University of Oklahoma Athletics
Tuesday, December 22
Norman
6:00 PM
University of Oklahoma
vs
Texas Tech
Photo by: Ty Russell
Hoops at Home for the Holidays
December 21, 2020 | Men's Basketball
Oklahoma
15/16 Texas Tech
Tuesday, Dec. 22 / 6 p.m. CT / Lloyd Noble Center / Norman
NORMAN – Holiday hoops hits the LNC on Tuesday when Oklahoma (5-1, 1-0 Big 12) hosts No. 15/16 Texas Tech (6-2, 0-1 Big 12) in the Sooners' first game against a ranked opponent this season.
Oklahoma has won six of its last seven Big 12 home openers but has a tall task in front of it to continue that trend. Texas Tech, who is coming off a one-point loss to Kansas, is holding its opponents to 52.4 points per game and limiting them to 36.1% shooting. The Red Raiders boast a strong group of groups and are led by transfer guard Mac McClung (15.0 points, 2.9 assists).
The Sooners' high-powered offense, led by Brady Manek (16.7 points, 4.8 rebounds) and Austin Reaves (16.3 points, 6.2 assists) will use as much fire power as it can against Tech's defense.
ON THE AIR
• Tuesday's game will tip at 6 p.m. CT and air on the Sooner Sports Radio Network (KRXO 107.7 FM The Franchise in Oklahoma City; KTBZ 1430 AM in Tulsa; Tune In Radio App) with Toby Rowland and Kevin Henry announcing.• Mark Neely and Fran Fraschilla have the call on ESPN2.
TICKETS
• Tickets start at $20 can purchased at the OU Athletics Ticket Office (800-456-4668) and SoonerSports.com/Tickets. Lloyd Noble Center's east ticket windows will open at 5 p.m. on Tuesday.• Digital ticketing will be implemented for 2020-21 to allow fans to seamlessly access or transfer tickets to others via the SoonerSports2Go app. Step-by-step instructions and additional information on how to access and transfer tickets is available at SoonerSports.com/digitaltickets.
GAME DAY POLICIES
• Appropriate cloth or surgical-style masks that cover the nose and mouth completely will be required at all times while on campus and inside Lloyd Noble Center. Other face coverings including clear face shields, gaiters/buffs, bandanas or masks with valves are not permitted.• OU will continue its clear-bag policy this season. The approved clear plastic tote size is a maximum of 12 inches x 6 inches x 12 inches or a one-gallon clear plastic freezer bag. Even those bags are subject to search.
• Arena doors will open to the public one (1) hour prior to tip off. The general public can utilize the north and east entrances.
• Full details on OU's game day policies at Lloyd Noble Center can be found here.
THREE POINTERS
• Year after year the Big 12 proves itself to be one of the toughest and deepest conferences in college basketball. The Sooners return to conference play on Tuesday as they begin a stretch that proves how daunting of a league the Big 12 can be. Tuesday's matchup with No. 15 Texas Tech is the first contest in a stretch against four straight teams currently ranked in the top 15 of the latest AP Top 25 poll. Following the Red Raiders, Oklahoma will face No. 7 West Virginia at home before playing road games at No. 3 Kansas and No. 2 Baylor. Should all four teams remain ranked, it will be just the third time in program history that Oklahoma has played four straight regular-season games against ranked opponents (most recently in 2015). The Sooners have never faced four straight top-15 foes.• Oklahoma boasts two of the Big 12's top-five scorers in seniors Brady Manek (16.7 points) and Austin Reaves (16.3 points). In addition to Oklahoma's go-to one-two punch, the Sooners have shown depth in other players who can step up on offense. Eight different Sooners have reached double-digit scoring in at least one of OU's first six games. De'Vion Harmon, Victor Iwuakor, Kur Kuath and Alondes Williams all have at least two games of 10 or more points.
• The Sooners opened Big 12 play in their second game of the season, topping TCU 82-78 in Fort Worth on Dec. 3 before playing four more non-conference games. Oklahoma now returns to the main portion of league play. Dating back to last season, Austin Reaves has combined for 73 points (41 and 32) in his last two Big 12 games.
SERIES HISTORY: TEXAS TECH
• The Sooners are 10-8 against Tech in the Lon Kruger era (7-2 at home). OU won the most recent meeting, topping the Red Raiders 65-51 in a home game played at Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City in February.• The home team has won nine of the last 10 meetings. The only time the road team won in the series during that stretch was in 2019 when Texas Tech pulled out a victory in Norman. The 2019 Tech squad went on to reach the Final Four and National Championship Game.
• Oklahoma assistant coach Pooh Williamson served as an assistant coach at Texas Tech under Tubby Smith from 2013 to 2016.
