Oklahoma at Missouri Preview

GAME INFORMATION
Oklahoma (17-5 overall, 6-3 Big 12) and Missouri (10-13, 2-7) will meet for the 200th time when the Sooners travel to Columbia for a 12:30 p.m. game Saturday at Mizzou Arena.

OU is in fourth place in the Big 12 Conference while the Tigers are in 11th. The game will air on the Sooner Radio Network (flagship KOKC 1520 AM in Oklahoma City) with Bob Barry, Sr. (play-by-play) and Mike Houck (analyst) calling the action.

It will be televised regionally by ABC (KOCO Channel 5/Cox Cable Channel 8 in OKC) with Dave O'Brien (play-by-play) and Jason Williams (analyst) announcing.

Sooner Radio Network | Live Web Audio | Live Statistics

PROJECTED OKLAHOMA STARTERS (Stats averages)
F 21 Taj Gray (6-9, 235, Jr., 15.6 ppg, 8.9 rpg, 1.5 apg)
F 34 Kevin Bookout (6-8, 259, Jr., 12.9 ppg, 6.9 rpg, 0.7 apg)
G 2 Jaison Williams (6-3, 181, Sr., 7.5 ppg, 2.9 rpg, 2.6 apg)
G 3 Drew Lavender (5-7, 153, So., 9.4 ppg, 1.6 rpg, 3.9 apg)
G 20 Terrell Everett (6-4, 185, Jr., 11.7 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 5.1 apg)

MISSOURI PROJECTED STARTERS (Stats averages)
F 15 Marshall Brown (6-7, 210, Fr., 5.4 ppg, 1.8 rpg, 0.6 apg)
F 41 Linas Kleiza (6-8, 244, So., 15.7 ppg, 7.1 rpg, 1.8 apg)
G 1 Jimmy McKinney (6-3, 208, Jr., 7.2 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 2.3 apg)
G 2 Jason Conley (6-5, 212, Sr., 10.2 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 1.7 apg)
G 12 Jason Horton (6-0, 173, Fr., 6.0 ppg, 2.1 rpg, 3.6 apg)

Game Notes in PDF Format

OKLAHOMA UPDATE
After winning 10 straight games and climbing to No. 13 in the AP poll, the Sooners have lost two in a row and three of their last four. Oklahoma is coming off a 79-67 loss at Oklahoma State on Monday, a game in which the Sooners trailed by two at the half (35-33) and by four with just more than seven minutes remaining (60-56). OU outshot the Cowboys (.537 to .526) and outrebounded them (30-27), but had 15 turnovers and shot a season-low .417 from the free throw line (5-for-12). OSU made eight 3-pointers on the night and shot .571 from beyond the arc, both OU opponent season highs. Kevin Bookout broke out of a two-game slump by notching his fifth double-double in nine Big 12 games. The junior forward netted 15 points on 7-of-10 shooting and had 10 rebounds, two assists and two blocks. Fellow junior forward Taj Gray was 6-for-8 from the field and finished with 14 points, eight boards and three rejections. Guards Lawrence McKenzie and Terrell Everett had 13 and 12 points, respectively. McKenzie drained three 3-pointers in 30 minutes off the bench and added two steals. Everett was 6-for-12 from the field and contributed a team-high-tying four assists and two steals. The loss kept the Sooners from registering their first regular season sweep of the Cowboys since the 1998-99 season and was OU's fifth consecutive in Stillwater.

OKLAHOMA STATE LEFTOVERS
Kevin Bookout's double-double (15 points, 10 boards) was his third in five career games against OSU (he is averaging 14.2 points and 10.0 rebounds in those five games).
Bookout's performance came after after averaging 2.5 points and 1.0 rebound in games against Texas A&M and Texas Tech.
Taj Gray blocked three shots to mark the ninth time of the year he registered at least three rejections in a game. He leads the Big 12 with 2.2 blocks per outing.
Lawrence McKenzie's three 3-pointers gave him his 12th game this year of at least three treys.
OU lost for the third straight time when outrebounding its opponent (it had 30 rebounds to OSU's 27). It is 13-3 this year when outboarding its foe.

