Sooners Host No. 9 'Horns Saturday at 3 p.m.


	Tommy Mason-Griffin

Oklahoma (12-9, 3-4) vs. No. 9/10 Texas (19-3, 5-2)
Date & Tip Time	Saturday, Feb. 6 at 3 p.m. CST
Location	Norman, Okla. \| Lloyd Noble Center \| Seating Views
Tickets	OU Athletics Ticket Office
TV	ESPN
Radio	Sooner Radio Network KRXO FM 107.7 in Oklahoma City KMOD FM 97.5 in Tulsa Sirius 154
Webcast	ESPN360.com
Live Stats	SoonerSports.com GameTracker
Game Info	Game Notes (PDF)

GAME PREVIEW
Oklahoma (12-9 overall, 3-4 Big 12) plays the first of two straight home games when it hosts No. 9/10 Texas (19-3, 5-2) Saturday at 3 p.m. CST. The Sooners are 10-0 at home this year and have won 30 of their last 31 in Norman. Texas, coming off a 72-60 win at Oklahoma State on Monday, is 4-2 in true road games and is the first ranked opponent to visit Norman this year. Saturday's game will air on the Sooner Radio Network with Bob Barry Sr. and Mike Houck announcing. It will be televised by ESPN with Ron Franklin and Fran Fraschilla calling the action.

TICKET INFORMATION
A limited number of tickets are available for $25, $45 and $60 at the OU Athletics Ticket Office (800-456-4668) and online at SoonerSports.com. Lloyd Noble Center's north and east box offices will open Saturday at 1 p.m.

OU TO CELEBRATE LIFE OF WAYMAN TISDALE
The Oklahoma athletics department will celebrate the life and playing career of all-time leading scorer and rebounder Wayman Tisdale on Saturday. Tisdale passed away last May from cancer at the age of 44.

Tisdale's family, as well as former teammates, coaches and band mates, will be in attendance. Members of Tisdale's band will perform before the game and will join superstar Toby Keith in performing Keith's hit single "Cryin' For Me (Wayman's Song)" at halftime. Also at halftime, a portion of the upcoming documentary "The Wayman Tisdale Story" will be shown on Lloyd Noble Center's video board.

NOTEWORTHY
• OU is 46-28 all-time against Texas and 22-9 in Norman.
• The Sooners are averaging 8.3 3-point makes per game. The school record for average 3-pointers per contest in a season is 8.5 (in 1998-99). Five Sooners have made at least 25 treys (no other Big 12 school has more than three players).
• OU ranks second in the Big 12 and 26th nationally with its .739 free throw mark.
• Over the last four games, Tommy Mason-Griffin is averaging 23.5 points and 4.0 assists. He is 14-for-28 (.500) from 3-point range during the stretch.
• Mason-Griffin has made at least one 3-pointer in 20 of 21 games, and at least two treys in 14 of the last 17 outings. He ranks second in the Big 12 in 3-point field goal percentage (.446), fourth in assists (4.6 apg) and sixth in 3-pointers per game (2.1).
• In OU's seven conference games, Mason-Griffin is shooting .489 (22-for-45) from 3-point range. The rest of the team is shooting .245 (27-for-110).
• Last week, Mason-Griffin became the first OU guard to score at least 20 points in three consecutive games since first-team All-American Hollis Price did it in 2002-03 as a senior. Tim McCalister in 1983-84 was the last OU freshman (regardless of position) to pull off the feat.
• Senior guard Tony Crocker, who has started his last 86 games, has recorded his only six career double-doubles over his last 14 outings.
• Crocker needs eight rebounds to become just the second Sooner to ever record 1,000 points, 500 boards and 150 3-pointers in a career (Ryan Minor is the other).
• Junior guard Cade Davis has scored at least 13 points four times in the last eight games and is averaging 11.8 points over the stretch (he averaged 7.7 points in the team's first 13 games). A .391 field goal shooter on the year, Davis has shot .500 or better in five of the last eight outings. Over the last two games, he is averaging 18.5 points and is 7-for-15 (.467) from behind the arc.
• Sophomore guard Willie Warren is averaging 14.1 points over his last nine games (4.3 free throw attempts per contest) after averaging 19.6 points over his first nine (7.9 free throw attempts per game).

