Lon Kruger's Sooners reached 20-wins for the first time since a Blake Griffin led team won 30 in the 2008-2009 season. Oklahoma's 20th win came Wednesday in Norman against West Virginia. OU beat the Mountaineers 83-70.
Romero Osby had a game-high 26-points while Steven Pledger added 23.
Oklahoma had a 17-point lead in the second half and saw West Virginia cut it down to three. The Sooners worked it back out to 13 just to have the Mountaineers reduce it to four with five minutes left. OU would run away with the game after that.
The Sooners improve to 20-9 on the year, 11-6 in Big 12 play. Oklahoma ends the regular season on the road at TCU Saturday at 4:00pm.
Here are some notes provided by the University of Oklahoma.
•
Oklahoma improved to 20-9 on the season and to 11-6 in Big 12 play with
its 83-70 win over West Virginia. The Mountaineers' loss was their
fifth in a row as they fell to 13-17 and 6-11.
• OU's victory was its third of the season against West Virginia.
Tonight's game marked the first time in Big 12 history that two teams
squared off for the third time in a regular season. The squads played a
November non-conference game in the Old Spice Classic.
• For the fourth consecutive home game, the Sooners never trailed.
The last time they were behind at Lloyd Noble Center was five home games
ago (Feb. 9) vs. Kansas (14-13 with 14:27 left in first half). They
never trailed against TCU, Baylor, Iowa State or West Virginia. OU led
or was tied for each of its last 194 minutes and 26 seconds at home.
• The Sooners posted their 27th 20-win season and first since the 2008-09 campaign.
• OU shot 50.0 percent from the field, 55.6 percent from 3-point
range (season-high 10 makes) and 77.8 percent from the free throw line
(21-for-27).
• Oklahoma outrebounded West Virginia 33-25 and converted its 14
offensive rebounds into 23 second-chance points. The Mountaineers came
into the game outboarding their opponents by 2.2 per game.
• West Virginia shot 52.9 percent from the field, its best
performance in nine games and second best in Big 12 play. It snapped a
string of seven straight games that OU outshot its opponent from the
floor.
• OU finished the season with a 12-2 home record. Its two losses
came by a combined three points (56-55 to Stephen F. Austin and 52-50 to
Kansas State). The Sooners finished 8-1 at home in Big 12 play (won
final five).
• The Sooners surpassed the 80-point mark for the fifth straight game. They are averaging 86.2 during the stretch.
• Oklahoma has won six of its last eight games with the only two
losses during the stretch coming in overtime on the road (at Oklahoma
State and Texas). The Sooners did not trail in the second half in
either of those defeats.
• Senior forward Romero Osby continued his strong offensive
play, scoring a game-high 26 points on 9-for-14 field goal and 7-for-8
free throw shooting while also pulling down six rebounds. Over the last
six games, Osby is averaging 22.5 points on 58.9 percent field goal
shooting. He has shot at least 50 percent from the field in 18 of the
last 22 games and has led OU in scoring (or tied for the lead) in 12 of
its 17 Big 12 outings.
• Senior guard Steven Pledger scored a season-high 23 points
and grabbed a game-high eight rebounds. He was 7-for-14 from the field,
5-for-10 from the 3-point line and 4-for-4 from the foul line. Pledger
is 27-for-54 from 3-point range over the last six games and has scored
at least 14 points in all six (averaging 19.0). He needs 12 more
3-point makes to tie Terry Evans for first on OU's career list.
• Senior guard Sam Grooms tied a career high with 10 assists
while adding eight points on 3-for-3 field goal shooting. He committed
three turnovers on the night and upped his season assist-to-turnover
ratio to a Big 12-best 2.6. Over the last six outings, he is averaging
13.8 points (54.2 percent shooting) and 5.8 assists.
