A Closer Look At The Oklahoma Sooners

Oklahoma (14-7; 5-4), having lost three of its previous four games, plays host to No. 5 Kansas (19-3; 7-2) on Saturday at 3:00 p.m. (central). Jayhawk Slant is here to provide you with a closer look at the Sooners.

Oklahoma: The Facts

Located in Norman, Okla., with an enrollment of 30,753, Oklahoma is 14-7 on the season and 5-4 in Big 12 play after its 83-64 loss at Iowa State Feb. 4. The Sooners are coached by Lon Kruger who is 29-23 in his second season at OU and 508-327 in his 27th season overall. Oklahoma is 7-2 at home, 4-4 on the road and 3-1 on neutral courts in 2012-13. OU averages 67.4 points per game and gives up 63.5 for a +3.9 scoring margin. The Sooners are outrebounding foes 37.3 to 35.4 per game and average 6.9 steals per contest. Oklahoma is second in the Big 12 in free throw percentage at 72.5 percent.

Oklahoma has a deep team as nine player's average 15-plus minutes per game. Senior forward Romero Osby leads OU in scoring at 13.8 points per game. He is also the team's top rebounder with a 6.5 average and has a team-high 19 blocked shots. Osby is making 79.8 percent of his free throws, which ranks third in the Big 12. Senior guard Steven Pledger is also scoring in double figures at 10.7 points per game. He has a team-high 40 three-pointers made and his 1.9 three-pointers per game are fifth in the league.

Junior forward Amath M'Baye is second on the team with a 5.7 rebounding average to complement his 10.5 points per game. Freshman guard Buddy Hield scores 8.9 points per game and leads OU with 25 steals, one ahead of Pledger's 24. Hield is making 83.9 percent from the free throw line.

Freshman guard Je'lon Hornbeak scores 4.9 points per contest and is third on the team with 20 steals. Off the bench, senior guard Sam Grooms (2.7 ppg) leads the team with 49 assists in 2012-13. Other OU regulars include junior guard Cameron Clark (6.0 ppg, 2.9 rpg), senior forward Andrew Fitzgerald (5.9 ppg, 3.3 rpg) and freshman guard Isaiah Cousins (3.0 ppg).

Kansas vs. Oklahoma: The Series

This series between Kansas and Oklahoma dates back to 1920 when both schools were members of the Missouri Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Association and Kansas leads, 139-64. Since 2006, the Jayhawks have won 10-straight against the Sooners. Kansas is 49-40 against Oklahoma in games played in Norman, Okla., and holds a 17-15 edge in contests in Lloyd Noble Center. Kansas has won the last four meetings against OU in Lloyd Noble dating back to the 2007 season.

Since the inception of the Big 12 Conference, Kansas is 18-4 against Oklahoma; 16-2 in regular-season play and 2-2 in the Big 12 Championship. Kansas head coach Bill Self is 11-3 all-time against Oklahoma, including 11-1 while at KU. Oklahoma head coach Lon Kruger is 5-13 versus Kansas, including 0-3 while at OU.

Earlier this season, Kansas defeated Oklahoma 67-54 on Jan. 26 in Allen Fieldhouse. KU led 29-21 at halftime and was up by 15 points with just over five minutes to play. KU's Ben McLemore led all scorers with 18 points, while Jeff Withey just missed a double-double with 13 points and nine rebounds. With the win, the Jayhawks improved to 18-1 on the season and 6-0 in conference play. OU's Amath M'Baye and Romero Osby each scored 12 points to pace the Sooners.

A closer look at the Oklahoma Sooners

#00 Ryan Spangler: 6-foot-8, 227-pound forward (So.)

#1 Sam Grooms: 6-foot-1, 203-pound guard (Sr.)

#2 Steven Pledger: 6-foot-4, 219-pound guard (Sr.)

#3 Buddy Hield: 6-foot-3, 199-pound guard (Fr.)

#4 Andrew Fitzgerald: 6-foot-8, 238-pound forward (Sr.)

#5 Je'lon Hornbeak: 6-foot-3, 180-pound guard (Fr.)

#11 Isaiah Cousins: 6-foot-3, 182-pound guard (Fr.)

