Tag: ncaa tournament

Texas Basketball: The Longhorns drop the ball on Senior Day

Needing a win to essentially lock up their NCAA Tournament chances with a win, the Texas Longhorns fell to Oklahoma State 81-59.

The Texas Longhorns started the day with an opportunity to claim sole possession of the third seed in the upcoming Big 12 Tournament. The Texas Tech Red Raiders were tied with Texas before falling to Kansas 66-62. The Longhorns scored their first bucket of the afternoon with 18:48 to go in the first half. Royce Hamm Jr added a free throw but couldn’t score again until 12:32 to go when Courtney Ramey hit a jump shot, Texas trailed at that point 20-5.

The first half was not kind to Texas as they shot just 25 percent from the field including 2-15 from beyond the arc. When Texas’ outside shooting is cold, this team struggles to score. On the other side, Oklahoma State couldn’t miss with 60.7 percent shooting which included a blistering 54.5 percent from three. A big reason Texas trailed 43-21 at the break. Kai Jones was the leading scorer with eight points and five rebounds. The Pokes were led by Thomas Dziagwa with 14 off the bench.

The second half began in the same light as the first half did, with OSU going on a run to keep Texas at bay. While Texas continued to struggle shooting the ball, the Cowboys continued their hot shooting. Dziagwa was lethal from behind the arc.

The game was really decided in the first half with the Longhorns inability to really have an answer all game despite Kai Jones career-high 20 points. The Longhorns will now likely need a strong showing in the Big 12 tournament to punch their postseason ticket.

Final Stats

 

Oklahoma could fall to 7-seed in Big 12 Tournament pending outcome of TCU game

Oklahoma holds its own cards when it comes to the Big 12 Tournament.

Oklahoma holds its own cards when it comes to the Big 12 Tournament.

The Sooners (18-12, 8-9)  are still up in the air when it comes to their Big 12 Tournament seeding with West Virginia taking down Baylor in the early Saturday slate.

With a win, Oklahoma can be no lower than a five-seed if both Texas and Texas Tech win today. The Longhorns play Oklahoma State at home and the Red Raiders host No. 1 ranked Kansas.

If the Jayhawks and Cowboys both win and Oklahoma wins, the Sooners will be slated as the three-seed next weekend and will open the tournament against West Virginia.

A Kansas win and Texas win will give the Sooners the four-seed and will play Texas Tech who would be the five-seed. If Tech beats Kansas, they will take the four-seed over Oklahoma and the two would still meet given a Texas win over Oklahoma State.

If the Sooners drop their game against TCU this evening, they will slide all the way to the seventh-seed and would play 10-seed Kansas State on Wednesday, instead of Thursday in a ‘play-in game’.

Oklahoma and TCU are set for a 5p.m. CT tip-off which can be found on ESPN2. For more broadcast details, click here.

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Three keys for Oklahoma basketball against TCU

The final game of the regular season means it’s crunch time for everyone, but especially so for both Oklahoma (18-12, 8-9)…

The final game of the regular season means it’s crunch time for everyone, but especially so for both Oklahoma (18-12, 8-9) and TCU (16-14, 7-10).

A must-win for both squads, this matchup is important regarding NCAA Tournament implications. For the Sooners, a win in Ft. Worth today would cement themselves in the Big Dance. The Horned Frogs still have some work to do but can help their cause with a win against Oklahoma before heading to Kansas City next week for the Big 12 Tournament.

Here is what the Sooners need to do to ensure a happy trip home to Norman, Okla.

START HOT

It goes without saying, but Oklahoma is much better off if they get off to a hot start. Knocking shots down early and finding the rhythm of the offense in the first ten minutes of the game will be crucial in setting the tone against TCU.

shot selection

Going 2-20 from deep in a heartbreaking loss to Texas on Tuesday is not what the Sooners needed heading into March. Smarter shots and draining the shot clock to find those shots will allow Oklahoma to rest up to play their smothering defense while tiring out the Horned Frogs. Getting into the paint has been an issue but with post-season play looming, the Sooners cannot depend on their outside shooting.

