The quick start to the season gave the Oklahoma Sooners a false sense of security heading into conference play. While OU was able to pull off a few upsets, conference play was a completely different monster as Oklahoma was only able to grab five conference wins.
Now, heading into the Big XII Tourney, the Sooners had a bit of confidence. They were to face a familiar foe for the second time in less than a week in the Texas A&M Aggies. However, the story would flip as the Aggies lead the charge taking a 27-22 half time lead.
The duo of David Loubeau and Khris Middleton would combine for 30 points and 16 rebounds. This would total nearly half the total points scored by the Aggies as they proved to be too much to handle. From the outside, Elston Turner poured in another 14 points hitting his season average. These three players were the perfect storm for which Oklahoma never had an answer.
You know it's a bad night scoring wise when Sam Grooms is the second leading scorer for the Sooners. One thing Oklahoma had to accomplish was getting the ball in the hands of Romero Osby who finished with a game high 17 points. Grooms added 13 and no one else hit the double digit mark. Cameron Clark continued his rebounding prowess and came up with 8 boards.
Simply put, the Sooners were dominated in every aspect as the Aggies pulled down 36 boards to Oklahoma's 26. Texas A&M was able to get 55 shots off to OU's 46 and more chances usually add up to more points. The Aggies only missed a total of two free throws after shooting roughly 64% on the season.
However, on the bright side, it would appear that the Sooners are in a much better place than they were before the arrival of Lon Kruger.