University of Oklahoma Athletics
Oklahoma Postgame Notes
January 17, 2009 | Men's Basketball
Jan. 17, 2009
• Oklahoma improved to 17-1 overall and to 3-0 in Big 12 play with a 69-63 win at Texas A&M. The Sooners also moved to 4-1 this year in road games (2-0 in Big 12).
• OU is off to its best 18-game start since also going 17-1 in 1985-86. The only time it began a season 18-0 was in 1927-28.
• For the second straight game (it played No. 11 Texas on Monday), Oklahoma never trailed. The Sooners jumped to a 9-0 lead this afternoon, led 30-25 at halftime and were up by as many as 14 in the second half (48-34 and 51-37).
• Texas A&M drew to within two, 59-57, with 2:06 remaining, but Austin Johnson's 3-pointer 30 seconds later put the Sooners back up by five and the Aggies never got closer than four the rest of the way.
• Johnson finished with a season-high 19 points (one off his career high), seven assists, four rebounds, two blocks and a steal. He was 6-for-12 from the field, 3-for-6 from 3-point range and 4-for-4 at the free throw line.
• Blake Griffin, who played only 24 minutes, recorded 16 points and a season-low six rebounds. He was 4-for-5 from the free throw line and extended his streak of games with at least one assist this year to 18 (he had one).
• Taylor Griffin finished with 11 points, four boards and two assists. His point total was his highest in eight outings. Griffin was also a major factor on the defensive end, registering two blocks and three steals.
• Ryan Wright provided a valuable 16 minutes off the bench with five points, three rebounds and two blocked shots. He was 2-for-3 from the field.
• OU shot just .505 from the free throw line over its first four road games this year, but posted a .833 mark today (15-for-18).
• The Sooners also shot well from long distance, going 6-for-12 on 3-pointers. Over the last eight games, OU is shooting .397 from 3-point territory (it shot .311 over its first 10 games).
• For just the second time this year, Oklahoma shot fewer free throws (18) than its opponent (23). Arkansas also attempted more foul shots than the Sooners on Dec. 30.
• OU improved to 27-4 all-time against Texas A&M and to 11-3 in College Station. The Sooners also moved to 133-52 all-time against Big 12 teams from the state of Texas (Baylor, Texas, Texas A&M and Texas Tech). Since the inception of the Big 12, OU is 81-26 against those four teams.
• Oklahoma plays its next two games at home: Wednesday versus Nebraska at 8 p.m. CST and Saturday against No. 21 Baylor at 3 p.m. Both will be televised by ESPNU.
