Sooners Open Tournament with Albany

Albany (24-8)

13/15 Oklahoma (22-10)

March 20 | 6:27 p.m. CT | Nationwide Arena | Columbus, Ohio
NCAA Tournament Second Round

QUICK PREVIEW
Making its 29th NCAA Tournament appearance and third straight under fourth-year head coach Lon Kruger, No. 13/15 Oklahoma (22-10 overall, 12-6 Big 12) enters Friday's second-round game against Albany (24-8 overall, 15-1 America East) as the East Region's No. 3 seed. The contest will be played at Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio, and will start at 7:27 p.m. ET. Albany is the region's No. 14 seed.

Should it advance to the round of 32, Oklahoma will play Sunday against Providence (No. 6 seed), Boise State or Dayton. Boise State and Dayton will participate in a Wednesday "First Four" play-in game in Dayton, Ohio, with the winner meeting Providence as a No. 11 seed on Friday. Providence sports a 22-11 record while Boise State and Dayton are 25-8. Also in Columbus as participants in the Midwest Region are No. 4 seed Maryland, No. 5 seed West Virginia, No. 12 seed Buffalo and No. 13 seed Valparaiso.

ON THE AIR
All of OU's NCAA Tournament games will air on the Sooner Radio Network (KRXO 107.7 FM in Oklahoma City; KTBZ AM 1430 in Tulsa) with Toby Rowland (play-by-play) and Mike Houck (analyst) calling the action. Friday's game will be televised nationally by truTV with Ian Eagle, Doug Gottlieb and Evan Washburn announcing. It will also air on the Westwood One Network (Sirius 157, XM 204) with Dave Sims and Jim Jackson on the call.

OKLAHOMA AND THE NCAA TOURNAMENT
• OU is making its 29th NCAA Tournament appearance (36-28 record), 16th in the last 21 years and 25th in the last 33 seasons.

• The Sooners have made four Final Four appearances (1939, 1947, 1988 and 2002). They played in the 1947 and 1988 national championship games.

• Oklahoma is 12-8 in its last eight NCAA Tournaments, with a Final Four showing in 2002 and Elite Eight appearances in 2003 and 2009.

• The Sooners are 5-4 as participants in the East Region (4-2 the last two times with an Elite Eight showing in 2003 and an appearance in the round of 32 in 2008).

• OU is 2-2 all-time as a No. 3 seed (went 1-1 in 2000 and 2005 under Kelvin Sampson).

FIVE THINGS TO KNOW
• Oklahoma's NCAA Tournament No. 3 seed and this week's No. 13 AP Top 25 ranking are its highest since the 2008-09 season (Blake Griffin's last as a Sooner). OU was a No. 2 seed in the Big Dance that year (reached the Elite Eight) and was ranked No. 7 in the final AP poll.

• No. 3 seeds are 102-18 (.850) against No. 14 seeds in the 30 years since the NCAA Tournament expanded to 64 teams in 1985. Over the last 15 seasons, No. 3 seeds are 55-5 (.917) vs. No. 14 seeds. However, a No. 14 seed has won in each of the last two NCAA Tournaments (Mercer beat Duke 78-71 last year in Raleigh and Harvard beat New Mexico 68-62 two years ago in Salt Lake City).

Oklahoma's NCAA Tournament No. 3 seed and this week's No. 13 AP Top 25 ranking are its highest since the 2008-09 season (Blake Griffin's last as a Sooner).

• Oklahoma is one of just six teams nationally (the only one among the "Power 5" conferences) that has started the same five players in every game this season. Interestingly, OU was one of just seven teams nationally that used the same starting lineup in every game last year. Buddy Hield, Isaiah Cousins, Ryan Spangler and Jordan Woodard have all started the last 65 games while TaShawn Thomas has started all 128 of his career contests (96 at Houston).

• Oklahoma's seven wins against AP-ranked opponents (at the time of competition) are the most in school single-season history. The previous record of six wins vs. AP-ranked teams was set in 1988-89 (No. 1 NCAA seed) and matched in 2001-02 (advanced to Final Four).

• All four of Lon Kruger's Oklahoma teams finished higher in the Big 12 than where they were picked in the league's preseason polls. In 2011-12, OU was picked ninth and finished eighth. In 2012-13, it was slotted seventh and tied for fourth. Last year, the Sooners were picked tied for fifth and finished second. Kruger's squad was tabbed for third in this year's poll and tied for second.

KRUGER AND THE NCAA TOURNAMENT
• Two years ago, Lon Kruger became the first head coach in history to take five Division I programs to the NCAA Tournament (Kansas State, Florida, Illinois, UNLV and Oklahoma). He is still the only coach to accomplish the feat. In fact, he has taken each of those five schools to at least two NCAA Tournaments and has now guided four of them to at least three appearances. Coaches who have taken four programs to the Big Dance are current mentors John Beilein, Rick Pitino and Tubby Smith, and former head men Gene Bartow, Lefty Driesell, Jim Harrick, Tom Penders and Eddie Sutton.