ABOUT MISSOURI
Picked to finish fifth in preseason Big 12 polls by coaches and media, Missouri is 10-13 overall and stands in 11th place in the league with a 2-7 record. The Tigers have lost five straight games and eight of their last nine. They are 10-4 at the new Mizzou Arena (2-2 in Big 12), however. MU is shooting .404 from the field, .316 from beyond the arc and .679 from the free throw line on the season.

Sophomore forward Linas Kleiza and senior guard Jason Conley are the only Tigers averaging double digits in scoring. Kleiza produces 15.7 points a game to go along with his 7.1 rebounds and 1.8 assists. Kleiza, who had 24 points and eight boards Wednesday in a 74-71 loss at UNLV, has attempted 148 free throws already on the year (average of 6.4 a game). Conley led the nation in scoring (29.3 ppg) as a freshman in 2001-02 at VMI and averages 10.2 points, 5.3 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.2 steals a contest this season. He was held to one point in 23 minutes off the bench at UNLV. Sophomore guard Thomas Gardner averages 9.8 points and has made a team-high 33 3-pointers while junior guard Jimmy McKinney averages 7.2 points, 3.3 boards and 2.3 assists. Freshman point guard Jason Horton scores 6.0 points an outing and leads the team with his 3.6 assists average.

Quin Snyder is in his seventh year as Missouri's head coach and owns a 110-76 (.591) record.

SERIES WITH MISSOURI
Oklahoma owns a 109-90 all-time record against Missouri but is 29-56 in games played in Columbia. Kelvin Sampson is 12-7 against Missouri as OU's head coach and was 2-4 at the Hearnes Center. Sampson's victories in Columbia occurred in 1999 (69-57) and 2001 (63-61). The Tigers have won two of the last three meetings but Oklahoma has won 10 of the last 12.

Last year in Norman, Missouri posted a 79-75 overtime win on Jan. 17. The Sooners, who set season highs in field goal percentage (.509), 3-pointers (11) and 3-point percentage (.524), led 40-28 with 16 minutes left in the second half. But Rickey Paulding's 4-for-4 3-point effort and 23 points carried the Tigers to victory. It was OU's first overtime home loss in 12 such games dating back to the 1982-83 season and snapped a five-game winning streak against MU in Norman. Lawrence McKenzie was 4-for-7 from 3-point range and scored a team-high 16 points for OU while Drew Lavender netted 12 and Jaison Williams 11. The trio was 9-for-16 from beyond the arc. Missouri outboarded Oklahoma 35-24.

SOONERS ON THE ROAD
OU is 3-2 in true road games this year with wins over Purdue (66-48), Baylor (65-61) and Texas A&M (70-54), and losses to Iowa State (74-66) and Oklahoma State (79-67). The Sooners are shooting .508 from the field and .400 from 3-point range in their five road games. However, Kelvin Sampson's squad is averaging 15.4 turnovers in those outings compared to 11.8 a game by the home teams. Kevin Bookout (14.0 ppg), Drew Lavender (12.0), Taj Gray (11.6) and Lawrence McKenzie (10.0) are averaging double figures in points on the road while Bookout (9.0) and Gray (8.0) are combining for more than half of OU's rebounds (32.2 rpg) in those games.

A WIN OVER MISSOURI WOULD...
Give the Sooners their third victory in their last four trips to Columbia and 11 wins in their last 13 games against the Tigers.
Improve Oklahoma to 4-2 in true road games this year.

SAMPSON CLIMBING BIG 12 LADDER
Kelvin Sampson tied former Kansas head coach Roy Williams for most Big 12 regular season victories (94) when OU beat Texas A&M Feb. 2. Sampson is 94-43 in league play since the formation of the Big 12 in 1996-97. The OU head coach already held the Big 12 record for most combined regular season and conference tournament wins (he is 110-48). Sampson also holds the record for most overall wins by a league coach since the Big 12 was formed. He is 211-75 since the start of the 1996-97 season.