Sooner to Watch
	Cade Davis \| Jr. \| Guard • Averaging 18.5 points over the last two games (7-for-15 3-point shooting) • Has shot .500 or better from the field in five of the last eight games • Has scored at least 13 points in four of the last eight games (averaging 11.8) • Has eight games of at least three steals (and three more games of two steals)

PREVIEWING TEXAS
Texas, ranked No. 9 in the AP poll and No. 10 in the ESPN/USA Today version, is 19-3 on the year and 5-2 in Big 12 play. It was ranked No. 1 in both polls just two weeks ago after winning its first 17 games. The Longhorns lost three out of four games after reaching No. 1 status, but rebounded for a 72-60 win at Oklahoma State on Monday. In conference play, UT ranks No. 2 in scoring offense (81.6 ppg), No. 9 in scoring defense (75.7 ppg), No. 3 in field goal percentage (.457), No. 5 in 3-point percentage (.372) and No. 12 in free throw percentage (.609).

Senior forward Damion James leads a trio of Longhorns who average double figures in points. James, who originally signed a letter of intent with Oklahoma, produces 18.0 points, 11.0 rebounds and 1.8 steals per game. He ranks sixth in the Big 12 in scoring, first in rebounding and fourth in steals. Freshman guard Avery Bradley averages 12.1 points and 2.3 assists per game. A McDonald's All-American last year, Bradley ranks second on the team with his 29 3-point makes (shooting .392 from behind the arc). He sports a .480 free throw mark (24-for-50). Senior center Dexter Pittman is averaging 11.6 points, 5.9 rebounds and a team-high 2.2 blocks in just 19.6 minutes a contest. The 6-10, 290-pounder is averaging 6.6 points and 4.0 boards in league play (19.7 minutes per game). Freshmen J'Covan Brown and Jordan Hamilton rank fourth and fifth on the squad in scoring. Brown, a guard, averages 9.7 points and 2.3 assists a contest, and is shooting .926 from the free throw line (50-for-54). Hamilton supplies 9.3 points and 3.2 rebounds in 17.4 minutes an outing, and leads the team with his 35 treys (shooting .380 from long distance). Hamilton is coming off a career-high 27 point game at Oklahoma State in which he went 11-for-16 from the field (5-for-8 from 3-point range) in just 19 minutes of action. His previous career high was 17 points.

Rick Barnes is in his 12th year as Texas' head coach and is 289-108 (.747). He owns a 491-242 (.670) career record.

OU-TEXAS SERIES HISTORY
Oklahoma owns a 46-28 series advantage against Texas despite losing seven of the last eight meetings. OU is 22-9 against the Longhorns in Norman and is 13-6 at Lloyd Noble Center. Since the start of the Big 12 in 1996-97, OU is 17-15 against Texas (8-5 in Norman). Jeff Capel is 1-6 against the Longhorns as OU's head coach (1-2 in Norman).

LAST YEAR AGAINST THE LONGHORNS (LAST YEAR'S BOX SCORES/CUMULATIVE STATS ON PAGE 13)
Oklahoma and Texas split their two meetings last year, with OU posting a 78-63 win in Norman on Jan. 12 and UT claiming a 73-68 triumph in Austin on Feb. 21. In the first matchup, Blake Griffin recorded 20 points, 10 rebounds and three assists for the Sooners while Willie Warren added 17 points, Tony Crocker 16 and Austin Johnson 15. OU, which jumped out to a 24-8 lead and shot .509 from the field on the night, held Texas to .338 field goal and .217 (5-for-23) 3-point shooting. A.J. Abrams led the Longhorns with 22 points but was 8-for-27 (.296) from the floor and 3-for-15 (.200) from behind the arc. The Sooners saw their 13-game winning streak end in the rematch in Austin, as Griffin sustained a first-half concussion and scored just two points in 11 total minutes. Warren, who was 6-for-12 from 3-point distance and scored 27 points, led a charge that put OU up 61-56 with 5:00 remaining. Texas outscored the Sooners 17-7 the rest of the way, however. Abrams, who scored 18 of Texas' final 20 points, finished with a team-high 23. Damion James added 16 points and 10 boards.

SATURDAY'S NEBRASKA RECAP
• Oklahoma posted season lows in points (46), field goals (15), field goal attempts (43) and free throw makes (8) in its 63-46 loss at Nebraska Saturday.
• The Sooners fell behind 11-3 almost seven minutes into the game, rallied to tie the score at 15-15 with 6:00 left in the half and later watched the Huskers use an 8-0 half-ending run to lead 29-20 at intermission. OU, which still trailed by nine (53-44) with 4:50 to go in the second half, was outscored 10-2 over the game's final 4:30.
• Cade Davis was the only Sooner who scored in double figures. He was 3-for-6 from 3-point range and netted 13 points in 22 minutes (played just three minutes in the first half after picking up two quick fouls).
• Tommy Mason-Griffin was 2-for-5 from behind the arc and finished with nine points and a team-high four assists.
• The Sooners registered 13 assists on their 15 field goals.
• Tony Crocker (five points in 25 minutes) and Willie Warren (four points in 28 minutes) returned to the lineup after being injured.
• The Sooners allowed Nebraska to shoot .517 from the field in the second half. It marked the third straight game an OU opponent shot better than .500 after halftime.

