before seven minutes had gone by.

The Jayhawks led by 10, 49-39 at the half, and OU cut the lead to six in the early minutes of the second half, but from there it was all Kansas. The Jayhawks had all five starters score in double figures, with Big 12 Player of the Year Devante Graham leading the way with 23 points. Malik Newman contributed 20.

Kameron McGusty scored 22 for Oklahoma, and Jamuni McNeace had a career-high 18 points, but that was far too little offense to derail the high-flying Jayhawks.

The Sooner defense, which has been a no-show the entire season, allowed Kansas to shoot 61 percent from the floor and 55 percent from long range, hitting gold on 16 treys.

This will go down as the worst loss to a Big 12 opponent in Lon Kruger’s time at OU, but not the worst Sooner loss in his seven seasons. That’s coming up…

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