Oklahoma Sooners
Big 12 (18-13, 8-10)
Behind superstar freshman Trae Young, Oklahoma started the 2017-2018 season with a 12-1 record. Like many teams in the Big 12 though, the Sooners failed to keep it going during conference play. Much of that has to do with the difficulty of navigating the Big 12, but the opposition also figured out, occasionally, how to contain Young.
Big Wins: 12/16 at Wichita State (91-83), 1/9 Texas Tech (75-65), 1/23 Kansas (85-80)
Bad Losses: 1/16 at Kansas State (69-87), 1/20 at Oklahoma State (81-83), 2/10 at Iowa State (80-88)
Coach: Lon Kruger
Why They Can Surprise:
Averaging 27.4 points, 8.8 assists, 3.9 rebounds and 1.7 steals, Trae Young is having a magnificent debut season. He can score from everywhere on the floor and even in subpar performances he will score 25 points. The expectations on Young are ridiculously high, but the Sooners will go as far as their superstar freshman can take them. And he can take them far. Oklahoma wants to run and put a ton of points on the board and Young is the guy you want taking all of those shots.
Why They Can Disappoint:
The Sooners are going to give up a lot of points, but that is not a huge concern. Turnovers can be a problem, but the bigger concern is what happens when the opposition game plans to contain Young. Of course that has happened many times during the regular season, but the results have not always been good for OU. Other scorers need to be a threat and help Young in the scoring department. Christian James and Brady Manek are both good outside shooters who benefit from the attention paid to Young. When those two are knocking down shots, the opposition must pay them some attention. Rashard Odomes, a big 6-6 guard, can finish around the basket and Kameron McGusty has had some decent showings as well. In the paint most of the scoring falls on Khadeem Lattin. The offense will often pass him by, but Oklahoma needs to remember that they have a decent scorer in the paint when they have to set up their half-court offense.
Probable Starters:
Trae Young, Freshman, Guard, 27.4 ppg, 8.8 apg, 3.9 rpg, 1.7 spg,
Christian James, Junior, Guard, 12.1 ppg, 1,5 apg, 4.3 rpg
Rashard Odomes, Junior, Guard, 7.3 ppg, 1.0 apg
Brady Manek, Freshman, Forward, 10.4 ppg, 5.1 rpg
Khadeem Lattin, Senior, Forward, 6.8 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 1.9 bpg
Key Role Players:
Kameron McGusty, Sophomore, Guard, 8.0 ppg
Jordan Shepherd, Sophomore, Guard, 2.3 ppg, 1.2 apg
Jamuni McNeace, Junior, Center, 6.5 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 1.4 bpg
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 86.0 (4th in nation, 1st in conference)
Scoring Defense: 82.0 (337, 10)
Field-Goal Percentage: 46.7 (82, 5)
Field-Goal Defense: 44.6 (217, 9)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 9.6 (35, 2)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 36.4 (108, 3)
Free-Throw Percentage: 75.2 (49, 3)
Rebound Margin: 0.4 (184, 6)
Assists Per Game: 15.2 (77, 3)
Turnovers Per Game: 13.4 (217, 10)
Recent Postseason Appearances:
2016 NCAA Round of 64 win over CSU Bakersfield
2016 NCAA Round of 32 win over VCU
2016 NCAA Regional Semifinal win over Texas A&M
2016 NCAA Regional Final win over Oregon
2016 NCAA National Semifinal loss to Villanova
2015 NCAA Round of 64 win over Albany
2015 NCAA Round of 32 win over Dayton
2015 NCAA Regional Semifinal loss to Michigan State
2014 NCAA Round of 64 loss to North Dakota State
2013 NCAA Round of 64 loss to San Diego State
2009 NCAA Round of 64 win over Morgan State
2009 NCAA Round of 32 win over Michigan
2009 NCAA Regional Semifinal win over Syracuse
2009 NCAA Regional Final loss to North Carolina
2008 NCAA Round of 64 win over St. Josephs
2008 NCAA Round of 32 loss to Louisville
*all team stats through 3/4
