Oklahoma-Utah Game Notes

GAME INFORMATION
No. 3 seed Oklahoma, an 84-67 NCAA Tournament first-round victor over No. 14 seed Niagara on Thursday, will meet No. 6 seed Utah on Saturday at approximately 2:40 p.m. CST inside the McKale Center in Tucson, Ariz. Utah disposed of 11th-seeded UTEP by a 60-54 score to advance to the second round. The Sooners boast a 25-7 overall record and are ranked No. 16 in the ESPN/USA Today poll and 17th in the AP version. Utah is 28-5 and owns respective rankings of 17 and 18. The winner of Saturday's game will advance to the Sweet 16 and compete next Friday in Austin, Texas.

Game Notes (PDF)

All of OU's NCAA Tournament games will air live on the Sooner Basketball Radio Network (flagship KOKC 1520 AM in Oklahoma City) with Bob Barry, Sr. (play-by-play) and Mike Houck (analyst) calling the action. Saturday's game will be televised regionally by CBS (KWTV Channel 9 in OKC). Kevin Harlan (play-by-play) and Dan Bonner (analyst) will announce, while Craig Silver will produce.

PROJECTED OKLAHOMA STARTERS (Stats averages)
F 21 Taj Gray (6-9, 235, Jr., 14.4 ppg, 8.0 rpg, 1.5 apg)
F 34 Kevin Bookout (6-8, 259, Jr., 11.7 ppg, 6.7 rpg, 0.5 apg)
G 3 Drew Lavender (5-7, 153, So., 9.9 ppg, 1.5 rpg, 3.3 apg)
G 4 David Godbold (6-5, 212, Fr., 4.8 ppg, 2.6 rpg, 1.0 apg)
G 20 Terrell Everett (6-4, 185, Jr., 12.4 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 5.1 apg)

TOP RESERVES (Stats averages)
G 1 Lawrence McKenzie (6-2, 175, So., 9.6 ppg, 1.6 rpg, 1.2 apg)
G 2 Jaison Williams (6-3, 181, Sr., 7.0 ppg, 2.5 rpg, 2.3 apg)
F 32 Johnnie Gilbert (6-8, 228, Sr., 3.7 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 0.5 apg)
C 30 Longar Longar (6-11, 215, Fr., 3.0 ppg, 1.9 rpg, 0.3 apg)

OKLAHOMA UPDATE
Oklahoma, Big 12 regular season co-champion and conference tournament No. 1 seed, won for the eighth time in its last nine games when it posted an 84-67 win over Niagara on Thursday. A season-high six Sooners scored in double figures while three more also a season high reached double digits in rebounding. Up by three at halftime, OU held the Purple Eagles to .289 second-half field goal shooting (including a .143 mark from beyond the arc) to post its third straight NCAA Tournament opening-round win. Sophomore point guard Drew Lavender led the Sooners with 17 points and was followed in scoring by Taj Gray (13), Kevin Bookout (12), David Godbold (12), Lawrence McKenzie (12) and Johnnie Gilbert (10). Gray and Bookout each posted double-doubles (it was the second time this year each reached double figures in points and rebounds in a game). Gray finished with 13 boards while Bookout grabbed 10. Junior guard Terrell Everett, who failed to score in double digits for the first time in 13 games, added 10 rebounds and a team-high six assists. The Sooners held Niagara, which entered the game ranked No. 3 nationally in scoring at 85.1 points a game, 18 points below its season average. OU rebounded from a .425 first-half field goal performance to shoot .500 after the break. It also outrebounded the Purple Eagles by 11 (48-37).

