I know folks are looking forward to North Carolina, but we have to get past Oklahoma for that to matter.
Can we beat them?
I know it’s not a great indicator, but the RPI Wizard has us as underdogs in four games. @FL (25% chance to win), @ aTm (36%), @ Bama (47%), and OU (48%, was 50 % last night).
They’re ranked one spot ahead of us in the AP poll (5 votes to 4) and 33rd RPI, we are 43rd.
Don’t know much more about them. Hopefully somebody knows how good their players are.
Comments: OU has a McDonald All American a freshman trae young point guard. Since the game is played on a neutral site in Portland Oregon I think we have a fair shot except for playing Oregon
If Gafford and Trey can stay out of foul trouble I expect the hogs to beat the Sooners by 15. I have not watched them this year. Macon and Bardford need to play well. It’s a hog w.
Don’t set your expectations too high. Not saying we are gonna lose, but there are some good teams there. OU may be one
Found some info on them: They return 7 of their top 8 in mpg. They lost two additional bench players to transfer, but they’re mostly intact from an 11-20 Team. However, they had the #1 SOS in the country last year (per ESPN), so they may not be THAT bad. They added 5* Trae Young who looks like the real deal in their two games so far.
They do have a F (Doolittle) who started 25 games last year suspended for the fall semester.
They are a very good basketball team who will probably run with us. They have several players who can shoot the three. We are going to have to defend well and stay out of foul trouble. If we do that, I think we should win by 8-12 points.
Seems logical.
Trae Young makes everything go for them, averaging a double/double points and assists. He’s a freshman though, so if our senior guards do a good job of rotating, hassling, and keeping solid pressure on him I think we’ll handle them. If we let him have free rein, it will be tough.
Good old fashioned Nolan game, cut the head off and the body dies.
Trae is really quick, but he’s also young. I’m afraid guarding him, may wear our guys down. Then it comes down to the rest of the team. Will Thomas be back?
Don’t underestimate Oklahoma. This isn’t the team that went 11-20 last season. Pomeroy currently has them at #19, which is partly based on projection. In other words, they are supposed to be a tough opponent and are projected into the NCAAT. Adding Trae Young and Brady Manek makes a big difference. In fact, it’s not an absolute certainty that right now UNC is better than Oklahoma.
OU like us torched their first two opponents, one of which was a Samford-quality team and the other a probable cream puff. Neither is likely the quality of Bucknell or Fresno. It’s difficult to judge just how good they are, but they could not have dismantled their opponents any more thoroughly. Their ceiling is unknown, but their floor is most likely at-large bid or bubble. OU had an eFG% over 60% in both games. Trae Young looked one-and-done good. They have a lot of shooting with a quality, experienced big in the middle. Fresno was probably a good warmup for Oklahoma.
They haven’t faced a defense as good as ours, but the same is true for us as well. OU allowed nothing inside in either game, boards or points. They did give up some treys in one game, and they don’t pressure the ball. Shot-denial, get-the-board defense hasn’t been optimum against us the last few years. Hopefully that holds true.
On paper it looks like a close game, and I’m not not sure that we will be the favorite.