SEVERAL SOONERS AMONG LEAGUE'S STATISTICAL LEADERS
Taj Gray ranks 11th in the Big 12 in scoring (15.6 ppg), second in rebounding (8.9 rpg), second in field goal percentage (.576), first in blocked shots (2.2 bpg) and first in offensive rebounds a game (3.5). He also leads the league in double-doubles with 10. Kevin Bookout ranks ninth in rebounding (6.9 rpg) and first in field goal percentage (.626). Terrell Everett is third in assists (5.1 apg) and eighth in steals (1.8 spg) while Lawrence McKenzie leads the league in 3-point field goal percentage (.455) and ranks third in 3-pointers per game (2.6).

In Big 12 games, Gray ranks 12th in scoring (16.1 ppg), third in rebounding (9.7 rpg), second in field goal percentage (.628), first in blocked shots (2.9 bpg) and second in offensive rebounds (3.7). Bookout ranks 16th in scoring (14.6 ppg), fifth in rebounding (7.9 rpg), first in field goal percentage (.630) and fourth in offensive rebounds (3.0). Everett ranks second in assists (5.8 apg) while Drew Lavender ranks sixth in steals (1.8 spg) and fifth in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.3).

OU HAS WON NEARLY 70 PERCENT OF ITS BIG 12 GAMES
Dating back to the start of Big 12 Conference play during the 1996-97 season, Oklahoma has posted a 94-43 league record for a .686 winning percentage. Only Kansas (115-22; .839) owns a better mark than OU. Texas ranks third at 93-44 (.679), Oklahoma State is fourth at 92-46 (.667) and Missouri is fifth at 72-65 (.526). Including Big 12 Tournament games, OU owns a 110-48 record (.696), second best in the conference behind Kansas (130-27; .828). The Sooners are 16-5 in the Big 12 Tournament and have won three of the eight tourney titles.

GRAY ON A ROLL
Unanimous Preseason Big 12 Newcomer of the Year Taj Gray has exceeded expectations this year and has been especially hot of late. Over the last five games, Gray has posted three double-doubles and is averaging 20.2 points, 11.0 rebounds and 2.8 blocked shots while shooting .645 from the field. He has scored at least 20 points in four of those five contests. The junior forward leads the Big 12 with 10 double-doubles (the most in a season during the Kelvin Sampson era is 14 by Eduardo Najera during the 1999-2000 campaign). Gray ranks 11th in the Big 12 in scoring, second in rebounding, second in field goal percentage, first in blocked shots and first in offensive rebounds. He is nearly averaging a double-double in league games with his 16.1 and 9.7 scoring and rebounding figures, and also averages 2.9 blocks in Big 12 action. Gray has been named Big 12 Rookie of the Week four times (the record is five by former Texas A&M guard Clifton Cook in 1998-99).

LONG DISTANCE DIALER
Sophomore guard Lawrence McKenzie, who leads the Big 12 in 3-point percentage (.455), has made at least three 3-pointers in eight of the last 11 games and at least four treys in six of the last 11. The Minneapolis, Minn., native, who has drained 55 treys on the year (10 more than he made last season), has made at least two 3-pointers in 16 of his 21 games and at least three in 12 contests. He ranks third in the league in 3-pointers made per game (2.6). Last year, McKenzie shot .321 from beyond the arc.

OU ON POSITIVE END OF 3-POINT DISPARITY
Oklahoma has made 143 3-pointers this season (an average of 6.5 a game) and is shooting .362 from beyond the arc. Opponents, by comparison, have canned just 72 treys (3.3 a game) and are shooting .283 from long range. Only three opponents (Baylor and Oklahoma State twice) have made more treys than OU in a game this year. Lawrence McKenzie is making 2.6 threes a game and leads the Big 12 Conference with his .455 season percentage. Jaison Williams, Drew Lavender and Terrell Everett have made 34, 28 and 15 treys this year, respectively.

WHY DON'T WE STEAL AWAY
OU recorded a season-high 16 steals against Florida A&M on Dec. 30 and now ranks second in the Big 12 with its 9.0 steals a game. The Sooners have recorded more steals than their opponents in 14 of the last 18 games.

