Clark leads the way with 16 points
The Oklahoma Sooners dropped their sixth straight game Saturday, as they fell 80-69 at the hand of the sharp shooting Iowa State Cyclones. Though it wasn’t the 15 treys nailed in the first meeting between the two squads, the Cyclones knocked down their fair share of threes, going 11-22 from long range on the afternoon.
The Sooners got the aid from their role players they had been asking for all season long, as Cameron Clark and Sam Grooms combined for 28 points on 13-25 shooting and Carl Blair and Tyler Neal added an additional 22. Making Cameron Clark the Sooner Player of the Game. However, it was the regulars who didn’t show this time. Andrew Fitzgerald and Steven Pledger combined for just 9 points on 3-16 shooting.
This combined with the barrage of threes proved too much for the Sooners to handle.
Overall it was one of the better defensive performances from the Sooners this season, who forced 17 Cyclone miscues. They were much more active in their defensive sets, and challenge most of the Cyclones shots. It was the second chances however that plagued the Sooners. They were outrebounded by a margin of 11.
Sadly, it looks as if even the hope of an NIT bid is now too good to be true for the Sooners. It’s hard to believe that just a few weeks ago, many considered this team which is now 13-13 on the season, to be on the bubble for the real deal, the NCAA Tournament. Luckily for the Sooners, there does seem to be hope on the horizon, with rebuilding wizard Lon Kruger at the helm. As of right now though, it appears another losing season may need to be endured by Sooner fans.
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