Oklahoma-UTEP Box Score/Quotes/Photos

[OUHoops]

OU plays the Gonzaga/Clemson winner tomorrow night at 6:30 pm (CST) on ESPN2.

Stats: http://www.soonersports.com/sports/m-baskbl/stats/2012-2013/11-22-12.html

Photos: http://www.soonersports.com/view.gal?id=130004

Quotes: http://www.soonersports.com/sports/m-baskbl/archive/112212aab.html

Head Coach Lon Kruger |||||||||||||||||||||||

On the team's quick start: "It was a great start. You'd like to start all ball games like that, not only on the scoreboard, but the energy was good and the activity defensively was very good, and there were very few turnovers on the offense at the other end. We needed every bit of it as UTEP kept battling. We gave them a chance to get back in there late and we went a long stretch there in the second half not getting in a shot, just a couple free throws. It was a good win for our guys and a good way to start a tournament."

On the team's defense and forcing turnovers: "We want to get up in the peephole and make them uncomfortable and be active. I thought for the most part our effort and energy on the defensive end."

Senior Forward Romero Osby |||||||||||||||||||||||

On the team's play: "I thought we played well. It was good for us to see an attacking defense early in the season so we can prepare for the Big 12."

On the team's movement: "We had a lot of movement, which the coaches had prepared us for the past three or four days in practice. I'm glad they did, because we knew what to expect."

Senior Guard Steven Pledger |||||||||||||||||||||||

On his late-game shot to stop UTEP's run: "To me, in my mind, every shot is the same shot, whether it be a game-winner or a shot in the middle of the game. I pride myself on hitting shots with four or five minutes left in the game."

On Romero Osby's play tonight: "We need him to do that. We need him to be strong, and he had a double-double tonight, which is great."

UTEP Head Coach Tim Floyd |||||||||||||||||||||||

On getting down 15-0 in the first five minutes: "We turned it over early. We had several turnovers that led to cheap runouts. They had three offensive board baskets. And their pressure bothered us. They got into our bigs and got into our wings and we didn't handle it very well."

On his general thoughts about the game: "We did not offensive board it. We shot the same percentage they did. We got to the foul line but we turned it over 17 times versus their pressure. They had six more possessions as a result of that. They had eight more possessions as a result of the offensive rebound baskets. After we closed the lead in the first half, we turned it over on back-to-back trips -- John Bohannon in transition and Malcolm Moore flipped it out of bounds underneath (the basket). In the second half, we missed four consecutive point blank layups that would've changed the game. We weren't able to take care of what we needed to take care of late. Pledger knocked down a big shot. It was a composed Oklahoma team. We held them to 27 percent in the second half and guarded exceptionally well. There's a lesson to be learned that you can catch up by guarding, and we'll be in that situation again."

Notes: http://www.soonersports.com/sports/m-baskbl/archive/112212aaa.html

• With its 68-61 win in the opening round of the Old Spice Classic, Oklahoma improved to 3-0 on the season for the third straight season and for the fifth time in the last six years.

• Making its first appearance in the Old Spice Classic, OU improved to 3-1 all-time vs. UTEP. Tonight's meeting was the first between the teams outside of Oklahoma (two in Norman and one in Oklahoma City).

• OU scored the game's first 15 points and didn't allow UTEP to score until 5:13 had elapsed. Oklahoma's run was fueled by seven straight possessions that resulted in points (7-for-8 shooting during the stretch).

• With just over seven minutes remaining, UTEP started a 16-4 run that cut OU's lead to 64-60. The Sooners responded with a 4-1 run, thanks to a 3-pointer by Steven Pledger with 1:03 left and a free throw 44 seconds later.

• Senior Romero Osby recorded his second straight double-double (ninth in his 34-game OU career). The forward registered game highs of 16 points and 10 rebounds, as well as a career-high-tying 4 assists. He was a perfect 4-4 from the free throw line and 6-of-10 from the field.

• Pledger finished with 12 points with the help of 3-for-6 3-point shooting. The senior has 10 of OU's 20 treys on the year and is shooting .455 from long distance (10-for-22).

• The Sooners held an 11-2 advantage in fast break points (all in the first half), and outscored the Miners 11-8 on second-chance points. Both teams' benches scored an even 22 points apiece, while UTEP outscored OU 26-16 in the paint.