HOME IS WHERE THE "W" IS
Oklahoma has won 11 straight games at Lloyd Noble Center and 30 of its last 31. The Sooners, who went 16-1 in Norman last year, are 10-0 this season and 450-73 (.860) since the building opened in 1975. They are 13-6 (.684) against Texas at Lloyd Noble Center.

MASON-GRIFFIN ON A ROLL
• Over the last six games, freshman point guard Tommy Mason-Griffin has played 237 out of 245 possible minutes and is averaging 19.3 points, 3.7 rebounds and 4.0 assists while shooting .488 from 3-point range (20-for-41).
• Mason-Griffin recorded career scoring highs in three straight games ending with the Jan. 27 game against Iowa State (21 at Texas A&M, 26 at Texas Tech and 38 vs. Iowa State). He averaged 28.3 points over the three outings and went 12-for-23 (.522) from behind the arc.
• The 5-11, 203-pounder ranks second in the Big 12 in 3-point percentage (.446), fourth in assists (4.6 apg), sixth in 3-pointers per game (2.1) and 11th in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.0). In Big 12 play, he ranks second in treys per contest (3.1) and third in 3-point percentage (.489).
• Mason-Griffin leads OU and all Big 12 freshmen with his 17.4 scoring average in conference play.
• With nine regular season games remaining, Mason-Griffin already ranks fourth on OU's all-time freshman list in 3-point makes (45) and sixth in assists (97). No Oklahoma freshman has ever shot better from 3-point range for a season than Mason-Griffin's current .446 mark.
• Only one freshman in school history averaged more minutes per game than Mason-Griffin's current 34.1. That was Wayman Tisdale (averaged 34.5) in 1982-83.

MASON-GRIFFIN'S STELLAR NIGHT
Two games ago against Iowa State (Jan. 27), freshman Tommy Mason-Griffin propelled the Sooners to an 89-84 home win on a night in which OU played without Willie Warren and Tony Crocker due to ankle injuries (the pair was averaging a combined 30 points a game). Mason-Griffin finished with 38 points and six assists while playing all 40 minutes (he battled leg cramps the final 3:45). The point guard was 13-for-21 from the field, 5-for-10 from 3-point range and 7-for-7 from the free throw line. His 38 points were....

• Five more than any other Big 12 player has scored this year.
• The most scored by an OU freshman since Wayman Tisdale in 1982-83.
• The most scored by a freshman guard in school history.
• Tied for the most scored by a point guard in school history (Mookie Blaylock also scored 38 against Iowa State in 1988-89).
• Tied for the fifth most by a freshman in Big 12 history (only Kansas State's Michael Beasley scored more).u The second most scored by a Sooner since the 1993-94 season (Blake Griffin scored 40 last year).

CROCKER CLIMBING THE CHARTS
Senior guard Tony Crocker entered the year ranked 34th in school history in points (1,008) and seventh in 3-point makes (158). With a strong start to the season, the 6-6 San Antonio, Texas, product has vaulted to the No. 18 spot in points (1,246) and the No. 4 spot in 3-pointers (189). Crocker, who has started his last 86 games, needs 32 points to tie Blake Griffin (2008-09) for 17th place in scoring. At his current pace of 11.9 points per game, Crocker would finish the regular season ranked 15th on the Sooners' all-time scoring chart. Crocker's next target on the career 3-point makes list is Tim Heskett (1997-01). He needs 26 makes to tie Heskett for third on that list.

Crocker also has a chance to make a run at the top spot on OU's games played list. He entered the year with 102 career appearances and would finish the regular season with 131 if he plays in every remaining game. Depending on the Sooners' postseason fortunes, Crocker could challenge the record of 137 career games played by Darryl “Choo” Kennedy (1984-87).

Also, Crocker is eight rebounds shy of becoming just the second Sooner (and first of the Big 12 era) to register at least 1,000 points, 500 rebounds and 150 3-pointers in a career. Forward Ryan Minor (1993-96) racked up 1,946 points, 767 rebounds and 170 treys.

UP NEXT
The Sooners are home again next Tuesday (Feb. 9) for a 7 p.m. contest against Texas Tech. The game will be televised by the Big 12 Network.

University of Oklahoma Athletics

Sooners Host No. 9 'Horns Saturday at 3 p.m.

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