NIAGARA LEFTOVERS
The game marked the first NCAA Tournament competition for seven of the 10 Sooners who played. Johnnie Gilbert and Kevin Bookout had each seen NCAA Tourney action at OU while Jaison Williams played in the 2002 event while attending Xavier.
Oklahoma has now won its last three NCAA Tournament first-round games.
Lawrence McKenzie canned a pair of 3-pointers and has now made at least two treys in 23 games this year.
Kevin Bookout's three steals matched a career high.
Niagara started 4-for-6 from beyond the 3-point arc before going 2-for-22 the rest of the game.
OU held Niagara senior forward Juan Mendez without a second-half field goal until the 1:14 mark. He missed his first 11 field goal attempts after halftime.
Oklahoma's bench outscored Niagara's, 24-3.
OU's 48 rebounds were its second most in an NCAA Tournament game (it had 62 vs. Louisiana Tech in 1989).
Niagara's 28 3-point attempts were the most by an Oklahoma opponent in NCAA Tournament play.
The loss for Niagara was its 1,000th in school history.

UTAH SERIES HISTORY
The Sooners won their only game against Utah, a 69-68 contest played Dec. 14, 1979, in the Golden Gate Classic in San Francisco. Aaron Curry led OU with 18 points while Tom Chambers scored 20 for the Utes.

A WIN OVER UTAH WOULD...
Give Oklahoma its second win in two seasons against a Ray Giacoletti-coached team. The Sooners beat Eastern Washington in the 2003-04 season opener, 69-59, in Norman.
Be OU's ninth win in its last 10 games this season.
Give the Sooners five victories against AP top-25 teams (at time of competition).
Improve OU's NCAA Tournament record to 9-2 since the start of the 2002 event.
Advance the Sooners to the Sweet 16 for the third time in their last three NCAA Tournaments. It would mark the program's fourth Sweet 16 appearance under Kelvin Sampson.
Mark the ninth time that Oklahoma has won at least two games in an NCAA Tournament.
Improve Kelvin Sampson's NCAA Tournament record at Oklahoma to 12-9.
Up OU's all-time record in the McKale Center to 5-3 and its NCAA Tournament mark inside the building to 5-2.

SOONERS IN THE NCAA TOURNAMENT
Oklahoma, which now owns a 32-22 NCAA Tournament record, is making its 23rd tourney appearance and is 11-9 under Kelvin Sampson. The Sooners had lost five straight first-round games prior to their Sweet 16 showing in 1999 but are 11-5 over their last five-plus tournaments. The 1939, 1947, 1988 and 2002 squads advanced to the national semifinals with the '47 and '88 teams losing in the championship game.

MORE NCAA TOURNEY NOTES
This marks Oklahoma's 10th NCAA Tournament appearance in Kelvin Sampson's 11 years as head coach (OU's lone non-appearance was last year when it finished the regular season 19-10). Sampson coached Washington State to an NCAA Tourney berth in 1994 and is making his 11th appearance in the last 12 seasons.
OU is making its second appearance as a No. 3 seed (it went 1-1 as a No. 3 seed in 2000 also in Tucson).
The Sooners have earned no worse than a No. 4 seed in their last five NCAA Tournaments. They were a No. 3 seed in 2000, a No. 4 in 2001, a No. 2 in 2002 and a No. 1 in 2003.
OU is 8-2 over its last two-plus NCAA Tournaments. It advanced to the Final Four in 2002 (lost to Indiana) and to the Elite Eight in 2003 (lost to eventual national champion Syracuse).
Johnnie Gilbert, Kevin Bookout and Jaison Williams were the only Sooners to participate in NCAA Tournament play prior to this week. Gilbert played in the 2001 and 2003 events while Bookout played as a freshman in 2003. Williams played in the 2002 NCAA Tournament as a freshman for Xavier. Xavier beat Hawaii in the first round before falling to Oklahoma in the second round. Williams had three points against the Sooners.

NOTING OU AND THE NCAA TOURNEY FIELD
The Sooners played 12 games this year against eight 2005 NCAA Tournament teams and posted a 7-5 record.
Oklahoma faced No. 1 seeds Duke and Washington during the non-conference season (lost to Washington by five and fell to Duke by 11 after leading by 12 early in the second half). It also beat No. 2 seed Connecticut and No. 8 seed Minnesota in non-conference action.
Oklahoma went 5-3 against Big 12 teams that qualified for the NCAA Tournament. It was 1-1 against No. 2 seed Oklahoma State, 1-0 against No. 3 seed Kansas, 1-2 versus No. 6 seed Texas Tech and 2-0 against No. 8 seed Texas.
Duke is the only Austin Regional squad that Oklahoma faced during the regular season.

