Sooners Booming

On Monday night, Oklahoma went into Texas and throttled the team I thought was most likely to represent the Big XII in a Final Four. When I did my review/preview, I knew Oklahoma was 10th in KenPom and I included all top 10 teams as Final 4 contenders, except the Sooners. That was likely a mistake.

Two games into a conference season isn't time to state anything as fact. DePaul isn't winning the Big East after starting 2-0 nor is Purdue winning the B1G. But we can probably start looking at the Sooners as a real threat to end the Kansas stranglehold on the Big XII.

Oklahoma is 11-3 with its 3 losses coming at Creighton (In this game, they blew a big lead) and on neutral courts to Wisconsin & Washington. Winning in Omaha isn't easy, especially early in the season. They don't have a great non-conference win. A win over UCLA doesn't look that impressive today. They did beat Butler in Atlantis.

What makes Oklahoma go is its defense. They're 7th in defensive effective fg% and they generally defend without fouling. They hold opponents to 28% shooting from 3, which is 23rd best in the land. Lon Kruger has his guys defending.

Junior G Buddy Hield is the team leader. He scores 16 ppg and grabs 5.5 boards per game. He protects the ball and is a good defender. Fellow JR. Isaiah Cousins scores 13.4ppg and is a also a good rebounder, grabbing almost 6 a game. Houston transfer TaShawn Thomas has joined JR. Ryan Spangler at providing solid post play. Spangler is capable of a double-double nightly. He averages 9 & 8 per game.

Oklahoma is one of many solid Big XII teams. The early numbers indicate they might be the best. A poor defensive team last year, the Sooners look much improved on that side and could very well end the Kansas reign. Final 4? We'll see how they fare going through the Big XII buzzsaw. If they keep playing like they have, it's a possibility.