OU BEAT BY DEFENDING NATIONAL CHAMPS
Oklahoma gave the defending champion UConn Huskies a battle, but in the end, UConn held on for a 67-59 win in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Friday night.
Although UConn is the defending National Champions, they are seeded eighth in the West Region, while OU was the ninth seed.
Alex Karaban led the Huskies (24-10) with 13 points and seven rebounds. UConn extended its March Madness winning streak to 13 games, tying Duke (1991-93) for the second-longest streak without losing a tournament game. Solo Ball scored 14 points to help the Huskies advance to face top region seed Florida on Sunday.
A low scoring first half kept the game within reach for the Sooners, as they went into halftime down by only six points, 32-26.
The game remained close throughout most of the second half, until UConn mounted a late rally, led by a pair of buckets by Karaban, to take a 64-58 lead with 2:18 left to play.
The Sooners (20-14) were led by Jeremiah Fears with 20 points. OU shot 32.1% from the field and made only 3-of-17 three-pointers. Oklahoma managed just one field goal over the last 6 minutes of the game.
The Sooners were part of the Southeastern Conference’s record 14 NCAA bids. Eight of the SEC teams advanced to the second round.
OSU ADVANCES IN NIT
Oklahoma State opened the National Invitation Tournament with a home win over Wichita State, 89-79, last Tuesday evening at Gallagher-Iba Arena.
The Cowboys were led by Bryce Thompson’s 23 points and five steals. Abou Ousmane added 13 points, Khalil Brantley and Jamyron Keller each had a dozen, and Brandon Newman logged a double-double with 10 points and 12 rebounds.
OSU advanced to face SMU on Sunday, in the second round and were once again led by Thompson who scored 24 points to lead the Cowboys to an 85-83 upset victory, in Dallas.
The Cowboys (18-17), seeded fourth in the Dallas Region, was scheduled to play No. 2 seed North Texas Tuesday in the quarterfinals.
The game was tight throughout, and the Mustangs held a 41-40 edge at halftime.
The Cowboys’ Abou Ousmane added 18 points, five rebounds and four blocks. Brandon Newman scored 12 on 4-for-7 shooting from 3-point range.
SMU (24-11), the top seed, was led by Kario Oquendo who finished with 31 points. Chuck Harris totaled 17 points and 10 assists. Samet Yigitoglu added 12 points and nine rebounds.