Tag: Jamal Bieniemy

With non-conference play over, Oklahoma looks forward to tough Big 12 slate

Making it through the first two months of play with just three losses, the Sooners face the toughest Power 5 conference in the nation.

Making it through the first two months of play with just three losses and a No. 45 NET ranking, the Sooners face the toughest Power 5 conference in the nation.

The Big 12 is never a walk in the park. With Kansas being the team to beat every year, the other nine teams in the conference have built tough, reputable programs in the shadows of Lawrence, Kansas. Over the past two seasons, 13 of 20 teams made the NCAA Tournament.

Oklahoma has made the Big Dance each of the past two seasons, missing the 2016-17 season after making four straight NCAA Tournament appearances from 2013-16.

The Sooners come into conference play with three of the top-10 scorers in the Big 12 in Kristian Doolittle (No. 6, 16.7 ppg), Austin Reaves (No. 7, 16.3 ppg) and Brady Manek (No. 8, 15.4 ppg). The trio will be key to Oklahoma’s success the rest of the way, but they cannot do it alone.

An unexpected role player has appeared over the suspected fourth and fifth options last Monday against Texas Rio Grande Valley. Kur Kuath started in place of Doolittle who was benched for a “situation”, per Lon Kruger. Kuath dazzled the crowd, slamming home dunk after dunk to start the game against UT-Rio Grande Valley. Finishing with a career-high 17 points and eight rebounds, Kuath still played within himself.

“It’s been a while since I’ve played, so it was a good experience,” Kuath told reporters on Thursday.

With Kuath’s emergence, both De’Vion Harmon and Jamal Bieniemy have yet to exceed expectations this season. The guard duo has combined for an average of 12.6 points, 6.1 rebounds and 5.3 rebounds a game so far this season. Although underwhelming in the box score, Coach Kruger sees plenty to be happy about.

“Jamal’s (Bieniemy) come along, doing really well—I think he’ll make more shots,” Kruger said on Thursday. “De’Vion, I think is playing his best basketball right now. He’s really energizing us coming off the bench and has handled that really well. Great attitude and great work ethic,”

With six guys being somewhat consistent on a nightly basis, the Sooners should be competitive every night when facing a Big 12 opponent.

“It’s going to be tough,” Manek said Thursday after practice. “It doesn’t matter if you’re the bottom or the top of the Big 12, you’re coming to play every day.”

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3 takeaways from Oklahoma’s 53-52 win over UCF

A win is a win is a win. Oklahoma (8-2) crawled their way to a much-needed win, beating Central Florida (9-3) 53-52.

A win is a win is a win.

Oklahoma (8-2) crawled their way to a much-needed win to avoid a three-game losing skid, beating Central Florida (9-3) 53-52.

DOOLITTLE NEEDS TO DO A LOT

Preventing a three-game losing streak comes down to the older guys on a team. With Kristian Doolittle being the lone senior for the Sooners, he kept the team afloat against the Knights. His demeanor throughout the game, despite Oklahoma not being able to make shots, stayed consistent and positive.

His 12 points accounted for five of the Sooners’ 21 total shots made.

IT IS FIXABLE

Oklahoma has had a rough first half of the season although their record may not fully recognize it. The shooting woes that have plagued the Sooners, though are very much fixable.

“It’s a good time for a break,” Lon Kruger said following the win. “I think very clearly, [we] understand, we have a lot of work to do,”

The flow offensively was non-existent once again as Oklahoma shot an abysmal 21 of 65.

THE DEFENSE STEPPED UP

After a poor performance against Creighton, allowing 83 points, the defense buckled down when the offense screeched to a halt against UCF.

“Needless to say, both teams had a lot of trouble scoring,” Kruger said.

Regardless of the competition, holding a team to 52 points is something to be proud of for the Sooners. The Knights had multiple chances to take control of the game and put it away early but Oklahoma kept chipping away and forcing stops.

Oklahoma takes an extended break for the holidays and will be back in action against Texas Rio Grande Valley on Monday, Dec. 30 at 6:00 p.m. CT.

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3 keys for Oklahoma basketball against Central Florida

Oklahoma (7-3) plays host for the first time in a month as Central Florida (9-2) trades warm, sunny Orlando for the chilly plains of Norman.

Oklahoma (7-3) plays host for the first time in a month as Central Florida (9-2) trades warm, sunny Orlando for the chilly plains of Norman.

Following a tough 83-73 loSs to Creighton (9-2) on Tuesday, the Sooners find themselves clawing for momentum as Big 12 conference play lurks at the turn of the new year. Here are three keys Oklahoma needs in order to get back on track.