FORGET ABOUT IT

Tuesday’s loss, as heartbreaking as it was for senior Kristian Doolittle, needs to be forgotten about. There is nothing the Sooners can do to change it, so they might as well move on as soon as possible. The first ten minutes against TCU should be a good barometer as to if Lon Kruger’s squad is still reeling from Tuesday’s game.

Oklahoma and TCU are set to tip-off at 4p.m. CT on ESPN. For more broadcast details, click here.

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When, where, how to watch Oklahoma-TCU

Oklahoma (18-12, 8-9) is looking to cap off an up-and-down season with a win over TCU (16-14, 7-10).

After losing to Texas in grim fashion on Wednesday, Oklahoma (18-12, 8-9) is looking to cap off an up-and-down season with a win over TCU (16-14, 7-10).

Both the Sooners and the Horned Frogs will be competing for similar spots in the postseason tournament, and an early March win will bolster both of their resumes.

TCU is coming off a tough loss of their own, as they dropped a 9-point game to Kansas in Allen Fieldhouse.

Here is where you can tune in to watch or listen.

_______________________________________________________________

WHERE: Schollmaier Arena (Fort Worth, Texas)

WHEN: 5:00 p.m. CT

HOW TO WATCH: ESPN2

HOW TO LISTEN: Sooner Sports Radio Network—KOKC AM 1520 and KRXO 107.7 FM in OKC, KMOD FM 97.5 and KTBZ AM 1430 in Tulsa (click here for more options if not in either of those markets)

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Flashback: How Thunder players performed during March Madness

Nine Oklahoma City Thunder players reached the NCAA Tournament while they were in college. Look back to see how they fared in the big dance.

As the college basketball world prepares for March Madness, many NBA stars can think back to their own time on the college courts.

There are nine Oklahoma City Thunder players who competed in the NCAA Tournament when they were in school.

None of them won the championship or reached the Final Four, but some got deep into the tournament and improved their draft profile with strong performances.

On a couple occasions, they were even teammates with players they now share the floor with in Oklahoma City.

Take a look back in history to see how current Thunder players performed on the biggest stage in college basketball.

Steven Adams, Pittsburgh: 2013

Steven Adams Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh’s Steven Adams and Wichita State’s Carl Hall battle for a loose ball during the second round of the NCAA Tournament on March 21, 2013, in Salt Lake City, Utah. (Harry How/Getty Images)

In Steven Adams’ one collegiate season, he helped Pittsburgh go 24-9 with a trip to the 2013 NCAA Tournament. As a No. 8 seed, the Panthers were matched up with ninth-seeded Wichita State, a team that went on to reach the Final Four.

Adams played well in the loss, scoring 13 points on 5-for-7 shooting and grabbing 11 rebounds.

He declared for the NBA draft after the season and was selected No. 12 overall by Oklahoma City, where he has played since.

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Michigan State ranked No. 7 in latest NCAA NET Rankings

The Spartans rank high in one of the tools the NCAA Selection Committee uses to seed the NCAA Tournament

The folks over at the NCAA are taking notice of Michigan State’s late-season surge.

The Michigan State men’s basketball team has moved up to No. 7 in the NCAA’s NET Rankings–the highest ranking of any Big Ten team.

The NET Rankings–or NCAA Evaluation Tool for those of you that despise brevity–are used by the NCAA Tournament selection committee to help sort out which teams should be ranked where. It uses a number of measure, including strength of schedule, victory margin, efficiencies, and location of games to create a more accurate ranking of college basketball teams. The NET Rankings are not the end-all be-all when it comes to the final rankings and determining seeds, but it does play a major factor.

Many of the most recent brackets have Michigan State either as a low three seed or high four seed, so it looks like the NET Rankings like the Spartans a little bit more than the bracketologists think the committee will. It will all become moot next Sunday–Selection Sunday–when the official bracket is revealed.

No. 16 Michigan State hosts No. 19 Ohio State Sunday (4:30 CBS) with a chance to win their third consecutive Big Ten title.

