Postgame Notes

Jan. 14, 2012

• Oklahoma turned in its third best shooting performance of the season and overcame a 44-24 rebounding deficit to notch its first Big 12 win, 82-73 over No. 18 Kansas State. The Sooners never trailed and led by as many as 18.

• OU shot .549 from the field and drained 22 of its 26 free throw attempts (.846) while holding the Wildcats to .391 field goal shooting.

• Kansas State's 19 turnovers were the most by an OU opponent in 10 games. The Sooners outscored KSU 30-20 off turnovers.

• Oklahoma's 12 steals were its second most of the season and most in 10 games.

• OU's 20-rebound deficit was its biggest of the season. Twenty-four of K-State's 44 rebounds were offensive and the Wildcats outscored the Sooners 25-5 in second-chance points. Rodney McGruder (seven) had more offensive rebounds than OU (six). Jamar Samuels added six for the Wildcats.

• Andrew Fitzgerald's 9-for-10 field goal performance highlighted OU's day on offense. His 21 points were one shy of a career high. He has scored in double figures in 11 straight games and is averaging 15.2 points on .522 shooting during the stretch.

• Romero Osby (6-for-8 field goal shooting) scored 18 points (tied a career high) for the third time in the last five outings. He and Fitzgerald combined to go 15-for-18 from the field (.833). Osby also tied team-high rebounding honors with six.

• Steven Pledger netted 18 points, his most in Big 12 play. He canned two of his three 3-point attempts and was a perfect 6-for-6 at the foul line. Pledger has scored in double figures in all but one game and is shooting .459 from 3-point range on the year. He is averaging 20.3 points in wins compared to 11.2 in losses.

• Sam Grooms' nine assists matched his second highest total of the season. He played a team-high 36 minutes and added his first career blocked shot and two steals while committing three turnovers.

• Guard Carl Blair made his first start since the season opener and finished with five points, three rebounds, five assists and three steals. He did not commit a turnover in his 30 minutes.

• Sophomore guard Cameron Clark came off the bench for the first time in his career and had his best offensive day in seven games. Clark was 4-for-6 from the field en route to a 10-point day, his first double-digit effort since scoring 14 against Houston Dec. 17 in the All-College Classic.

• The Sooners have scored at least 75 points nine times in their 16 games after doing it seven times in 32 games last year.

• Oklahoma head coach Lon Kruger, who was the 1973 and '74 Big Eight Player of the Year at Kansas State, is now 3-2 against his alma mater. He has beaten K-State in consecutive years (directed UNLV to a 63-59 win last season in Kansas City).

• OU improved to 103-91 all-time against Kansas State and to 59-25 in Norman. The Sooners are 11-6 against the Wildcats since the start of the Big 12 Conference in 1996-97.

• The Sooners are home again Tuesday when they host Texas Tech at 7 p.m. CT (televised by the Big 12 Network).

University of Oklahoma Athletics

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