We are a good team even without Blake. We just aren't a great without him.
Willie kept us in the game, and AJ dished well late.
I don't mind a loss late (especially on the road). I only pray we get Texas again in the tournament, and I'm sure Blake will be ready.
This loss may have cost us a #1 seed.
Pitt, UConn, UNC, and???? Memphis? Who is the fourth one seed?Originally Posted by 8timechamps
Secondly, this was one of our best games of the year. Texas played well (few T/Os, shot well, etc.), I, being a Sooner fan, think they got most of the calls, and they still barely won at home. Texas has the talent to be a top 5 to top 10 team. Tonight, the played like one. We still almost beat them, on the road, with suspect officiating. I don't know what your definition of "great team" is, but we played like a top-10 team without Blake Griffin tonight.
Also, Willie Warren is the best player in the country... next year.
After UNC lost, I wouldn't put them with Pitt and UConn.
"If your dream ain't bigger than you, there's a problem with your dream." -Deion Sanders
If OU runs the table in the Big 12 and finishes with a 15-1 record in the Big 12 Conference, it'll be hard to deny them a number 1 seed. Especially if they go on to win the Big 12 Tourney in OKC.
They could have easily folded the tents and called it a night once Texas went up by 12.
But they didn't. And it took A.J. Abrams saving the Horns from a huge win and deflating loss for one of our hated rivals.
Just rerack for Monday night, go out and beat KU, and OU is still in the hunt for a number 1 seed come Tuesday morning.
Just imagine there's a really obnoxious graphical sig here
I liked how the team looked tonight without Blake. Willie is going to be a star and is good enough to carry a team. Everybody stepped up and showed what kind of a team we have outside of Blake. Have to wait and see how long he will be out and how we play those few games with him gone. Hopin it won't be too long.
Never like to lose, especially to texass, but really pleased with the effort tonight. They absolutely had to win this game at their place, and we very easily could have won and would have if Abrams didn't shoot like that, which he hasn't done all year. So I am real excited about how we can do in the tourney now, I didn't expect us to go 16-0 in the conference anyway.
I think we might just stay at #2. UNC lost and will likely drop to #4. UCONN and OU are about interchangeable. Pitt should be #1. UCONN lost at home, and we lost on the road without the best player in America. Even with that, we still darn near pulled the game out. OU's better than UCONN and UNC right now. Again, if we drop, we would drop to #3, but we will likely stay at #2. Anybody who has watched ball all week can see that. With Blake, we likely win. If OUr guys aren't continually getting mugged under the basket, we win.
"Texas might have made some concessions and they might be in the same conference as Oklahoma, but they're not in the same league."
Rece Davis College Football Final 8 OCT 2011
The only thing that helped us today was UNC's loss to Maryland. Either the Big East or ACC will get two top seeds in. The one that doesn't will get one. That leaves the "floating" 1 seed out there. Don't fool yourself into thinking Duke couldn't creep back up. They are a top 5 rpi team now. East coast teams will always get the first look. Fortunately, Duke has 4 losses. Memphis could very easily move in to the fourth spot.
It's all dependent on how we (and the other teams above) finish and do in conference tournaments.
To your points:
1. It wasnt a horrific loss, that puts us in an 'hanging on by a thread' scenario. Texas is nowhere near a top 5 team, and putting them in the top ten is pushing it. That said, they played like a highly ranked team tonight..too bad for them, they haven't played like that in any other meaningful game.
We played like a good team tonight, not great. My definition of great is seeins a team with serious elite talent that can replace one of the cogs and continue on status quo. Although, I think we are closer to being a great team than I realized.
What if El Chupacabra decides not to red shirt from the start, wouldn't that make him better? Also, going into a game knowing that you have to coac your team without you leading scorer/rebounder, could do nothin but help you formulate a game plan.
If Texas didn't had Abrams, they would probably finish with one or two wins in conference play.
I agree with most of you here. OU showed the nation tonight that they are a team to be afraid of. I think we beat KU without Blake Monday night. The LC will be rocking and Warren will go off. I think the #1 seed is ours.
Didn't get to see the game, so what happened to cause Blake's concussion?
QUESTION.....
Wasn't it Nate Erdman or Mookie Blaylock that got hammered in the NCAA Tourney one year and got put out of the game, which ultimately took the wind out of OUr sail leading to a loss?
Well, Alex Brown and the training staff aren't entirely sure.
The All-American forward played only 11 minutes and scored just two points and grabbed three rebounds. Two cheap fouls sent him to the bench after 7 minutes. He returned only to be whacked across the nose by Texas center Dexter Pittman with about 7 minutes left in the first half. He also collided with Texas point guard Dogus Balbay about a minute later.
The Sooner training staff wasn’t completely sure which contact caused the injury.
Just imagine there's a really obnoxious graphical sig here
I don't recall.
I do recall Hollis Price suffering a torn triceps during a first round loss to Larry Bird's alma mater in 2001, though.
Just imagine there's a really obnoxious graphical sig here
One of the #1 seeds is ours as long as we limit our losses to 1 more (not Monday) down the stretch and we win the big 12 tourney.
This loss to texas without blake could pay off in late March, early April. At one point during the big dance we are probably going to have to play without blake for a 6-8 minute stretch. We got good practice last night.
“I asked him if he could stop hitting shots,” Warren joked, “but he didn’t listen.”
That's why I love Willie Warren (besides the fact that he's awesome).
Taylor Griffin had 9 points and 8 rebounds, so close.
If Abrams makes one less 3 and Crocker gets a pass to Taylor or Chupacabra once in the last 3 minutes, the game is ours. If, if, if =0
Re: We learned something from this loss...
I'm pretty sure it was when we got deep into the Tourney one year and our Top Player got hammered and put out of the game. That intentional hack cost us our best player and put an end to our streak. I tried to go to SoonerStats.com but it wasn't much help. I'll find it though.
Thanks.
Let any team in the country practice all week with the entire squad. Then, walk up to the coach and say, "bench your best player for the rest of the first half and don't let him play in the second half". There would be very few teams anywhere who could do as well as the Sooners did last night under those circumstances.
I think the top 5 looks something like this.
1. Pitt 25-2
2. UCONN 25-2
3. OU 25-2
4 Memphis 24-3
5. North Carolina 24-3
Look what happens to Pitt when Blair gets in foul trouble. They go into free fall...When we were down 1 or 2 with under a minute, should we have fouled either Pittman or Balbay? Both shoot under 50% from the line, and Balbay is under 40%. I know Taylor tried to foul the Shoney's Big Boy at the end (and I am convinced he did before he attempted the put back).
"Texas might have made some concessions and they might be in the same conference as Oklahoma, but they're not in the same league."
Rece Davis College Football Final 8 OCT 2011
I think I remember now...
It was against Michigan State in the Tourney when Najera got knocked out. He was hit harder than Blake was last night. Cost us the game then too.
I hate that kind of crap.
Link to the game stats in 99
http://statsheet.com/mcb/games/1999/...higan-state-54
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