LOOKING BACK AT SATURDAY'S WIN
• The Sooners won their third straight on Saturday, closing out non-conference play with an 84-65 victory over Houston Baptist at Lloyd Noble Center.• Senior guard Austin Reaves led all scorers with 15 points (4-of-7 shooting) to go with five assists, four rebounds and two steals in 20 minutes.
• Sophomore forward Victor Iwuakor provided a spark off the bench by scoring a season-high 12 points (one shy of his career high) and pulling down three boards. Iwuakor shot 6-of-8 from the field and scored 10 of his points during the second half.
• Senior guard Alondes Williams recorded 10 points while grabbing a career-best seven rebounds and handing out three assists.
• Senior forward Brady Manek shot 50% from the field and scored 13 points. Sophomore guard De'Vion Harmon chipped in eight points, three assists and two steals.
• The Sooners made a season-low five 3-pointers and 11 free throws.
• Despite a poor shooting night (5-of-23 from 3-point range), the Sooners found success scoring at the rim. OU poured in 54 points in the paint and won the rebounding battle 40-29.
QUICK HITS
• The Sooners have won two straight games against ranked opponents, defeating No. 22 Texas Tech and No. 20 West Virginia in late February. Oklahoma has won three of its last five games against ranked teams with the two losses in that stretch coming to No. 3 Kansas and No. 1 Baylor.• OU is 21-14 at home against Top 25 teams during the Lon Kruger era.
• With 184 victories at Oklahoma, head coach Lon Kruger is closing in on surpassing Hugh McDermott (185 wins from 1922-38) on the Sooners' all-time wins list. Only three OU head coaches compiled more than 185 victories: Billy Tubbs (333), Kelvin Sampson (279) and Hall-of-Famer Bruce Drake (200).
• Oklahoma's 85.3 points per game rank second in the Big 12. The Sooners are joined by Baylor (92.6) as the only Big 12 teams averaging over 80 points.
• The Sooners rank in the top three of the Big 12 in all three shooting categories: field goal shooting (47.9%, second), 3-point shooting (36.1%, third) and free throw percentage (82.1%, first).
• OU has scored at least 38 points in every half this season.
• The Sooners are off to a 5-1 this season, continuing a trend of strong starts under Lon Kruger. The Sooners have started 5-1 or better in nine of Kruger's 10 seasons in Norman.
• Sometimes the key to victory is as simple as making shots. Over the last two seasons, the Sooners are 21-1 when they have a better field goal percentage than their opponents. Their only loss when owning a better field goal percentage was on the road at then-No. 1 Baylor last season.
• Oklahoma is committing only 10.5 turnovers per game - the lowest in the Big 12 and 22nd fewest nationally.
• The Sooners also lead the league in fewest fouls committed per game, fouling an average of 13.0 times - the fifth-fewest in the country. This continues a trend that Oklahoma showed a lot of discipline in last season, commiting only 13.4 personal fouls per game in 2019-20 – the third fewest in the country. This year, OU opponents are shooting an average of 12.2 foul shots per game, compared to OU's 19.5 free throw attempts.
• Senior forward Brady Manek leads the Big 12 in 3-pointers per game (3.0) and ranks fourth in 3-point field goal percentage (45%).
• Austin Reaves' 32 points against TCU (Dec. 6) are the most by a Big 12 player this season. Brady Manek's 29 points against UTSA (Dec. 3) are the third-most by a league player.
• OU is 36-6 in games played in November and December since the start of the 2017-18 season.
• Lon Kruger returns a veteran-heavy team which returns over 70% of its scoring from last season's squad that claimed the No. 3 seed in the Big 12 Championship.
• Kruger utilized a starting lineup with four seniors on opening night in Austin Reaves, Alondes Williams, Brady Manek and Kur Kuath. It was the first time since the 1992-93 season that Oklahoma started at least four seniors in the first game of the season.
UP NEXT: WEST VIRGINIA
• Oklahoma remains at home when it hosts its fifth straight game at Lloyd Noble Center. The Sooners face No. 7 West Virginia to open 2021 on Saturday, Jan. 2. The matchup will tip at 3 p.m. CT on ESPN2.• Oklahoma holds a narrow 12-9 lead in the all-time series with West Virginia. The Sooners swept the Mountaineers last season and have won three of the last four matchups. OU's only loss in that stretch was by one point at the Big 12 Championship.
• The Sooners and Mountaineers were scheduled to face each other in the postseason this past March at the Big 12 Championship in Kansas City. The game was canceled the morning of the matchup due to growing concerns of the COVID-19 virus.
• OU won both meetings with West Virginia by double digits last season, topping WVU 69-59 in Norman and 73-62 in Morgantown.
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