OU BOASTS NATION'S LONGEST POSTSEASON STREAK
Oklahoma has made 24 consecutive postseason appearances (19 NCAA and five NIT), good for the longest streak among Division I programs. The last time OU did not compete in the postseason was in 1980-81. The Sooners have competed in the NCAA Tournament 10 times in the last 11 seasons.

SOONERS 8-1 IN LAST NINE GAMES
Kelvin Sampson's Sooners fell in overtime Feb. 12 at Missouri but didn't lose again until March 12 in the Big 12 Tournament semifinals to Texas Tech. OU reeled off seven consecutive victories during the stretch and got back to its winning ways Thursday in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Following are notes from Oklahoma's last nine games...

Over its previous nine contests, Oklahoma is shooting .435 from 3-point range and .738 from the free throw line. Prior to the stretch, its respective season figures were .361 and .667.
Oklahoma's guards have excelled during the team's last eight games, accounting for 63 percent of the squad's points. Over the team's first 23 contests, the guards produced 55 percent of its points.
Junior guard Terrell Everett has been a statistical wonder over the last nine outings, averaging 14.3 points, 6.2 rebounds, 5.6 assists and 1.7 steals. He is shooting .476 (10-for-21) from 3-point range and .846 (33-for-39) from the free throw line during the stretch. Everett has scored 26 more points than any of his teammates during the span.
OU's bench has produced 239 points over the last nine games (an average of 26.6 points) while opponent reserves have combined for 75 points (an average of 8.3).
Freshman David Godbold has started each of the last nine contests after not starting the previous 18. He is averaging 8.2 points, 3.4 rebounds and 2.0 assists in those nine games.
Jaison Williams (.500) and Everett (.476) are shooting a combined .489 from 3-point range (22-for-45) over the last nine games. Williams is 12-for-24 during the stretch.
Senior Johnnie Gilbert has provided a big boost off the bench over the last nine outings. The senior forward is averaging 6.9 points, 5.8 rebounds and 1.2 assists while shooting .543 from the field. Those numbers compare favorably to his season averages of 3.4 points, 3.7 rebounds and 0.5 assists.
The Sooners have outrebounded their last nine foes by an average of 36.8 to 30.3 (+6.5).

EIGHT STRAIGHT 20-WIN SEASONS
With the victory over Kansas on Feb. 21, Kelvin Sampson has now coached Oklahoma to eight consecutive 20-win seasons. Only seven other coaches have also posted 20 victories each of the last eight years: Lute Olson (15 straight seasons), Tubby Smith (12), Mike Krzyzewski (9), Skip Prosser (9), Jim Boeheim (8), Jim Calhoun (8) and Eddie Sutton (8).

SAMPSON ATOP BIG 12 LADDER
Kelvin Sampson passed former Kansas head coach Roy Williams for most Big 12 regular season victories with OU's 83-60 win over Nebraska Feb. 16 and now has 100 following a 74-54 triumph at Texas Tech in the regular season finale. Sampson is 100-44 in conference play since the formation of the Big 12 in 1996-97. The OU head coach also holds the Big 12 record for most combined regular season and conference tournament wins (he is 117-50) and holds the mark for most overall wins by a conference coach since the Big 12 was formed (he is 218-77).

SOONERS HAVE WON 70 PERCENT OF THEIR BIG 12 GAMES
Dating back to the start of Big 12 Conference play during the 1996-97 season, Oklahoma has posted a 100-44 regular season league record for a .694 winning percentage. Only Kansas (118-26; .819) owns a better mark than Oklahoma. Texas ranks third at 98-46 (.681), while Oklahoma State ranks fourth at 95-49 (.660) and Missouri fifth at 77-67 (.535). Including Big 12 Tournament games, OU owns a 117-50 record (.701), second best in the conference behind Kansas (134-31; .812). The Sooners are 17-6 in the Big 12 Tournament and have won three of the last five titles.

