Sooners Host Aggies on Senior Day


	Beau Gerber

Oklahoma (13-16, 4-11) vs. No. 23 Texas A&M (21-8, 10-5)
Date & Tip Time	Saturday, March 6 at 11:02 p.m. CST
Location	Norman, Okla. \| Lloyd Noble Center \| Seating Views
Tickets	OU Athletics Ticket Office
TV	ESPN
Radio	Sooner Radio Network KOKC AM 1520 in Oklahoma City KTBZ AM 1430 in Tulsa Sirius 121 XM 141
Webcast	ESPN360.com
Live Stats	SoonerSports.com GameTracker
Game Info	Game Notes (PDF)

GAME PREVIEW
Oklahoma (13-16 overall, 4-11 Big 12) closes the regular season Saturday when No. 23 Texas A&M (21-8, 10-5) visits Lloyd Noble Center at 11 a.m. CST. The Sooners, who have lost seven straight games, are tied with Texas Tech for ninth place in the Big 12 standings. OU could earn the No. 9 seed in next week's Big 12 Championship with a win Saturday and a Colorado victory over Texas Tech. Otherwise, the Sooners will be the No. 10 seed. Texas A&M, which has won seven of its last nine games, is 3-4 in Big 12 road contests. Monday's game will air on the Sooner Radio Network with Bob Barry Sr. and Mike Houck calling the action. It will be televised nationally by ESPN with Terry Gannon and Stephen Bardo announcing.

TICKET INFORMATION
A limited number of tickets are available for $10, $25 and $35 at the OU Athletics Ticket Office (800-456-4668) and online here. Lloyd Noble Center's north and east box offices will open Saturday at 9 a.m.

SENIOR DAY
Saturday marks the final home game in the careers of OU seniors Tony Crocker, Beau Gerber and Ryan Wright. The trio, along with manager Landon Hughey, will be honored before the game at approximately 10:40 a.m. They will also address the crowd after the game.

Tony Crocker |

Beau Gerber |

Ryan Wright

SENIOR SNIPPETS
• Guard Tony Crocker ranks 16th in Oklahoma history in scoring (1,338 points), fourth in 3-pointers (197), fifth in games played (130) and fifth in minutes (3,740). He has started his last 94 games.
• Crocker is just the second player in school history (first OU player of the Big 12 era) to record at least 1,000 career points, 500 career rebounds and 150 career 3-point makes. The other Sooner to accomplish the feat was Ryan Minor (1993-1996).
• Forward Ryan Wright has played in 60 games at OU the past two seasons after transferring from UCLA. Last year, he averaged 1.8 points (shot .341 from the field) and 2.1 rebounds. He has upped his numbers this year to 4.2 points (.544) and 4.4 rebounds per game.
• Wright is a three-time academic all-conference selection (this year and last year as a Sooner, and his sophomore season at UCLA).
• Forward Beau Gerber is a former walk-on now on scholarship. The mechanical engineering major and electrical engineering minor holds a 3.45 cumulative GPA and earned first-team Academic All-Big 12 honors this year.

NOTEWORTHY
• Oklahoma owns a 28-5 all-time record against Texas A&M (14-1 in Norman).
• Texas A&M won the season's first matchup, 65-62, on Jan. 19 in College Station.
• The Sooners have lost three straight home games after winning their first 11.
• In OU's last seven games (all losses), opponents are averaging 81.0 points while shooting .511 from the field and .486 from 3-point range. Each of the last six opponents have shot .500 or better from the field and five of the last seven have shot .500 or better from behind the arc.
• Due to injuries, an illness and suspensions, the Sooners have used eight different starting lineups in their 15 conference games.
• Oklahoma is the only Big 12 team with five players who each average double figures in scoring.
• Four of OU's top seven scorers are freshmen. Those four have accounted for 46 percent of the team's points.
• OU's leading scorer on the year (16.3 ppg), sophomore Willie Warren had season-ending arthroscopic surgery on his right ankle Wednesday. Warren also averaged 4.1 assists and 3.3 rebounds a contest.
• Over the last 12 games, freshman point guard Tommy Mason-Griffin is averaging 18.9 points, 5.0 assists and 2.9 3-point makes.
• Mason-Griffin has made at least one 3-pointer in 27 of 29 games. He averaged 3.4 treys in OU's first 12 league games but is 2-for-15 over the last three outings.
• In OU's 15 league contests, Mason-Griffin is shooting .422 from 3-point range (43-for-102). The rest of the team is shooting .289 (69-for-239).
• Mason-Griffin has played at least 38 minutes in 13 of the last 14 games (35 in the other). He has logged 40 or more minutes eight times in those 14 outings (including each of the last three).
• Junior guard Cade Davis is averaging 14.3 points and 4.3 rebounds over the last 10 outings. He is 30-for-74 (.405) from behind the arc during the stretch and has made at least three treys in seven of the last 12 games.
• Senior guard Tony Crocker, who has started his last 94 games, has recorded his only seven career double-doubles this year. Crocker leads all Big 12 guards in rebounding (6.3 rpg) and double-doubles (no other league guard has more than three double-doubles this year).
• Over the past two games, freshman forward Tiny Gallon is averaging 19.0 points (.643 shooting) and 12.0 rebounds in an average of 36.5 minutes.

