OU Hosts No. 25 Florida in Big 12/SEC Challenge

No. 25/25 Florida

Oklahoma

January 28 | 1 p.m. CT | Lloyd Noble Center

SATURDAY'S GAME BASICS

Oklahoma (8-11, 2-6 Big 12) takes a break from conference action for the Big 12/SEC Challenge. In this season's edition of the conference vs. conference event, OU hosts No. 25/25 Florida (15-5, 6-2 SEC) on Saturday, Jan. 28 at 1 p.m. CT. The Sooners have had four days to prepare for the Gators after two heartbreaking losses over the weekend. OU fell in overtime to Iowa State on Saturday before falling to rival Texas on a last-second 3-pointer on Monday. The Gators enter Saturday's contest coming off of a 106-point showing at LSU on Wednesday. Florida is third in the SEC standings with a 6-2 conference record.

ON THE AIR

Saturday's contest tips off at 1 p.m. CT and air on the Sooner Radio Network (KRXO 107.7 FM “The Franchise” in Oklahoma City; KTBZ 1430 AM in Tulsa) with Toby Rowland and Kevin Henry announcing. The game will be televised nationally on ESPN with Brent Musburger, Dick Vitale and Kaylee Hartung calling the action. Musburger announced his retirement earlier this week and Saturday's contest will be the second-to-last game he will call in his career.

TICKETS

Tickets for Saturday's game are still available on SoonerSports.com. The Lloyd Noble Center box office opens at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday.

The first 5,000 fans in attendance will receive a free white OU t-shirt. Fans are also encouraged to download the "OU Lights" app to participate in the intro video by holding up their phones with the app open.

FIVE THINGS TO KNOW

• Lon Kruger coached the Gators from 1990 to 1996, racking up a record of 104-80. When Kruger took over the Florida job, the Gators were coming off of a 7-21 season. Four years into the role, Kruger guided UF to the 1994 Final Four. The turnaround work was almost identical to his time at Oklahoma, in which he also inherited a team coming off a losing season (14-18 in 2010-11) and led the Sooners to the Final Four five seasons into the job. Kruger is one of just two head coaches (also Rick Pitino with Kentucky and Louisville) to inherit two teams coming off a sub-.500 year and take both to the Final Four within the first five seasons as head coach.

•The Sooners and Gators will meet in the fourth edition of the SEC/Big 12 Challenge. Oklahoma is 3-0 in the mid-season event with previous wins over LSU, Missouri and Texas A&M while Florida is 2-1. OU, Baylor and TCU are the only three schools from either conference to boast a 3-0 record in the event. The Big 12 has “won” the challenge all three seasons with at least six Big 12 schools winning their respective games each season. Combined, the Big 12 is 20-10 in SEC/Big 12 Challenge matchups.

• Oklahoma's freshman duo of Kristian Doolittle and Kameron McGusty continue to rise in production throughout their rookie seasons. The pair of Sooners are both coming off of career performances this past weekend. Entering the weekend without a collegiate double-double, Doolittle recorded 15 points and 15 rebounds against Iowa State (Jan. 21) before scoring a career-high 29 points with 10 boards at Texas (Jan. 23). Doolittle's 29 points were the most by an OU freshman since Tommy Mason-Griffin scored 30 in 2010. Doolittle was 10-of-18 from the field, 4-of-5 from 3-point range and a perfect 5-of-5 from the charity stripe. McGusty added a career-high scoring performance on Monday, producing 21 points on 8-of-17 shooting. Combined with Doolittle's 29 points, the two became the first pair of OU freshmen to both score 20 points in the same game since 1976.

• Oklahoma has won 126 of its last 132 non-conference games at LNC, including 60 of its last 63. The Sooners are 34-3 in Norman against non-conference opponents under Kruger. Saturday is the first time a top-25 non-conference opponent has played at the LNC in the Kruger era.

