Crimson And Cream Machine: An SB Nation Community

Navigation: Jump to content areas:


Pro Quality. Fan Perspective.
Login-facebook
New Blog: Anonymous Eagle covering Marquette!

Without Blake Giffin Sooners Couldn't Match-Up With Jayhawks


This scene was the worst case scenario for Oklahoma basketball fans

Oklahoma was already facing an uphill battle Monday night at Allen Field House but with an injury to Blake Griffin early in the game the Sooners were like lambs led to a slaughter.

Without their leader in scoring, rebounding and in steals Oklahoma found themselves down by 20 at the half and then on to an 85-55 loss which was the most lopsided loss to the Jayhawks since 1978. The Sooners were out rebounded by 9 (38-29), had 11 turnovers and shot just below 33% from the floor Monday night. That is a performance that won't beat most teams in the conference much less the best team in the country.

The question on the minds of OU fans now is how long Blake Griffin will be out? He is set to under go and MRI on Tuesday for what had been diagnosed earlier as a sprained left knee. The results of the MRI will tell the story of how bad the damage is and how long the Sooners will be without their star.

In the meantime with Texas Tech, a trip to Baylor, Oklahoma State and another trip to college station on tap for the Sooners over the next three weeks the pressure is back on the guards to carry the team. Now more than ever it is crucial that they take care of the ball and create shots off the dribble. Longar Longar's 21 points against the best team in the country proved that he is capable of scoring down low against just about anyone and with all due respect to Oklahoma's future opponents it'll be a while before they face another team with post players of the same caliber of Kansas. So if the guards are on then Longar should be able to continue to put up points and hopefully clean the boards at a little better pace.

Without Blake Griffin a 3-1 record over that stretch would be excellent, 2-2 would be acceptable and 1-3 or worse would be tragic to a team that had showed so much promise coming into conference play.  

UPDATE: Blake Griffin's MRI showed that he suffered from a sprained medial collateral ligament in his left knee. He'll be out three to four weeks.

"We're very glad it's not season ending or career threatening," Jeff Capel. "But it's a huge blow to our team. Blake is our leading scorer and rebounder, and has been playing his best basketball. He was really starting to become the dominant player that we knew he could be.

"Blake's injury affects our frontcourt depth, but it also presents an opportunity for other guys to step up. They have to be ready. We're not going to make any excuses."

0 recs  |  Comment 1 comment

Story-email Email Printer Print

Comments

Display:

Comments For This Post Are Closed


User Tools

Welcome to Crimson and Cream Machine! We are a diverse online community who share in a common bond, the Oklahoma Sooners. Make yourself at home by reading, posting and participating in all that we do.
Start posting about the Sooners »

Join SB Nation and dive into communities focused on all your favorite teams.

Connect_with_facebook

FanPosts

Community blog posts and discussion.

Recent FanPosts

648389_small
Spring Ball - OL
Small
Season Over
648389_small
OU Pro Day
648389_small
Things just got easier
648389_small
Spring Ball - WR/TE
648389_small
Spring Ball - RB/FB
648389_small
Spring Ball Primer
648389_small
Combine update
Small
What is Tubs doing at Tech?
Small
53" inch wall jump!!

+ New FanPost All FanPosts >

SBNation.com Recent Stories

New Mexico forward Roman Martinez, left, pulls down a rebound against Montana center Brian Qvale, right, as New Mexico guard Darington Hobson, bottom right, looks on during the first half of an NCAA first-round college basketball tournament game in San Jose, Calif., Thursday, March 18, 2010. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)

New Mexico Edges Montana, 62-57, For First Tournament Win Since 1999

Tennessee's Wayne Chism celebrates a dunk over San Diego State's Chase Tapley (22) and Tennessee's Melvin Goins (21) during the second half of an NCAA first-round college basketball game in Providence, R.I., Thursday, March 18, 2010. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola)

Goins Helps Tennessee Keep Going In Midwest Region

Wake Forest guard Ishmael Smith (10) is congratulated by guard L.D. Williams (42) after making a shot during an NCAA college basketball game against Texas in New Orleans, Thursday, March 18, 2010. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)

Smith's Last-Second Shot Caps Furious Rally As Wake Forest Wins In OT, 81-80

More from SBNation.com >


Managers

Mattsite__2__small ccmachine

Sbn_small Jon Woods

Authors

N9603153_35992066_5059_small Jubanator14

Official Partner of CBS Sports