Sooner to Watch
	Tony Crocker \| Sr. \| Guard • Playing his last game at Lloyd Noble Center • Coming off a 24-point game at Texas • Has seven double-doubles in his career (all this season to lead Big 12 guards) • Ranks 16th in OU history in scoring, fourth in 3-pointers and fifth in games played • Has started 123 of his 130 career games, including his last 94

PREVIEWING TEXAS A&M
Texas A&M, which has won seven of its last nine games, is tied for third place in the Big 12 standings with Baylor and Missouri at 10-5 and could land the No. 3, 4, 5 or 6 seed in next week's Big 12 Championship. The Aggies are 21-8 overall and own a 4-5 record in true road contests. In league games, they rank ninth in scoring offense (71.6 ppg), first in scoring defense (66.5 ppg), seventh in field goal percentage (.432), 12th in 3-point field goal percentage (.292) and 11th in free throw percentage (.662).

The Aggies suffered a significant blow Dec. 22 at Washington when senior guard Derrick Roland, the team's second-leading scorer and one of the Big 12's best perimeter defenders, sustained a season-ending leg injury. Roland was averaging 10.5 points, 3.0 rebounds and 1.7 assists in 25.1 minutes per game. That leaves A&M with one player who currently averages double figures in scoring. Senior guard Donald Sloan, a high school teammate of Roland, averages 18.1 points per contest to rank fifth in the Big 12. Sloan, who has made 40 treys on the year and is shooting .367 from behind the arc, also contributes 3.7 boards and 2.2 assists per game. Senior forward Bryan Davis, junior guard B.J. Holmes and sophomore forward David Loubeau average just under double figures in scoring, with Davis producing 9.9 points and Holmes and Loubeau each adding 9.2 an outing. Davis also averages a team-high 7.9 rebounds, Holmes has made a team-high 52 treys (shooting .371 from long range) and Loubeau owns a .545 field goal percentage.

Mark Turgeon is in his third season as Texas A&M's head coach and owns a 70-29 (.707) record there. A former player and assistant coach at Kansas, Turgeon is in his 12th season as a collegiate head coach and possesses a 223-148 (.601) career mark.

OU-TEXAS A&M SERIES HISTORY
Oklahoma owns a 28-5 series advantage against Texas A&M and is 14-1 against the Aggies in Norman (the lone loss was a 56-49 defeat in 2007). Since the start of the Big 12 in 1996-97, OU is 23-5 against the Aggies (12-1 in Norman). Four of the Aggies' five wins in series history have come over the past four seasons.

EARLIER THIS YEAR AGAINST THE AGGIES
• Oklahoma trailed 39-29 at halftime, battled back to take a 54-47 lead midway through the second half, and was outscored 9-2 in the last two minutes of a 65-62 loss at Texas A&M Jan. 19. OU was 0-for-3 from the field and committed two turnovers in the final two minutes.
• Texas A&M shot .625 from the field in the first half and held the Sooners to a .348 mark. OU shot .444 in the second half and held the Aggies to a .375 figure. A&M shot .500 for the game while OU shot .400.
• Tommy Mason-Griffin scored a then-career-high 21 points and handed out five assists against two turnovers in 39 minutes of action. The freshman was 3-for-4 from 3-point range and 4-for-5 from the free throw line.
• Willie Warren scored 13 of his 14 points in the second half. He picked up two fouls in the game's first 3:45 and played 30 minutes. His two free throws with 46 seconds left gave OU a 62-61 lead and were its final points.
• Tiny Gallon played just two minutes in the first half due to two early fouls, but still managed 10 points and seven boards in 22 minutes.
• One game after recording his first career double-double (15 points and 11 boards against Missouri), Cade Davis tallied nine points, seven rebounds and a game-high three steals. Davis played all 40 minutes and was 3-for-5 from 3-point range.
• The Sooners were outrebounded 15-11 in the first half but held a 22-15 advantage in the second to win the board battle, 33-30.

MONDAY'S TEXAS RECAP
• Oklahoma didn't trail until the 9:08 mark of the second half in an eventual 87-76 loss at Texas on Monday.
• The Sooners led 23-10 eight minutes into the game, 40-38 at halftime and 51-40 with 15:30 left in the second half. Still ahead 56-52, OU was outscored 35-20 over the final 10:30.
• Texas shot .536 from the field while Oklahoma recorded a .481 figure. It was OU's best shooting performance in nine games.
• Two days after going 2-for-18 (.111) from 3-point range against Baylor, the Sooners went 10-for-24 (.417) Monday. They made their first five attempts of the game and were 7-for-11 in the first half (.636).
• Tony Crocker led OU with 24 points, his most in conference play. He scored OU's first eight points and 10 of its first 14. Crocker was 8-for-13 from the field after going 10-for-40 over the past four games.
• Cade Davis scored 22 points with the help of a career-high-tying six 3-pointers (on 10 attempts). He made his first four 3-point tries (was 5-for-7 in the first half) and was a perfect 4-for-4 from the free throw line on the night while also recording two blocked shots.
• Tommy Mason-Griffin, who scored 10 points, handed out a game-high seven assists to tie the OU freshman record of 141 set by Terry Evans in 1989-90. The seven handouts gave Mason-Griffin 23 over the last three games.
• Texas outrebounded OU 38-21 and held a 12-4 advantage on the offensive glass. The Longhorns also outscored OU 38-22 in the paint.