EVERETT HAS SUPPLIED HELPING HAND
Junior college transfer Terrell Everett has been steady at the wing and point guard spots this year. The 6-4, 185-pound lefty has started all 22 games and is averaging 11.7 points (ranks third on team), 4.4 rebounds (ranks third) and a team-high 5.1 assists a game. Everett has led OU (or tied for the team lead) in assists in 13 of the last 16 games. He is averaging 6.1 assists over the last nine outings and ranks second in the Big 12 (league games) with 5.8 assists a game. Everett has scored in double figures 17 times this year and netted a career-high 20 points against Texas A&M Feb. 2. He has made 30 of his last 32 free throw attempts.

BOOKOUT, GRAY RANK FIRST AND SECOND IN FIELD GOAL PERCENTAGE
Oklahoma's leader in field goal percentage his first two seasons, junior forward Kevin Bookout is shooting a stout .626 from the field this season to lead the Big 12 Conference and rank ninth nationally. Junior newcomer Taj Gray, meanwhile, ranks second in the league with his .576 season mark. The 6-8, 259-pound Bookout has shot .500 or better in 18 of his 21 games this year. The Jan. 24 Big 12 Player of the Week has earned the honor twice this year the first time on Jan. 10 after a 13-for-14 field goal performance against Colorado in which he scored 27 points. It ranks as the second best field goal percentage performance in the country this year. Bookout also made nine of his 10 field goal attempts against Washington on Nov. 26. He shot .587 as a freshman to lead the Big 12 and posted a .516 mark last year in 13 games. Gray, who had an 8-for-9 performance against Texas A&M last Wednesday, is shooting .645 over the last five games (40-for-62).

OU'S FIELD GOAL PERCENTAGE SIGNIFICANTLY IMPROVED
The Sooners have shot .500 or better from the field in seven of the last 11 games and have done so in 13 of 22 games on the year. Last season, OU shot .408 from the field its worst mark in 40 years and posted a .500-or-better figure just three times. Among OU's performances this year was a .613 effort against Florida A&M on Dec. 30, its third best mark under 11th-year head coach Kelvin Sampson and best in 234 games. The Sooners are shooting .484 on the season to rank fourth in the Big 12. OU is on pace for its best season field goal mark since the 1988-89 team finished with a .491 figure.

SOONERS SHOWCASING MORE SCORING BALANCE IN 2004-05
Oklahoma's guards accounted for 68 percent of the team's points last season. That figure is down this year, however, as the Sooners have showcased a potent inside attack. OU's guards have scored 907 of the squad's 1,653 points, or 55 percent this season. Junior forwards Taj Gray (15.6 ppg) and Kevin Bookout (12.9 ppg) are the main reasons OU's frontcourt production has increased from 32 percent of the team's points last year to 45 percent this year. Gray and Bookout rank first and second on the squad in scoring.

GUARDS TIGHTEN DEFENSIVE SCREWS
Oklahoma's guards have done an admirable job of defending the 3-point line this season as the team leads the Big 12 in 3-point field goal percentage defense (.283). Only two opponents (Baylor and Oklahoma State twice) have made more than five 3-pointers against OU this year. Conversely, the Sooners have made at least five treys in 18 of 22 games.

BETTER TO GIVE THAN RECEIVE
The Sooners have registered 363 assists through 22 contests for an average of 16.5 a game. An assist has been credited on 59 percent of OU's field goals. Last year's team averaged 12.1 assists and 53 percent of its baskets were assisted. OU ranks second in the Big 12 (league games) with its 16.6 assists per game.

NOT AFRAID OF REJECTION
Junior forward Taj Gray (6-9) has been intimidating in the paint with his shot-blocking ability. Gray has registered nine games of three-or-more rejections and is averaging 2.2 swats an outing to lead the Big 12 (he is averaging a Big 12-high 2.9 blocks per conference game). The Sooners are averaging 4.4 blocks a contest as a team. Freshman Longar Longar has 16 blocks in his 18 games while Kevin Bookout has 11. Senior Johnnie Gilbert, who has 10 blocked shots this year, ranks fourth on OU's career list with 119.