TALK ABOUT IMPROVEMENT
Last season, OU shot .408 from the field its worst mark in 40 years and posted a .500-or-better figure just three times. This season, the Sooners have shot .500 or better from the field in 16 of their 32 games. Oklahoma turned in a school-record .661 field goal performance against Baylor Feb. 26 and is now shooting .482 on the season to rank third 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 ON POSITIVE END OF 3-POINT DISPARITY
Oklahoma has made 212 3-pointers this season (an average of 6.6 a game) and is shooting .381 from beyond the arc. Opponents, by comparison, have canned just 120 treys (3.8 a game) and are shooting .286 from long range. Only five opponents (Baylor, Oklahoma State twice, Nebraska and Niagara) have made more treys than OU in a game this year. Lawrence McKenzie has made 73 3-pointers (2.4 a game) and ranks second in the Big 12 Conference with his .440 season percentage. Jaison Williams, Drew Lavender and Terrell Everett have made 49, 44 and 25 treys this year, respectively.

EVERETT A JACK OF ALL TRADES
Labeled recently by head coach Kelvin Sampson as OU's most valuable player this year, junior college transfer Terrell Everett has been steady at the wing and point guard spots all season. The 6-4, 185-pound lefty has started 31 of 32 games (he came off bench on Senior Day) and is averaging 12.4 points (ranks second on team), 4.8 rebounds (ranks third) and a team-high 5.1 assists a game. He turned in an 18-point, seven-assist effort against Missouri in the Big 12 Tournament quarterfinals and finished the regular season with a 14-point, 10-rebound, eight-assist and two-steal game at Texas Tech. Everett has led OU (or tied for the team lead) in assists in 21 of the last 26 games and ranked second in the Big 12 (league games) with 5.4 assists a game. Everett has scored in double figures a team-high 26 times this year (including 12 of the last 13 contests). He is shooting .807 from the foul line on the year (he shot .864 in Big 12 play) and had a string of 21 straight makes snapped Feb. 21 against Kansas.

BOOKOUT, GRAY RANK 1-2 IN BIG 12 IN FIELD GOAL PERCENTAGE
Field goal attempts by junior forwards Kevin Bookout and Taj Gray find the bottom of the net more often than they don't. Oklahoma's leader in field goal percentage his first two seasons, Bookout is shooting a stout .597 from the field this season to lead the Big 12. Newcomer Gray, meanwhile, ranks second in the league with his .563 season mark. The 6-8, 259-pound Bookout has shot .500 or better in 25 of his 31 games this year. Gray, who was 6-for-8 against Missouri last Friday in the Big 12 Tournament quarterfinals, is shooting .580 over the last 16 games (87-for-150).

LONG DISTANCE DIALER
Sophomore guard Lawrence McKenzie, who ranks second in the Big 12 in 3-point percentage (.440), has made at least two treys in 23 of his 31 games and at least three in 15 contests. The Minneapolis, Minn., native has drained 73 treys on the year (28 more than he made last season) and ranks fifth in the league in 3-pointers made per game (2.4). Last year, McKenzie shot .321 from beyond the arc.

GRAY COOLS AS SOONERS HEAT UP
After a statistically torrid stretch from late January to mid February, Big 12 Newcomer of the Year Taj Gray has cooled somewhat. Gray registered six straight games of 14-or-more points (five games of 19 or more) and averaged 20.0 points, 10.7 rebounds and 3.0 blocked shots while shooting .635 from the field from Jan. 24 to Feb. 12. The Sooners lost four of those six games, however. In nine games since seven of them wins he is averaging 11.0 points, 5.8 rebounds and 0.8 blocks. The junior forward ranks second in the Big 12 in double-doubles with 11 (the most in a season during the Kelvin Sampson era is 14 by Eduardo Najera during the 1999-2000 campaign). Gray ranks 14th in the league in scoring, fourth in rebounding, second in field goal percentage, first in blocked shots and first in offensive rebounds. 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).

