OU may have missed the NCAA by only one point
Oklahoma was maybe one point away from getting an invitation to the NCAA Basketball Tournament.
Of the 68 teams invited, OU was judged to be team number 70. A one point loss (55-56) in the semi-finals of last week’s Big 12 Tournament to No. 12 Texas Tech was probably the deciding factor even though OU beat No. 2 seeded Baylor in the opening round of that tournament.
So first-year head coach Porter Moser and the Sooners got a number No. 1 seeding in the National Invitational Tournament. OU, which had the third-toughest schedule in the nation, will get to play opening rounds NIT games at home.
The Sooners (18-15 overall, 7-11 in Big 12 play) hosted Missouri State Tuesday night in Norman. (The Tulsa Beacon goes to press on Tuesday). If OU wins that game, they will face the winner of the opening round game between Colorado and St. Bonaventure on March 19 or 20.
Moser made a good case for OU’s inclusion in the NCAA Tournament.
“The positives are strength of schedule,” Moser said. “We didn’t shy away from our schedule. Our strength of schedule. I think it was 4 this morning, and now we just played another line, so it could move up. It was 4. The ones that were ahead of us were Kansas State and West Virginia because we were in the mix with them. I think we have 10 or 11 Quad 1 or 2 wins. We have wins against the top line. We played another top-line team, Kansas, twice, to a two-point game, three-point game at Allen Fieldhouse.”
A closer examination of the Sooner schedule tells a better story.
“Our losses are all except two from tournament teams,” Moser said. “All the losses we have are tournament teams, except two. One was an overtime loss and to a veteran older team, top-60 team. Some might say a number of losses, but Kansas twice, Texas Tech twice, you’re competing against that, but we still have top-line wins.
“Arkansas is competing for the top in the SEC, we beat them double figures. We just beat Texas Tech double figures. We just beat Baylor. We have some other really good wins. I know how we can compete against these top teams. When you look at the average net loss of our losses, it’s 31, that’s outrageous, some of these are very high.”
Moser thinks OU would have fared well in the NCAA Tournament after wading through the Big 12 regular season.
“This league is like none other,” Moser said. “There’s no bottom — it’s every night — and you’re playing against top-level teams, and we’ve competed every night. We’ve won those games. I’ve been in the NCAA Tournament. I’ve advanced in the NCAA Tournament. I know what an NCAA Tournament team looks like and this is an NCAA Tournament team.”
Oklahoma last played in the NIT in 2004 and earned a 70-61 victory over LSU in the first round. The Sooners have made seven appearances in the NIT (10-7 record) and have played in the postseason eight of the previous nine years that postseason play was eligible*.
All NIT game seating will be general admission with the exception of certain locations and all ticket prices are set by the NCAA and NIT.
General admission tickets are $12 and fans that are 2-plus years old will need a ticket for entry. Any Oklahoma student with a valid college ID may purchase a $4 ticket at the Lloyd Noble box office prior to entry.
Doors will open 60 minutes prior to tip off.