Big 12 Baseball Tourney Preview

Oklahoma (32-23-1) at Big 12 Championship
Game 57	vs. Texas A&M - Wednesday at 12:30 p.m.
Game 58	vs. Missouri - Thursday at 7:30 p.m.
Game 59	vs. Texas - Saturday at 9 a.m.
Location	AT&T Bricktown Ballpark \| Oklahoma City
Radio	KOKC 1520 AM/Sooner Sports Radio Network
Video Online	Live Video (Free)
Audio Online	Live Audio in All-Access
Live Stats	Big12Sports.com / GameTracker
Game Info	Game Notes (PDF) \| OU Media Guide

NORMAN, Okla. -- The Oklahoma Sooners (32-23-1 overall, 9-17-1 Big 12) concluded the regular season last weekend in eighth place in the Big 12 standings and will enter this week's 2008 Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship in search of their first conference title since 1997 when the Big 12 originated.

OU, seeded eighth, will open the tournament on Wednesday, May 21 against No. 1 seeded Texas A&M (42-14, 19-8).

The Sooners continue pool play on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. against the No. 4 seed, Missouri (37-17, 16-11).

On Saturday, OU will play the third and final opponent in its pool, No. 5 seeded Texas (34-19, 15-12), at 9 a.m.

Oklahoma State (No. 2), Nebraska (No. 3), Baylor (No. 6) and Kansas State (No. 7) make up the tournament's other pool.

RADIO BROADCAST INFORMATION
OU's quest for a Big 12 Championship will be broadcast live on KOKC 1520 AM and on the Sooner Sports Radio Network affiliates with Chuck Kelly and DeWayne Vaughn providing the on-air talent for every game.

Live audio from OU's broadcast team will also be available via the internet on Oklahoma All-Access, SoonerSports.com's premium web site.

The Big 12 will also provide audio for all games throughout the championship on XM Radio Channel 241.

MORE OKLAHOMA BASEBALL ONLINE
LIVE VIDEO: A free internet web cast will be available on Big12Sports.com for all three games.
LIVE STATS: Live stats are available on Big12Sports.com.

UPDATING THE SOONERS
The Sooners avoided a three-game sweep last Sunday with a 10-4 victory over No. 9 Oklahoma State at AT&T Bricktown Ballpark in Oklahoma City and clinched a spot in the 2008 Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship. The Sooners snapped an eight-game regular season skid to the Cowboys after losing game one (7-1) and game two (11-1).

Game 57 vs. No. 10 Texas A&M
Wednesday, May 21 - 12:30 p.m.
Record: 42-14 overall, 19-8 Big 12
Overall Series: OU leads 26-24
Big 12 Games: Texas A&M leads 19-17
Big 12 Champ: Texas A&M leads 4-3
Starter: Scott Migl | RHP | 3-2 | 4.73 ERA

Game 58 vs. No. 15 Missouri
Thursday, May 22 - 7:30 p.m.
Record: 37-17 overall, 16-11 Big 12
Overall Series: OU leads 121-80 since 1942
Big 12 Games: OU leads 23-12
Big 12 Champ: Tied 3-3
Starter: TBD

Game 59 vs. No. 24 Texas
Saturday, May 24 - 9 a.m.
Record: 34-19 overall, 15-12 Big 12
Overall Series: UT leads 116-40-2 since 1942
Big 12 Games: Texas leads 25-11
Big 12 Champ: Texas leads 3-1
Starter: Ken Kasparek | RHP | 4-3 | 3.76 ERA

TICKETS ON SALE
Single session tickets go on sale Monday, May 19 at 9 a.m.

Single session ticket prices range from: $44- club-level, $27 - field box, $20 - terrace reserved, $16 - field bleacher, and $13 - general admission.

All-session ticket: $232 - club-level, $127 - field box, and $92 - terrace reserved.

Tickets for the 2008 Phillips 66 Big 12 Baseball Championship can be purchased by calling the RedHawks Box Office at (405) 218-1000 or online at www.ticketreturn.com.

SOONERS IN CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT PLAY
OU is 19-19 lifetime in the Big 12 Championship and 58-53 in conference tournament play. The Sooners have won three conference titles, including the first Big 12 Championship in 1997. OU also won Big Eight titles in 1977 and 1979.

Since starting pool play in 2006, the Sooners are 3-3.

OU won its first two games of pool play in 2007 over Missouri (7-2) and Oklahoma State (9-8) before falling to Baylor (7-6) in a game that would have placed it in the championship game.

The Sooners went 1-2 in the first year of the new format, suffering losses to Kansas (7-2) and Missouri (11-0) before defeating Oklahoma State (21-6).

- OU and Texas A&M last met in the Big 12 Championship in 2003. The Aggies topped the Sooners 11-2 in the opener.

- OU and Missouri have played each other in the conference tournament in each of the past four seasons. The Sooners beat the Tigers, 7-2, in last year's opener to end a three-game skid.

- OU and Texas last met in the Big 12 Championship in 2003. The Longhorns eliminated the Sooners with a 5-4 win.

- The Sooners have not won more than two games in the Big 12 Championship since claiming the conference's inaugural crown in 1997 (four wins).

- OU holds the record for most runs scored in a Big 12 Championship game after defeating Oklahoma State, 21-6, in the 2006 tournament. The total topped the previous mark, also held by OU, which was set in the 1997 game against Texas Tech (19-17).

DAVIS NAMED SECOND TEAM ALL-BIG 12
Senior outfielder Aljay Davis was named to the All-Big 12 second team on May 20 as voted on by the conference's coaches. Davis finished the regular season hitting .360 overall (11th in Big 12) and .354 in conference games (10th in Big 12). Senior Mike Gosse (utility) and sophomore Jamie Johnson (OF) were tabbed honorable mention. Gosse and Johnson finished the season ranked in the top 10 in hitting in overall and Big 12 games.