• OU continues to show its depth in conference play. Through eight Big 12 games, Oklahoma boasts 23.6 bench points per game in league competition - the second most in the conference. The Sooners are one of only two Big 12 squads to average over 20 bench points in league games as the conference averages 17.5 per contest.

LOOKING BACK AT TEXAS

• Oklahoma (8-11, 2-6 Big 12) fell to Texas (8-12, 2-6), 84-83, on Monday night inside the Frank Erwin Center in Austin, Texas. The Sooners trailed by 10 with 9:21 left in the contest but rallied to tie the game at 73-73 with 3:01 left. OU led by five points with 19 seconds remaining, but the Longhorns hit 3-pointers in two consecutive possessions, including the game-winner from Andrew Jones with 1.8 seconds remaining.

• Of Oklahoma's 83 points, 67 were scored by freshmen or sophomores. The strong showing from the youngest sooners was led by a 29-point double-double from freshman forward Kristian Doolittle and a career-high 21 points from freshman guard Kameron McGusty.

• Doolittle's career-best 29 points were the most by an OU freshman since Tommy Mason-Griffin scored 30 in 2010. The Edmond, Okla., native was 10-of-18 from the field, 4-of-5 from 3-point range and a perfect 5-of-5 from the charity stripe. Doolittle secured his second consecutive double-double by adding 10 boards in his 33 minutes of action.

• Entering the weekend without a double-double on the season, Doolittle posted 15 points and 15 rebounds against Iowa State on Saturday. He has totaled 44 points and 25 rebounds in his past two contests. The freshman is averaging 10.9 points and 7.6 rebounds in conference play.

• McGusty also registered a career high in the contest with 21 points (previous high was 20 vs. Kansas State on Jan. 7). McGusty was 8-of-17 from the field and reached the career best without making a 3-pointer in the contest. Thirteen of his 21 points came in the second half.

• Monday marked the seventh-straight contest McGusty has scored in double figures. Through eight Big 12 games, he is averaging 15.0 points.

Kruger

Lon Kruger coached the Gators to his first Final Four in 1994 (photo courtesy of Florida Athletics)

YOUTH GROUP

• One of the youngest teams in both the Big 12 and the nation, Oklahoma has seen its freshmen and sophomores play a large role for the Sooners this season. The Sooner roster boasts 11 underclassmen (freshmen and sophomores) – the most of any OU team in the Lon Kruger era and the most of any Big 12 roster this season. The young Sooners have received ample experience through their first eight Big 12 contests.

• OU freshmen have played a total of 584 minutes (second most in Big 12), averaging a combined 25.9 points per game and contributing 39.9 percent of OU's scoring in Big 12 play - the second-highest percentage in the conference. Sooner underclassmen rank second in the Big 12 in total minutes played in conference competition (1,216) and have scored 70.5 percent of Oklahoma's points the past eight games (second in Big 12).

SERIES HISTORY

• The Sooners and Gators have met just once previously. Florida prevailed in overtime, 76-72, in the 1995 All-College Basketball Classic under an up-and-coming head coach named...Lon Kruger.

UP NEXT

• For the 232nd time, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State will meet on the hardwood for Bedlam basketball on Monday, Jan. 30. The Sooners and Cowboys will tip at 8 p.m. CT on ESPN's Big Monday inside Lloyd Noble Center. The matchup is OU's second-straight week with a Big Monday game and third consecutive contest televised on ESPN.

• The Sooners have won 17 of the last 24 Bedlam meetings, including the past seven contests. OU owns a 136-95 all-time advantage in the series and boasts an 84-26 lead when played in Norman.

• OU is 9-2 against the Cowboys during the Lon Kruger era. Monday's meeting with OSU will be the first matchup since Brad Underwood took over as head coach. Both Kruger and Underwood played collegiately at Kansas State.

• Oklahoma has won 15 of the last 16 Bedlam battles in Norman, including the last 12 meetings. The Sooners have not lost a Bedlam game at home since 2004.