• This marks Kruger's 16th NCAA Tournament appearance as a head coach and seventh in the last nine seasons. He owns a 14-15 record and is 8-7 in opening-round games. In his last coaching stop at UNLV, Kruger took the Runnin' Rebels to the NCAA Tournament in four of his final five seasons.

• Kruger is one three coaches to ever direct four programs to at least one NCAA Tournament win. The others are Harrick and Sutton. No coach has ever won at least one NCAA Tournament game at five different schools.

• Kruger has coached three programs to the Sweet 16 or beyond (only Pitino, Smith, John Calipari and Bill Self have also done it). He took Kansas State to the 1988 Elite Eight, Florida to the 1994 Final Four and UNLV to the 2007 Sweet 16.

• Kruger participated in the 1972 and '73 NCAA Tournaments as a player at Kansas State and helped the Wildcats to regional final (Elite Eight) appearances both seasons. K-State went 1-1 in 1972 when Kruger was the Big Eight sophomore of the year (beat Texas 66-55 before losing 72-65 to Louisville). The Wildcats again went 1-1 in 1973 when Kruger was the Big Eight player of the year (beat Louisiana-Lafayette 66-63 before falling 92-72 to Memphis).

MASTER OF THE TURNAROUND
Taking a truly unique career path, OU head coach Lon Kruger has positioned himself as perhaps the greatest change agent in college basketball history. What makes Kruger's 559 career wins and NCAA Tournament trips with five different programs even more impressive than they might first seem is the condition of the six programs when they hired him and the rebuilding job he faced at each. In the year before his arrival as head coach at Texas-Pan American, Kansas State, Florida, Illinois, UNLV and Oklahoma, the schools combined for a 78-99 record (.441). Kruger's teams went a combined 92-89 (.508) in his first year at those schools, 117-72 (.619) in his second year, 114-73 (.610) in his third year and 137-60 (.695) in his fourth season. He directed all six programs to 20-win campaigns and took each of the last five to the NCAA Tournament or NIT by his second year. Here's a look at what Kruger inherited at all six of his head coaching stops and the turnaround job he performed at each:

• TEXAS-PAN AMERICAN - Inherited a 5-20 team for his first head coaching position and by his fourth (and final) year led UTPA to a 20-12 record.

• KANSAS STATE - Hired by his alma mater after the Wildcats had not been to NCAA Tournament in four seasons, he coached all four of his K-State squads to the Big Dance. His second squad went 25-9 and advanced to the Elite Eight.

• FLORIDA - Inherited a seven-win team (program was also facing an FBI and NCAA probe) and led the Gators to four postseason appearances in his six seasons, including a Final Four trip in his fourth year (team finished 29-8).

• ILLINOIS - Took over an Illini program under NCAA sanctions and that had not won an NCAA Tournament game in seven years. Guided it to the second round of the event in three of his four seasons (all three of those teams won at least 22 games).

• UNLV - Inherited a program on NCAA probation and that had been to the NCAA Tournament just twice (no wins) in the previous 13 years. Took the Runnin' Rebels to the NCAA Tourney four times in his final five seasons, including the Sweet 16 in his third year when they went 30-7.

• OKLAHOMA - Took command of a program that had gone a combined 27-36 the previous two seasons and in his second year posted a 20-12 record and an NCAA Tournament appearance with a record fifth school. Kruger is 80-48 in his fourth season (22-10 this year).

Huddle

HIELD NAMED BIG 12 PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Junior Buddy Hield was named the best player in what was regarded as the best college basketball conference this season. The 6-4, 212-pound guard from Freeport, Bahamas, was named Big 12 Player of the Year by the league's head coaches and the Associated Press. He became OU's third Big 12 Player of the Year, joining Hollis Price in 2003 (coaches) and Blake Griffin in 2009 (coaches and AP).

Hield leads the Big 12 with his 17.5 points and 2.7 3-pointers a game, and paces league guards with his 5.5 rebounds a contest. In Big 12 play, he ranked first in scoring (18.5 ppg; next highest average was 16.1), first in 3-pointers per game (2.6), sixth in steals (1.5 spg), seventh in free throw percentage (.805) and 10th in 3-point field goal percentage (.382) and rebounding (5.8 rpg; tops among guards). Hield, who was also named to the Academic All-Big 12 First Team, has paced OU in scoring in 13 of the last 19 games. He scored in double figures in 17 of 18 conference outings and registered at least 20 points eight times in league play.

Hield is the first player in the 19-year history of the Big 12 to be named player of the year, lead the league in scoring and be named to the Academic All-Big 12 First Team.

He is also one of 15 finalists for the Wooden Award and one of five finalists for the Jerry West Shooting Guard of the Year Award.

"Thank God for my teammates," said Hield of the Big 12 Player of the Year honor. "They got me the ball in great position to score all year. They brought the best out in me and push me in practice every day. They inspire me with how hard they work. They make me compete hard. All of them have played a special part in this award. I'd also like to thank our coaches; Coach (Lon) Kruger and all the assistants. Those guys all keep pushing us and are there for us. They're like second fathers to me."

