Men's Hoops Overwhelms Colorado, 86-67

Feb. 28, 2001

Box Score

By OWEN CANFIELD
AP Sports Writer

NORMAN, Okla. - After a rough few days, No. 17 Oklahoma had a little fun Wednesday night.

The Sooners, playing for the first time since point guard J.R. Raymond was dismissed for breaking a team rule, broke open the game with a big second-half run and beat Colorado 86-67.

Oklahoma (22-6, 11-4 Big 12) only led by a point at halftime, but used its defense to produce easy baskets and beat the Buffaloes for the 19th straight time in Norman.

"Our whole team had to accomplish something, and that's everybody be more aggressive and everybody do more than they were doing because we lost one of our best players," said Nolan Johnson, who tied his career-high with 23 points. "We all had to contribute on defense and on offense."

The Sooners lost 68-60 at Maryland on Saturday without Raymond, who had been suspended a day earlier. On Sunday, coach Kelvin Sampson announced that Raymond - who had averaged 18 points in the previous 10 games - had been dismissed from the team.

Hollis Price, playing point guard in place of Raymond, and had 21 points on 8-of-11 shooting, while Aaron McGhee had 15 points and eight rebounds, and Kelley Newton scored 12 points.

"Our team's a little bit different now than it was a week ago, so you adjust to your strengths and go," Sampson said. "I thought the second half was as good as we played all year."

Oklahoma fell behind 10-2 in the opening minutes before outscoring the Buffaloes 14-3 to take the lead. But it was only a one-point game at halftime.

Early in the second half, Newton made two 3-pointers and Price added another in an 11-2 run that gave Oklahoma a 50-40 lead.

After Stephane Pelle scored on a follow shot to make it 50-42, Johnson, McGhee and Price did all the scoring in the 16-3 spurt that made the final 10 minutes incidental.

"They became more aggressive on the defensive end," Colorado coach Ricardo Patton said. "We were careless on the offensive end. You can't play good teams and turn the ball over 22 times.

"We had some turnovers at some very vulnerable moments, and they capitalized and got easy buckets at the other end."

Oklahoma came up with four turnovers during its surge and scored a basket or two free throws after each one. As the teams headed off for a timeout with the score 64-45, Sampson walked onto the floor and waved his arms, imploring the crowd to salute his team.

"I wanted our fans to appreciate our effort, and don't take for granted how good this team is," he said. "Sometimes you take things for granted. These kids play hard, they work hard."

Oklahoma held Colorado (15-13, 5-10) to 37.5 percent shooting in the second half. The Sooners finished with a 38-31 rebound advantage and shot 49 percent.

Jamahl Mosley scored 15 points, and D.J. Harrison had 14 points and nine rebounds for the Buffaloes.

University of Oklahoma Athletics

Men's Hoops Overwhelms Colorado, 86-67

Related News

Related Videos

Sponsors