Five Things to Watch: OU vs. Texas A&M

Feb. 21, 2012

By Andrew Gilman | SoonerSports.com

NORMAN, Okla. -- Five things to watch when No. 14 Texas A&M and Oklahoma play at 7 p.m. Tuesday:

1. Texas A&M's Pressure
Texas A&M is one of the most-aggressive teams in the country. Look for the Aggies to really try and pressure the Sooner guards. A&M is forcing 21 turnovers per game - best in the conference. Meanwhile, OU has been better taking care of the ball. OU had seven games of 20 or more turnovers heading into its first meeting with A&M on Jan. 8. But in the past 13 games, the Sooners have had just two of 20 or more.

2. Second-Place Seeding
The winner has the inside track on being the second-seeded team in the Big 12 Tournament behind Baylor. With a win by the Sooners, both Texas A&M and Oklahoma will be 10-5 in the conference with three games to play. However, give the Sooners the edge as the Aggies still have a game remaining against Baylor.

3. Avoiding Consecutive Losses
OU hasn't lost back-to-back games since early December, but a loss against the Aggies would mean more than a two-game losing streak. OU needs a quality win for NCAA seeding purposes. Currently, OU is projected as a No. 6 seed. Dropping to a seven seed or higher could be difficult as the Sooners will want to avoid playing a No. 1 or No. 2 seed as long as possible in the NCAA Tournament.

4. Make Some 3-Pointers
As aggressive as the Aggies are on defense, teams make some 3-pointers against them. A&M is last in the league in field goal percentage defense and last in the league in 3-point defense, too. That should be good news for the Sooners as they are shooting 42.5 percent as a team from the field this season - third-best in the conference.

5. A Fast Start
OU has shown some ability to rally this season, but the Sooners have also put themselves in bad shape, most recently getting behind big against Connecticut and Iowa State. Both games ended up as losses. Watch point guard Morgan Hook early on. She said when the teams played earlier this season, she didn't know what to expect. If Hook and the Sooners don't get shocked in the early going, they should be just fine.

University of Oklahoma Athletics

Five Things to Watch: OU vs. Texas A&M

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