THREE ADDITIONAL SOONERS RECEIVE BIG 12 ACCOLADES
Senior forward TaShawn Thomas was selected as Big 12 Newcomer of the Year (fifth such honor in OU history) and was named to the official All-Big 12 Third Team, while Isaiah Cousins and Ryan Spangler were honorable mention selections.

DEFENSE AMONG BEST IN SCHOOL HISTORY
• Last season, Oklahoma experienced a major resurgence in offense, averaging its most points per game (81.9) in 20 years. This season, the defense is posting numbers not seen in decades. OU's .385 opponent field goal percentage is on track to be its lowest since 1959-60 (.339). In fact, only once in the last 53 years have the Sooners held their opponents to a season field goal mark under .400 (.398 in 2008-09).

• Oklahoma has held 25 of 32 opponents (78 percent) below their season average in points (at the time of competition). OU has held its 32 opponents to an average of 8.8 points below their season average.

Oklahoma has played 17 of its 32 games this season against a total of nine teams who are in the 2015 NCAA Tournament, and is 11-6 in those contests.

• On the year, the Sooners are holding foes to 62.8 points a game and limiting them to .385 field goal shooting (ranks 14th nationally out of 351 teams) and .309 3-point shooting (ranks 35th). By comparison, opponents averaged 76.0 points on .437 field goal and .342 3-point shooting last season.

• OU has outscored its opponents off turnovers in nine of the last 12 games, in 19 of the last 25 and in 24 of 32 contests on the year.

• On Jan. 28, the Sooners set a Big 12 record for fewest points allowed in a conference game in their 81-36 win over Texas Tech. The Red Raiders' .212 field goal mark was the lowest by an OU opponent in any game in 11 years. The 45-point win was the team's second largest in the 19-year history of the Big 12 and tied for the eighth largest in the league.

OKLAHOMA AGAINST THE NCAA FIELD
• Oklahoma has played 17 of its 32 games this season against a total of nine teams who are in the 2015 NCAA Tournament, and is 11-6 in those contests. OU has beaten eight of those nine squads. The Sooners went 0-1 against No. 1 seed Wisconsin, 1-1 against No. 2 seed Kansas, 1-1 against No. 3 seed Baylor, 1-2 against No. 3 seed Iowa State, 1-1 against No. 5 seed West Virginia, 1-0 vs. No. 6 seed Butler, 3-0 against No. 9 seed Oklahoma State, 2-0 against No. 11 seed Texas and 1-0 against No. 11 seed UCLA.

• OU has not faced any NCAA Tournament East Region team this season.

OU VERSUS POSSIBLE COLUMBUS OPPONENTS
• Oklahoma has never met Albany or Boise State in men's basketball.

• The Sooners are 1-0 all-time against Providence, posting an 83-74 third-round postseason NIT road win on March 20, 1991. Bryan Sallier led five Sooners in double figures with 26 points while adding 12 rebounds, and Jeff Webster finished with 17 points and 9 boards. Eric Murdock led Providence with 15 points but was 0 for 7 from 3-point range. OU outshot the Friars 55 percent to 33 percent from the field.

• The Sooners are 2-1 against Dayton, losing their lone NCAA Tournament matchup by an 89-85 score in 1984. OU was a No. 2 seed and received a first-round bye before falling to the 10th-seeded Flyers in Salt Lake City despite getting 36 points from sophomore Wayman Tisdale. Roosevelt Chapman scored 41 points for Dayton, a figure that still represents an OU opponent postseason record. The Sooners posted a third-round 1982 NIT home win over Dayton (91-82), and beat the Flyers 151-99 in the Chaminade Christmas Classic in the 1987-88 season (OU advanced to the national championship game that year). The headline in the next morning's Honolulu newspaper read, "Dayton Scores 99, Loses by 52." Stacey King scored 31 points for OU, Harvey Grant 24 and Ricky Grace 21.

SOONER TIP-INS
• The Sooners have played 14 games against AP Top-25 opponents (at the time of competition) this season, tied with Oklahoma State for second most in the nation (Kansas has played 15). OU has also played 21 games against teams that have been ranked for at least one week this season (Kansas has played a nation-high 22).

• OU led the Big 12 in free throw shooting each of the last two years (.749 last season and .756 in 2012-13) and is shooting .733 this year to again lead the league. Jordan Woodard ranks second in the Big 12 (.838) while Buddy Hield ranks sixth (.822).

• Each of OU's five starters has scored at least 20 points three or more times in their careers.

• OU has won its 22 games by an average of 16.6 points (17 games by double digits). Five of its losses have been by three points or less.

• OU set an NCAA record (against a Division I opponent) Dec. 22 when it went on a 39-0 run against Weber State in an 85-51 home win. The former NCAA record of a 37-0 run was set by Utah State against Idaho on Feb. 15, 2006.