OU looks like a championship team

Clay Horning
The Norman Transcript

January 13, 2009 12:43 am

— The Big 12 may be weak this season. Or maybe it’s bound to feel that way any time Kansas is unranked. But if that’s not completely clear, this much is:
Not only is Oklahoma the class of the conference but, far more telling, the Sooners aren’t just playing up to their No. 6 ranking, as they did Monday night taking down No. 11 Texas 78-63, but showing all the signs of being a championship squad, too.
Monday night was interesting.
OU got out to an early lead and never really gave it up. Yet it was hardly so simple. Because to get that lead, maintain it and build it, the Sooners did a whole lot right and very little wrong.
Neither team ever really established a rhythm. That OU somehow shot better than 50 percent (27 of 53) was testament to a lot of things. Imposing its offensive will on the Longhorns wasn’t one of them, which only made the 15-point spread more impressive.
OU ran when it could, took advantage of turnovers when it could and got to the free throw line the way a team’s supposed to get to the free-throw line playing on its home court.
But the Sooners also turned in huge singular plays, suffered no excruciating lulls and the only time it got a little uncomfortable, turned on a defense that pushed the Longhorns into eight straight empty trips down the court.
“That was huge,” said Blake Griffin, who earned all 20 of his points and 10 rebounds.
The way OU took care of business, just when it might lose its second game looks like a really good question.
If the Sooners get past Texas A&M Saturday away, they’ve got Nebraska and Baylor at home, followed by Bedlam and Iowa State on the road, then A&M and Colorado at home.
The next time the oddsmakers might finally like the side opposite OU arrives Feb. 11 at Baylor, another made for ESPN, 8 p.m. start.
Winning 16 of 17, the Sooners would seem to have the whole one-game-at-a-time thing down pat, but that doesn’t mean they can’t think about winning the program’s first outright regular season Big 12 title to go with the three tournament crowns Kelvin Sampson strung together from 2001-’03.
“That’s definitely our goal,” said Tony Crocker, one of four Sooners to score at least 15 points. “You know, we said that before the season: Big 12 regular season champion and tournament champion.”
Keep playing like this and OU will be right there.
Early it was Austin Johnson, then it was Crocker, while Willie Warren and Griffin sort of never went away.
Warren made three runners that might have been quadruple pumps. It was like he waited for his defender to return to the ground each time before letting go of the ball, only he was somehow still in the air.
Early, Griffin hit a 3-pointer from the top of the key to put OU up 15-8. Afterward, Texas coach Rick Barnes bellyached about first-half turnovers and lack of focus when he might have just said, “If Blake Griffin’s going to start knocking down 3s, we might as well just get back on the bus.”
It was his only 3, but it sure looked natural, which, if you’re on the other side, isn’t even fair.
“I shoot it every day in practice,” he said.
Taylor Griffin cold stuffed Texas’ Gary Johnson to ignite OU’s defensive run after the Longhorns got within 54-50 and the Sooners canned 10 of 14 free throws over the last 5:04.
It was more than enough to keep Texas from thinking about a rally.
Barnes had a list of things his team should have done better, but doing more with OU’s lapses wasn’t one of them because there were none.
It’s enough to ponder the possibilities.
Sooner coach Jeff Capel said he hopes this team can reach the Final Four. He said it like there was a chance.
“I’m just saying,” he said, “we’re a good basketball team.”
Clay Horning
366-3526
cfhorning@normantranscript.com