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Despite loss to Texas, Oklahoma not on the bubble in latest Bracketology

Oklahoma (18-12, 8-9) took a tough ‘L’ on Tuesday night but not all is lost on the Sooners’ season.

Oklahoma (18-12, 8-9) took a tough ‘L’ on Tuesday night but not all is lost on the Sooners’ season.

Texas (19-11, 9-8) is one of the hottest teams not just in the Big 12, but in the entire nation. Shak Smart’s mid-season resurrection of the Longhorns winning five-straight conference games to give Texas a chance at making the NCAA Tournament while being without three key players.

Oklahoma’s loss to the Longhorns is being respected as much as it could be. The Sooners are still considered a 10-seed by the Bracket Matrix.

Texas is currently listed as a 12-seed’ and averages an 11.33-seed via the Bracket Matrix, listed on 46 of the 136 brackets tested in the matrix.

Oklahoma’s non-conference is helping its cause yet again. North Texas (13-seed), Stanford (11-seed), Wichita State (11-seed), and Creighton (3-seed) all propel the Sooners into the tournament. While going 1-3 against the four tournament teams, the Sooners played all of them on the road with Stanford being a neutral site game in Kansas City.

Oklahoma has one final regular-season left as they head south on I-35 to Ft. Worth, Texas to take on TCU (16-13, 7-9) on Saturday. The Horned Frogs boast a 14-4 home record, coming off an upset win over No. 3 Baylor last Saturday.

Oklahoma and TCU tip-off at 3p.m. on ESPN2.

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Ohio State moves up in USA Today’s Bracketology. What seed line is it on now?

The Ohio State basketball team, after a hectic last few weeks in college basketball, has improved its seed line according to USA TODAY.

The Ohio State basketball team, after a hectic last few weeks in college basketball, have been placed as a five seed in USA Today’s most recent bracketology.

At that No. 5 seed, the Buckeyes would take on Stephen F. Austin in the Midwest Region out in Sacramento.

Thankfully, given SF Austin’s track record, this is just what USA Today predicts will happen and by no means how it will actually turn out with conference tournaments ahead. There is bound to be some changes and jostling of positions multiple times over.

Ohio State has Auburn, Duke, Seton Hall, and Kansas as their No. 4 through No. 1 seed in respective order. That’s a tough bracket and one that hopefully isn’t going to be what Ohio State sees itself battling come mid-March.

Another interesting point is that the Big Ten has the most teams in the tournament (10), but according to the site’s rankings, do not have a top-eight ranked team.

The Buckeyes, currently sitting at 20-9 and 15-2 at home, are an easy lock to make the tournament at this point no matter how the rest of the season shakes out.

They do, however, have a chance to improve their place with games against Illinois and Michigan State to go along with the Big Ten Tournament still on their schedule.

It’s only going to get more fun from here on out.

Texas Basketball: Latest USA Today Sports’ Bracketology

In the aftermath of the Longhorns’ last-second victory over Oklahoma, Texas has jumped into the NCAA tournament conversation.

In the aftermath of the Longhorns’ last-second win over the Sooners, Texas has suddenly found themselves in the conversation of the NCAA Tournament. Following the game ESPN’s Joe Lunardi proclaimed that Texas was in among the final four in.

USA Today Sports’ has now released their latest bracketology. The Texas Longhorns come in as the number 11 seed in the West Region in the latest report from Shelby Mast and Scott Gleeson. Texas gives the Big 12 six teams that would be going dancing. Despite the fact that Texas is ahead of West Virginia and Oklahoma in the standings, the Longhorns have the lowest seed of any of the Big 12 teams.

Of course Selection Sunday is all that matters in terms of who will officially be invited to the dance, the Longhorns have one game remaining against Oklahoma State prior to the Big 12 Tournament in Kansas City, MO.

Right now Texas is the third seed along with Texas Tech, who will host Kansas on Saturday. Should Texas and Kansas win their games, the Longhorns would be in sole possession of the third seed and would play Oklahoma in the quarterfinals as everything stands at this point.