ACADEMIC BIG 12 TEAMS ANNOUNCED
The Big 12 Conference announced the 2008 Academic All-Big 12 teams on May 15 and three Sooners were named to the lists. Senior Jarod Freeman was honored for the second straight season with a first team selection. Freeman was named to the second team in 2007. Sophomore Aaron Baker and senior Drew Roberts made their first appearance on the lists as both were named to the second team.

SCORING FIRST
OU is 17-8-1 this season when scoring first, suffering losses to Nebraska (GM1), Baylor (GM3), Texas A&M (GM1&2), Missouri (GM1), Southern Nazarene, Texas Tech and Kansas (GM2). The Sooners have struck first in 12 of their 24 Big 12 games. OU has also scored in the first inning on 27 occasions and holds a 17-9-1 record in those contests.

HITTING .300 in BIG 12 PLAY
The Sooners finished the regular season with a .316 average in Big 12 games, the top mark in the conference. OU has finished a season hitting over .300 in Big 12 play on four occasions (2006, 2000, 1998 and 1997). In 2008, Jamie Johnson (.393-4th), Mike Gosse (.360-9th) and Aljay Davis (.354-10th) each rank in the top 10 in the Big 12 among conference games played.

GOSSE DOUBLES HIS WAY INTO HISTORY
MIke Gosse's double in the bottom of the third was his 23 of the season, a total that leads the Big 12 and ranks in a tie for seventh all-time at OU in a single season. The senior is tied with Matt Anderson (1988), Andre Champagne (1990) and Mark Cole (1989).

SOONERS TURN SEVEN DOUBLE PLAYS IN OSU SERIES
The Sooner defense turned seven double plays over the weekend against rival Oklahoma State. OU turned a season-high three in each of the last two games. The total is the most turned by a Sooner team since March 5, 2006 when they finished a series against UC Riverside with eight double plays.

OU UNDER GOLLOWAY IN EXTRA INNINGS
The Sooners have had success with games played in extra innings in 2008. OU is 5-1-1 this season with wins over then-No. 1 UCLA, Houston, Baylor, TCU, Wichita State and a tie at Nebraska. The only loss was suffered against then-No. 11 Missouri on April 19. In his fourth season at OU, head coach Sunny Golloway is 13-1-1 when his Sooners play in extra frames.

WELCOME HOME
Oklahoma finished 2008 with a 21-10 record at home and has won 20 or more games at L. Dale Mitchell Park in each of the last four seasons. The Sooners hit .348 at home this season and averaging 8.5 runs per game.

10 OR MORE IS A PLUS
OU has 10 or more hits in 32 games this season owns a 21-10-1 record in those contests. The Sooners have scored 10 or more runs on 17 occasions and hold a 15-2 record in those contests. OU has tallied 10-plus runs in 10 of the last 19 games.

In comparison, opponents have connected for 10-plus hits in 28 games (11-16-1 record) and scored 10 or more runs in eight games where OU is 1-7 (beat WSU).

QUALITY STARTS AND RELIEF
OU has found success on the mound when receiving quality starts from their pitchers. Seventeen starts turned in by OU pitchers have been under five innings and 16 have lasted six or more innings (OU 11-5 in those games).

MIDWEEK SUCCESS
Oklahoma finished the season with a 15-1 record in midweek games, topping the opposition by an average of five runs. The Sooners have recorded quality wins over Dallas Baptist (2), TCU (2) and Wichita State. Until the loss to Southern Nazarene, OU was the only undefeated team in the Big 12 Conference in midweek play.

MORE ON THE RUN RULE OVER MISSOURI
The 22 runs scored on April 20 is the second most by an OU team in a Big 12 regular season game and tied the mark set on May 11, 2003 against Kansas State (W, 22-6). That game was also the last time OU run ruled a Big 12 team during the regular season. OU's 22-4 victory also marked its largest margin of victory in a Big 12 regular season game. OU connected for more hits with runners in scoring position on April 20 (17), than the previous two games (8).

FREEMAN NAMED A FINALIST FOR LOWE'S AWARD
OU senior Jarod Freeman was selected as one of 10 finalists for the 2008 Lowe's Senior Class Award on April 17. Freeman's selection marks the second consecutive year that a Sooner has appeared on the finalist list (Aaron Ivey - 2007). The 10 student-athletes were chosen from a list of 30 candidates based on personal qualities that define a complete student-athlete, including: classroom, community, character and competition. The 10 finalists will be placed on the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award baseball ballot for a nationwide vote (April 17-June 2. Fan balloting, available on the award's official website www.seniorclassaward.com, will be combined with votes from coaches, media and sponsors to determine the winner.

TOUGH SCHEDULE
The Sooners are 7-14-1 so far this season against ranked competition with wins against then-No. 1 UCLA, then-No. 20 Baylor (2), then-No. 14 Texas, then-No. 11 Missouri, then-No. 8 Wichita State and No. 9 Oklahoma State. OU also lost to UCLA, then-No. 9 Rice, then-No. 22 Nebraska (2), Baylor, Texas (2), then-No.11 Texas A&M (3), Missouri (2) and Oklahoma State (2). All three of OU's opponents this week are ranked in the top 25.

MARCH MADNESS
The Sooners finished the last weekend of March by playing in games 22,23 and 24. OU was 17-6-1 in games played in March, with nine of the games played on the road (6-2-1). The Sooners are playing more games this season in the beginning of the year with the uniform start date across collegiate baseball. In comparison, OU played 15 games during the 2007 season in March and 15 in 2006.

University of Oklahoma Athletics

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