#13 James Fraschilla: 5-foot-10, 150-pound guard (So.)

#14 Steve Noworyta: 6-foot-7, 200-pound forward (Fr.)

#15 Tyler Neal: 6-foot-7, 229-pound forward (Jr.)

#21 Cameron Clark: 6-foot-6, 208-pound guard (Jr.)

#22 Amath M'Baye: 6-foot-9, 208-pound forward (Jr.)

#24 Romero Osby: 6-foot-8, 232-pound forward (Sr.)

#25 C.J. Cole: 6-foot-6, 225-pound forward (Fr.)

#31 D.J. Bennett: 6-foot-8, 210-pound forward (Jr.)

#32 Casey Arent: 6-foot-10, 223-pound center (Sr.)

Oklahoma Season Statistics

Record: 14-7

Home Record: 7-2

Away Record: 4-4

Neutral Record: 3-1

Big 12 Conference Record: 5-4

National Ranking: NR

Wins: Louisiana-Monroe, UT-Arlington, UTEP, West Virginia, Oral Roberts, Northwestern State, Texas A&M, Ohio, Texas A&M Corpus Christi, @ West Virginia, Oklahoma State, Texas Tech, Texas, @ Baylor,

Losses: Gonzaga, @ Arkansas, Stephen F. Austin, @ Kansas State, @ Kansas, Kansas State, @ Iowa State

Upcoming games: Kansas, TCU, @ Oklahoma State, @ Texas Tech, Baylor, @ Texas, Iowa State, West Virginia, @ TCU

Scoring Leaders:

Romero Osby: 13.8 (29)

Steven Pledger: 10.7 (20)

Amath M'Baye: 10.5 (20)

Buddy Hield: 8.9 (20)

Rebounding Leaders:

Romero Osby: 6.5 (10)

Amath M'Baye: 5.7 (9)

Buddy Hield: 4.6 (11)

Andrew Fitzgerald: 3.3 (8)

Assist Leaders:

Buddy Hield: 2.1 (4)

Steven Pledger: 1.4 (5)

Field Goal Shooting Percentage Leaders:

Romero Osby: 97-of-197 (49.2%)

Amath M'Baye: 88-of-179 (49.2%)

Cameron Clark: 52-of-108 (48.1%)

Andrew Fitzgerald: 53-of-119 (44.5%)

Buddy Hield: 71-of-176 (40.3%)

Steven Pledger: 75-of-188 (39.9%)

3 point Field Goal Shooting Percentage Leaders

Steven Pledger: 40-of-115 (34.8%)

Je'lon Hornbeak: 16-of-46 (34.8%)

Buddy Hield: 19-of-65 (29.2%)

Free-throw Percentage Leaders:

Buddy Hield: 26-of-31 (83.9%)

Romero Osby: 91-of-114 (79.8%)

Cameron Clark: 22-of-28 (78.6%)

Steven Pledger: 34-of-45 (75.6%)

Amath M'Baye: 43-of-60 (71.7%)

Oklahoma: A Look At The Numbers:

Scoring: 1,415 (67.4 PPG)

Scoring Margin: +3.9

Field Goal %: 43 (516-of-1,213)

3-Point FG %: 31 (95-of-307)

3-Pont FG Made Per Game: 4.5

Free-throw %: 73 (288-of-397)

Free-throws Made Per Game: 13.7

Rebounds: 783 (37.3 per game)

Rebounding Margin: +1.9

Assists: 258 (12.3 per game)

Turnovers: 266 (12.7 per game)

Turnover Margin: +1.4

Steals: 145 (6.9 per game)

Blocks: 67 (3.2 per game)

Opponent Averages :

Scoring: 1,222 (63.5 PPG)

Field Goal %: 41 (487-of-1,195)

3-Point FG %: 31 (124-of-401)

3-Pont FG Made Per Game: 5.9

Free-throw %: 70 (235-of-337)

Free-throws Made Per Game: 11.2

Rebounds: 744 (35.4 per game)

Assists: 248 (11.8 per game)

Turnovers: 295 (14.0 per game)

Steals: 142 (6.8 per game)

Blocks: 58 (2.8 per game)