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Stats: http://www.soonersports.com/sports/m-baskbl/stats/2012-2013/01-12-13.html
Photos: http://www.soonersports.com/view.gal?id=132809
Quotes: http://www.soonersports.com/sports/m-baskbl/archive/010913aaa.html
Notes: http://www.soonersports.com/sports/m-baskbl/archive/010913aab.html
Photos: http://www.soonersports.com/view.gal?id=132809
Quotes: http://www.soonersports.com/sports/m-baskbl/archive/010913aaa.html
Head Coach Lon Kruger ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Opening comment:
"It was a good ball game. I thought the guys had good energy from the start, moved the ball well and had pretty good activity on loose balls. We withstood the run by Oklahoma State there in the second half and gained our composure pretty well at that point and made good plays for each other down the stretch. It was a little sloppy there late, but we will learn from that and hopefully get better. Overall, it was a good win for us and we beat a really good ball club. Oklahoma State is a really good team and any time we can beat a good club like that, we feel good about it."
On setting the tone early:
"Any time we can get off to a good start just reinforces what we have done in practice, of course, and we feel good about that. Everything is just a building process and we feel better, a little more confidence, and the guys start trusting each other a little bit more. We are still trying to understand how tough each possession has to be, and we have a ways to go, but we are making progress."
On his team feeding off of the crowd:
"We had a great crowd and that is always important. Something we want to continue to do is build that base, and I think this group is really easy to watch, fun to cheer for, and they work hard. When a crowd like that comes and sees good results, good effort, and sees a group that works hard, hopefully that will encourage them to come back and we will keep building on it."
On his team's depth:
"I think the depth is a big key. We have veteran guys coming off the bench, and last year we didn't quite have that ability to sustain anything good that we had going. We have Andrew (Fitzgerald), and Sam (Grooms) came in today and plays great in a critical stage, and I think (Isaiah) Cousins is a talented freshman that is going to get better and better. Cameron (Clark) is doing a great job off the bench, as well as Tyler Neal, a veteran guy, coming in. That depth is important in sustaining good play."
On how OU defended Oklahoma State's Marcus Smart:
"Marcus Smart is a terrific player, and with any great player you have to give them a little extra attention. The guy that is on him has to work hard, and we have to be ready to help in either direction. I think Marcus was burdened by the fouls tonight, which limited him a little bit. He is a terrific player and makes those around him better."
Senior F Romero Osby ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
On improving in close games from last year:
"We're just trying to learn from last year and bring some of the new guys along with us. We've got five seniors, so we know how it is being in close Big 12 games and having to come down the stretch and just don't make enough plays to win the game. So it's been big for us; I think it's been good because coach scheduled a lot of road games for us early in the year, forcing us to play with our backs against the wall. I'd like to think we've gotten better since then."
On veterans coming off the bench:
"That is really unique and it is really unselfish for those guys. Our chemistry has been really good and I think it's been real good for us because we have young guys who are learning and getting an opportunity to step up and guys getting more comfortable. Steve (Pledger) and I are trying to maintain the front, as far as being seniors in the starting lineup, I think it has been real good for us. And that is unique to have five starters back from last year and three come off the bench. That has been good for us."
Freshman G Buddy Hield ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
On responding to Oklahoma State:
"It was big. When we were up by 12 and I think they cut the lead down to six, we had to find a way to make a big basket; I think Sam (Grooms) found me open and hit me. I had to shoot the ball confidently and the past couple of games I have been shooting the ball confident, so I just stepped (up) and was very confident tonight. The 3's were dropping for me tonight."
Junior F Amath M'Baye ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
On his seven-point run late in the second half:
"I'm pretty sure every single basket was assisted, it came from assists, so that seven-point stretch wasn't mine, it was the team's. I thought the team did a great job. The team did a great job executing every time that coach called a play; we know it's going to work."
On getting into the offense more as the year progresses:
"I'm starting to feel great. Just the fact that I'm able to work with my teammates and my teammates are able to work with me. I take issue to make sure I know every play or philosophy to know where the ball is supposed to go. I think that I'm start to feel real comfortable in it."
Notes: http://www.soonersports.com/sports/m-baskbl/archive/010913aab.html
Oklahoma Team Notes
Oklahoma won its fourth straight game and improved to 11-3 overall (2-0 in Big 12 play) with a 77-68 home win over Oklahoma State. It was OU's ninth straight Bedlam win at home. OSU fell to 11-4 overall and 1-2 in league action.
The Sooners never trailed and the game was never tied. OU led by as many as 14 points (in each half) before OSU used a 17-5 run to make the score 52-50 with 9:34 remaining. The Sooners later used a 12-3 spurt to retake command, 70-57, with 4:00 to go.
OU's 77 points were the second most surrendered by OSU this season and the Sooners' .431 field goal mark was the fourth best allowed by the Cowboys.
Oklahoma improved to 129-94 all-time against Oklahoma State and to 81-26 in Norman. The Sooners have won 11 of the last 17 overall meetings and are 19-17 against OSU since the start of the Big 12 Conference.
Oklahoma shot .615 from 3-point range on the day, a season high. The Sooners, who entered the game shooting .310 from behind the arc, were 8-for-13 from long distance today. OSU was 6-for-12 from 3-point range in the first half and 0-for-9 in the second (shot .286 for the game).
OU shot .905 from the free throw line (19-for-21). It was the team's eighth straight performance of at least .700 and the third over .900 in the last six outings.
The Sooners are 2-0 in Big 12 play for the first time since 2009, when they started 11-0 behind eventual national player of the year Blake Griffin.
The home game was just the sixth of the year for OU. No other team in any of the six "power" conferences has played fewer.
OU held freshman Marcus Smart to 10 points, two rebounds and three assists in 27 minutes. Smart entered the game averaging 14.3 points, 5.7 rebounds and 4.8 assists in 32.6 minutes a game. He was 3-for-10 from the field.
Oklahoma is back home again on Wednesday when it hosts Texas Tech at 7 p.m. CT.
Senior F Romero Osby
Osby finished with a team-high 17 points on 6-for-12 field goal and 5-for-6 free throw shooting. The free throw miss came on his last attempt, snapping a streak of 36 straight makes. Osby finished one free throw shy of tying the school record for consecutive conversions (37 by Nate Carter in 2006-07). In three career games vs. OSU, Osby is averaging 17.0 points on .500 field goal shooting.
Freshman G Buddy Hield
Hield tallied 15 points (second highest career total), four rebounds and a team-high five assists against two turnovers in a team-high 37 minutes (most playing time by a Sooner this season). He made a career-high three 3-pointers on five attempts. Over the last six games, Hield is averaging 9.3 points and team highs of 5.7 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 1.5 steals. Over the last four games, he has 20 assists and six turnovers (3.3 ratio).
Junior F Amath M'Baye
M'Baye netted 15 points, his third highest total of the season, on 5-for-9 shooting. He made his first 3-point basket of the season (now 1-for-7) and converted all four of his free throw attempts. M'Baye scored seven straight points in the second half, pushing OU's 63-57 lead to 70-57 with 4:00 remaining.
Senior G Steven Pledger
With 11 points, Pledger scored in double figures for the seventh straight game. He made all five of his free throw attempts and jumped two spots on OU's all-time scoring list to the No. 25 spot with 1,183 points. He passed Brent Price (1,173) and Les Lane (1,180).