SCORING MORE BALANCED 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 1,388 of the squad's 2,442 points, or 57 percent this season. Junior forwards Taj Gray (14.4 ppg) and Kevin Bookout (11.7 ppg) are the main reasons OU's frontcourt production has increased from 32 percent of the team's points last year to 43 percent this year.

NOT AFRAID OF REJECTION
Junior forward Taj Gray (6-9) has been intimidating in the paint with his shot-blocking ability. Gray has registered 10 games of three-or-more rejections and is averaging 1.8 blocks an outing to lead the Big 12 (he averaged a Big 12-high 2.2 blocks per conference game). No Oklahoma player has ever led the Big 12 Conference in blocked shots per game at the end of a season. The Sooners are averaging 4.1 blocks a contest as a team to rank third in the league. Senior Johnnie Gilbert has 20 blocks on the year while freshman Longar Longar has 17 and Kevin Bookout 14. Gilbert ranks fourth on OU's career list with 131 rejections.

GUARDS TIGHTEN DEFENSIVE SCREWS
OU'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 (.286). Only six opponents (Baylor twice, Oklahoma State twice, Nebraska and Niagara) have made more than five 3-pointers against OU this year. Conversely, the Sooners have made at least five treys in 27 of 32 games.

PREACHING PROTECTION
Dating back to the start of the 2003-04 season, OU has committed more turnovers than its opponent just 15 times in 63 games. It is 20-1 this year when committing fewer (or the same number of) turnovers than its foe.

OKLAHOMA TIP INS
Oklahoma became the first school to win a Big 12 football championship and a regular season men's basketball title in the same academic year. Counting Big 12 Tournament titles, OU's football and men's basketball teams have earned league crowns in the same year three times (also in 2001 and 2002). No other Big 12 school has claimed a football league title the same year as a men's basketball regular season or tournament championship.
Over the last four games, Kevin Bookout is averaging 12.3 points and 9.5 rebounds.
Kevin Bookout was named a first-team Academic All-Big 12 selection on March 2.
Kelvin Sampson is one of 20 finalists for the Naismith national coach of the year award.
OU's win against No. 8 Kansas Feb. 21 was its fourth against a top-15 team this year. It also beat Connecticut (then No. 12), Texas (No. 15) and Oklahoma State (No. 9). The Sooners are 4-3 against top-25 teams.
OU's bench outscored opponents' reserves in 13 of 16 league games and has done it in 24 of 32 games overall.
OU's starting frontcourt of Taj Gray (.599) and Bookout (.594) shot a combined .597 from the field in Big 12 play. They rank first and second, respectively, in the league in field goal percentage.
Oklahoma has outrebounded its opponent in 24 of 32 games this year and is 20-4 in those contests.
Only Baylor, Oklahoma State (twice), Nebraska and Niagara have made more 3-pointers than Oklahoma in head-to-head competition this year (32 games). OU leads the Big 12 by giving up just 3.8 treys per outing.
The Sooners have made 92 more 3-pointers than their opponents this season.
Everett has led the team in assists in 21 of the last 26 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.
Freshman center Longar Longar is 29-for-36 from the field this season (.806). His first six field goals were dunks and he has 16 slams on the year.

UNDER KELVIN SAMPSON...
OU shared the 2005 Big 12 regular season title with Kansas (the Sooners won the only head-to-head meeting).
OU has made 11 straight postseason showings (10 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 100-44 (.694) regular season Big 12 Conference record.
OU has recorded a 147-21 (.875) record at Lloyd Noble Center and has won 65 of its last 70 home games.
OU has won at least 20 games each of the last eight years.
OU has averaged 26 victories over the past six seasons (including this year).

University of Oklahoma Athletics

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