• Oklahoma caused 17 UTEP turnovers and had 8 steals, compared to 11 OU turnovers and 6 steals for UTEP. The Sooners outscored the Miners 22-12 in points off turnovers.

• OU shot 41.7 percent from the field, and 33.3 percent from 3-point range. In the first half, Oklahoma shot 54.8 percent from the field and was 3-for-6 from beyond the arc. On the night, UTEP made 41.3 percent of its field goal attempts and 40.0 percent from downtown.

• For the second time this season, every Sooner who played found the scoring column. Ten Sooners saw playing time, all of them at least 9 minutes. Six of them scored at least 5 points, and four scored at least 8 points.

• Five OU players had at least 4 rebounds, led by Osby's 10. The Sooners totaled 38 rebounds on the night, while the Miners had 32. Oklahoma has outrebounded each of its three opponents (by an average of 11.7 per game).

• OU will face Clemson or Gonzaga in second-round action on Friday at 6:30 p.m. CT.

 

[WTSooner]

Re: Oklahoma-UTEP Box Score

I didn't get to watch the game.....how'd we look?

We rebounded well, and didn't turn the ball over a whole lot, did we just not shoot it well? Contested shots, or did we miss good looks?

 

[OUHoops]

Re: Oklahoma-UTEP Box Score

I didn't get to watch the game.....how'd we look?

We rebounded well, and didn't turn the ball over a whole lot, did we just not shoot it well? Contested shots, or did we miss good looks?

Really, really good in spurts and not so good in others. They mixed up a Box and 1 and Triangle and 2 in the second half that put OU's offense out of sync.

You can watch entire replay here: http://www.soonersports.com/sports/m-baskbl/recaps/112212aaa.html

 

[skyvue]

Re: Oklahoma-UTEP Box Score

We shot terribly in the second half -- due in part, no doubt, to the UTEP defense -- but I felt we were getting a reasonable number of open shots. I thought Fran Fraschilla (whom I usually like, but found terribly annoying tonight) overstated the impact of the triangle-and-two.

 

[WTSooner]

Re: Oklahoma-UTEP Box Score

Who did they run the box and triangle on?

How about our defense? Looks like we fouled quite a bit.

Hopefully we'll play a little better tomorrow.

 

[mict085]

Re: Oklahoma-UTEP Box Score

This team is young and with the newcomers, they're still figuring things out. They have runs where they look great and runs where they look...not great. They'll get better as they learn and grow together. Hopefully, the consistency will improve and they'll extend the good runs and limit the bad ones.

 

[SoonerBounce13]

Who did they run the box and triangle on?

How about our defense? Looks like we fouled quite a bit.

Hopefully we'll play a little better tomorrow.

They switched it up. I remember it being on hield, pledger and hornbeak at different times.

We shot bad in second half and they got some easy layups breaking our press. And we had a lot of dumb fouls that face them and ones

 

[MsProudSooner]

Re: Oklahoma-UTEP Box Score/Quotes/Photos [SoonerSports.com]

And their pressure bothered us. They got into our bigs and got into our wings and we didn't handle it very well.

I love to read that coming from an opposing coach.

 

[AdaSooner]

Re: Oklahoma-UTEP Box Score/Quotes/Photos [SoonerSports.com]

I recorded the game and watched it this morning. OU was still up 18 with a little over ten minutes left, and up 16 at the eight minutes plus mark. From that point forward, until Pledger hit a clutch three at just over one minute left in the game, UTEP's run was a combination of poor shooting by OU, shots that started to fall for the Miners, and a comedy of errors on defense and in turning the ball over by the Sooners.

I agree that Fran gave too much credit to the junk defenses Floyd introduced in the second half. Shots that were going down in the first half were misses in the second session. OU's shooting percentage went from 55% in one half to 27% in the other, with most of the misses from about the 14 minutes mark. We also took more shots from the perimeter, instead of trying to penetrate UTEP's box and one and continuing our advantage on the inside. Even Obsy, who was definitely the reason OU won the game, was shooting from further out. This team needs to be more patient in their half court sets. Playing fast doesn't mean you have to take the first open shot available on every possession.

I didn't feel that OU was in danger of losing the game at any point. But our kids have to learn how to finish. That's two straight games when they have blown big leads and had scratch and claw to get the win. Do against the
Zags and we'll be 3-1 when it's over.