TAKE THE LID OFF

It sounds obvious but if the Sooners could simply make shots on a consistent basis, they would be much better off. Oklahoma needs to get hot and get hot early. Being back home for the first time since Nov. 21, the Sooners should be able to shoot much better in their friendly confines. Shooting 33% as a team against Creighton and 37% against Wichita State, Oklahoma needs to find better looks in order to keep themselves out of a losing streak.

INVOLVE THE BACKCOURT

A large part of the Sooners’ woes of late is due to the lack of shots being knocked down by the guards. Jamal Bieniemy and De’Vion Harmon have to make shots in order for the ball to find the open man and good looks. Both Bieniemy and Harmon were ice cold against Creighton with Harmon going 1-7 (1-5 3PT) and Bieniemy chalking up an 0-8 shooting performance. Kristian Doolittle, Brady Manek and Austin Reaves can only take the team so far by themselves.

BRING YOUR OWN ENERGY

With the students out for the holiday break, the student section will be nearly barren. It will be important for the Sooners to bring their own energy to start hot. Just as Oklahoma has not played a game at the Lloyd Noble Center in a month, the Knights have not left Orlando in the month of December. If the Sooners can start hot, they have an opportunity to take UCF out of their element as the Knights knock the dust off their travel luggage.

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3 takeaways from Oklahoma’s 80-75 loss to Wichita State

Oklahoma (7-2) came up cold against Wichita State (9-1), losing 80-75 on the road. Here are three takeaways from the loss.

Oklahoma (7-2) came up cold against Wichita State (9-1), losing 80-75 on the road. Here are three takeaways from the loss.

reaves’ “homecoming”

Transfer junior, Austin Reaves was welcomed back to Wichita with a flurry of boos by the Shocker faithful when introduced pregame. Reaves played two seasons for Wichita State for two seasons before transferring to Oklahoma.

Reaves, much like the rest of the Sooners, started the game cold but hit key shots down the stretch to keep Oklahoma in it. Reaves finished with 13 points, six rebounds and four assists.

LIDS REMAIN ON THE BASKETS

The Sooners continue to struggle to consistently hit shots, starting and ending the game colder than an arctic blast rolling through the Sooner State. Oklahoma shot a hair over 35% in both the first and second half with the three-point shot bailing them out and keeping things closer than they should have been. With Big 12 play quickly coming up, the Sooners will need to capitalize on open looks while also not settling for poor shots. Oklahoma finished the game shooting 37.5% from the floor and 45.2% from deep.

DEFENSE EXPOSED

The book may officially be out on the Sooners defense. Wichita State had too many second-chance opportunities and was able to capitalize on Oklahoma’s somewhat sloppy defense. The Shockers shot an average 40% from the floor but were able to weather the storm with 13 offensive rebounds and 35 defensive rebounds, keeping the tempo and momentum in their hands for the majority of the game.

Oklahoma’s next game comes Tuesday, Dec. 17 as Kruger’s squad heads to Omaha, Nebraska to take on Creighton. Tip-off is set for 7:30p.m. CT on Fox Sports 1.

3 takeaways from Oklahoma’s 73-54 loss to Stanford

Oklahoma (5-1) drops their first game of the season, losing to Stanford (7-0), 73 to 54.

Oklahoma (5-1) drops their first game of the season, losing to Stanford (7-0), 73 to 54.

Here is what went wrong, allowing the Sooners to lose.

SLOW START

Yet again, Oklahoma started slow, but this time it costed them the game. The Sooners had to wait nearly six minutes to get their first bucket of the game before Austin Reaves finally got them on the board.

Oklahoma did a wonderful job from that point on to halftime, cutting the lead to nine before allowing the lead to balloon to 13 at the break.

POOR EFFORT DEFENSIVELY

Being behind the eight ball from the get go did not help, but the Sooners had a poor defensive performance against the Cardinal.

Allowing Stanford to shoot 10 of 25 from behind the arc, the Sooners were lit up from downtown once again.

Oklahoma was also taken to school as they were out rebounded 51-32. The extra possessions for the Cardinal were taken advantage of, allowing the lead to swell and keep the Sooners out of the game.

WHAT ARE THREE POINTERS?

Being a jump shot team only works when the lids retaken off the baskets. Oklahoma shot four of seventeen from deep, shooting themselves out ever having a shot at a comeback.

Moving forward, Sooners like De’Vion Harmon and Jamal Bieniemy are going to have to makes shots when they shoot to allow more room on the floor for volume scorers like Reaves, Brady Manek and Kristian Doolittle.

Oklahoma will have a quick turnaround, playing Missouri (4-2) tomorrow to close out the Hall of Fame Classic. Broadcast details have yet to be released.

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