Men's Basketball Defeats No. 20 Texas, 75-68

Jan. 24, 2001

By OWEN CANFIELD
AP Sports Writer

NORMAN, Okla. - A game best described as ugly looked just great to Oklahoma basketball coach Kelvin Sampson.

"If we were going to get back in anything, we had to win this game," Sampson said Wednesday night after the Sooners held on to beat No. 20 Texas 75-68.

"I was really impressed with how we won the game tonight. I'm just looking for improvement. Our kids have improved defensively and we've improved our rebounding."

The Sooners (14-4, 3-3 Big 12) won a free-throw shooting contest in the closing minutes to keep themselves in the mix in the conference race. Texas, on the other hand, went just 3-of-12 from the line over the final 3:44.

"We had great effort and gave ourselves a chance. We just couldn't capitalize," Texas coach Rick Barnes said.

The Longhorns (15-4, 4-2) continued to have a tough time shooting. Leading scorer Darren Kelly scored 10 points on 3-of-13 shooting, Maurice Evans needed 15 shots to score 15 points, and as a team Texas finished below 38 percent from the field for the sixth time in the past eight games.

Chris Owens, tied for the league lead with six double-doubles, didn't score until the second half. He wound up with seven points and three rebounds, and fouled out in the final two minutes.

"Even with all that, if we make some free throws, who knows what might happen?" Barnes said.

J.R. Raymond, coming off a season-best 25 points against Kansas State, had 21 to lead the Sooners, including five 3-pointers. Hollis Price scored 17, and Nolan Johnson had 10 points and 12 rebounds.

Price made three free throws in the final 20 seconds and then came up with a big steal after missing two in a row.

Raymond's fifth and final 3-pointer gave Oklahoma its biggest lead, 45-34, with 16:39 to play. But Texas put together a 12-2 run in the next six minutes to get within 47-46.

Raymond countered with a drive to the basket, and Price scored off a turnover to start an 8-0 run that again gave the Sooners control. Texas got within three twice after that, the final time 71-68 on a shot inside by Fredie Williams with 36 seconds left.

With the score 72-68, Price had a chance to widen the lead with two free throws. He missed both, but stole the ball back from Maurice Evans, essentially ending the Longhorns' chances.

Oklahoma scored 18 of its final 20 points from the line and wound up 22-of-31. Texas was 16-of-29 from the line.

"I think between Texas, Oklahoma and the referees, we almost screwed up a pretty good 38 minutes of basketball," Sampson said.

Texas scored one field goal during a nearly eight-minute stretch in the first half, when Oklahoma outscored them 13-3.

The 3-point shot kept Texas within range, however. Evans had had three long-range jumpers and Williams had two, including one at the halftime buzzer that cut Oklahoma's lead to 32-29.

Williams' 11 points were a bonus - he had totaled 2 points in the previous 11 games.

University of Oklahoma Athletics

Men's Basketball Defeats No. 20 Texas, 75-68

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