PREACHING PROTECTION
Dating back to the start of the 2003-04 season, OU has committed more turnovers than its foe just 11 times in its last 53 games.

BREAKING 80
The Sooners have been tough to beat under Kelvin Sampson when they score at least 80 points in a game. Since Sampson arrived in Norman prior to the 1994-95 season, OU is 120-13 (.902) when reaching 80 points. The Sooners have won 37 of their last 40 and 53 of their last 57 when scoring 80 or more.

TOUGH SLATE
Oklahoma will play four games this year against teams in the Feb. 7 AP poll's top 11 and will play 10 games against teams in the top 25. OU has already faced No. 7 Duke (lost), No. 10 Oklahoma State twice (split), No. 11 Washington (lost), No. 19 Connecticut (won), No. 23 Texas (won) and No. 25 Texas Tech (lost). It will play once against No. 6 Kansas and once more each against Texas and Texas Tech.

NEBRASKA GAME TIME CHANGED
Because ESPN2 has picked up OU's Feb. 16 game against Nebraska, the contest will now start at 8 p.m. CST. The game will be blacked out in Oklahoma on ESPN2 and air on the Sooner Sports Network.

OKLAHOMA TIP INS
Seven of OU's last 10 regular season games are being televised by national networks.
OU's starting frontcourt of Kevin Bookout (.630) and Taj Gray (.628) is shooting a combined .629 from the field in Big 12 play. They rank first and second, respectively, in the league in field goal percentage.
Bookout (.517) and Gray (.563) are shooting worse from the free throw line in Big 12 play than from the field.
Three Sooners have been honored a total of seven times by the Big 12 Conference this season. Bookout has been named Big 12 Player of the Week twice. Gray has earned Big 12 Rookie-of-the-Week honors four times while Terrell Everett has garnered the rookie honor once.
Oklahoma has outrebounded its opponent in 16 of 22 games this year and is 13-3 in those contests. The last three times OU has outboarded its opponent it has lost (at Iowa State, versus Texas Tech, at Oklahoma State).
Only Baylor and Oklahoma State (twice) have made more 3-pointers than OU in its 22 games this year. OU leads the Big 12 by giving up just 3.3 treys per game (the next lowest figure is 5.5 surrendered a game by OSU).
Lawrence McKenzie has made at least three 3-pointers in eight of the last 11 games and at least four treys in six of the last 11. He has made multiple 3-pointers in 16 of his 21 games this year, including 14 of the last 17.
The Sooners have made 71 more 3-pointers than their opponents this season (average of 3.2 a game).
Everett has led the team in assists in 13 of the last 16 games. He is averaging 5.1 assists per game on the year. Tyrone Foster (5.6 in 1995-96) is the last Sooner to average as many assists over a season.
Everett has made 30 of his last 32 free throw attempts (.938) after starting the year 32-for-47 (.681).
OU shot .500 or better from the field three times all of last season, but has done it in 13 of its 22 games this year. The Sooners shot .408 last year but own a .484 mark this season.
Bookout went 13-for-14 from the field against Colorado Jan. 8 (second best field goal percentage game in the nation this season) and has shot .500 or better in 18 of his 21 games.
Freshman center Longar Longar is 22-for-28 from the field this season (.786). His first six field goals were dunks and he has 13 slams on the year.

UNDER KELVIN SAMPSON...
OU has made 10 straight postseason showings (nine NCAA and one NIT).
OU has advanced to the NCAA Tournament's Sweet 16 (1999), Final Four (2002) and Elite Eight (2003).
OU has posted a 94-43 (.686) regular season Big 12 Conference record.
OU has recorded a 144-21 (.873) record at Lloyd Noble Center and has won 62 of its last 67 home games.
OU has won at least 20 games each of the last seven years.
OU has averaged 26 victories over the past five seasons.
OU has won three of the past four Big 12 Tournaments and has made five title game appearances in the last seven events.

University of Oklahoma Athletics

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