MASON-GRIFFIN A LEADING CANDIDATE FOR BIG 12 FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR
Point guard Tommy Mason-Griffin is attempting to become Oklahoma's second straight Big 12 Freshman of the Year (Willie Warren was last year's unanimous selection). In Big 12 play, the 5-11, 203-pounder from Houston, Texas, leads all league newcomers in scoring (17.0 ppg), assists (4.6 apg) and 3-pointers per game (2.9). He also ranks second among conference newcomers in 3-point percentage (.422) and free throw percentage (.815). Here are more notes:

• Mason-Griffin shares the OU freshman record for assists in a season with Terry Evans (141) and ranks second in OU freshman history in 3-point makes (66). He needs two 3-pointers to claim sole possession of the top spot (Warren made 67 last year).
• Mason-Griffin has led OU in scoring in eight of the last 12 games. Over those last 12 outings, he is averaging 18.9 points and 5.0 assists while shooting .412 from 3-point range (35 makes) and .840 from the free throw line (42 makes) in an average of 39.1 minutes.
• Mason-Griffin ranks fourth in the Big 12 (all games) in assists (4.9), fifth in 3-point percentage (.418) and seventh in treys per game (2.3).
• Terry Evans (.423 in 1989-90) is the only Oklahoma freshman to ever shoot better from 3-point range for a season than Mason-Griffin's current .418 mark. No OU freshman has ever averaged more than his current 35.6 minutes per outing.

MASON-GRIFFIN'S STELLAR NIGHT
On Jan. 27, freshman Tommy Mason-Griffin propelled the Sooners to an 89-84 home win over Iowa State. 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).

PICK YOUR POISON
Five different Sooners have each made at least 30 treys through 29 games. Texas, with four, is the only other Big 12 team with more than three players with at least 30 3-point makes each heading into the final weekend of the regular season. Tommy Mason-Griffin leads Oklahoma with 66 makes (2.3 per game) and is followed by Cade Davis with 57 (2.0 per outing), Tony Crocker with 39 (1.4 per game), Steven Pledger with 35 (1.3 per contest) and Willie Warren with 30 (1.4 per game). The Sooners are tied with Oklahoma State for the Big 12 lead with their 8.2 treys per outing (the school record is 8.5 in 1998-99).

GUARDS SHOULDERING THE LOAD
Five of OU's top six scorers, including its top four, are guards. The Sooners' backcourt has accounted for 1,568 of the team's 2,114 points, or 74 percent. Willie Warren leads the guard charge by averaging 16.3 points per outing and is followed by Tommy Mason Griffin (13.8), Tony Crocker (11.8), Cade Davis (10.3) and Steven Pledger (5.7). All five of those players have surpassed the 20-point mark at least twice this year (Warren has done it seven times, Mason-Griffin six times, Crocker and Davis three times each and Pledger twice). Mason-Griffin (three times), Crocker and Davis have all scored at least 20 points in a half this season. Last year, guards accounted for 52 percent of OU's points.

YOUTH MOVEMENT
The freshman foursome of Tommy Mason-Griffin (13.8 ppg), Tiny Gallon (10.6), Steven Pledger (5.7) and Andrew Fitzgerald (4.8) has combined to score 972 of the team's 2,114 points this year, or 46 percent. Mason-Griffin ranks fourth in the Big 12 with his 4.9 assists per game and fifth with his .418 3-point field goal percentage. Gallon, who is shooting a team-high .547 from the field, ranks seventh in the Big 12 in rebounds per game (8.3) and sixth with seven double-doubles (he missed out on two others by one rebound each). Pledger has knocked down 35 treys and has two games of more than 20 points. Fitzgerald has made 10 starts and is shooting .505 from the field.

UP NEXT
The Sooners will play a first-round Big 12 Championship game next Wednesday at Kansas City's Sprint Center as either the No. 9 or the No. 10 seed. If OU beats Texas A&M Saturday and Colorado beats Texas Tech, the Sooners will be the No. 9 seed and play No. 8 seed Colorado Wednesday at 11:30 a.m. CST. If OU loses to Texas A&M Saturday or if OU beats Texas A&M and Texas Tech defeats Colorado, the Sooners will be the No. 10 seed and play No. 7 seed Oklahoma State Wednesday at 6 p.m. CST.

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