Happy Monday, friends and fans!
Oklahoma Sooners senior forward Kristian Doolittle has been named the Big 12 Player of the Week for the second time this season after his statistically impressive run against some stout competition.
Doolittle was the only #Big12MBB player to average 1️⃣5️⃣+ points and + rebounds last week.
— Big 12 Conference (@Big12Conference) December 23, 2019
He leads the Conference in scoring during the month of December with 2️⃣0️⃣.8️⃣ points.
Kristian Doolittle (@kristiandoolit1) is the Player of the Week. pic.twitter.com/T5BK2xMwPZ
With one more non-conference game remaining before Big 12 play finally tips off, if OU is going to make any noise in the conference title race, it’ll likely be because of Doolittle’s productivity and clutch performances.
Now onto this week’s Monday edition of Hot Links! Expect to see a lot more purple & gold than crimson & cream inside Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Parnell Motley has come a long way as a person and a player, there’s a chance for Skittles in Seattle and more!
OU Links
- According to Ed Orgeron, LSU Tigers running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire is now moving around without the assistance of a scooter or crutches but is still uncertain for Saturday. Edward-Helaire, who suffered a hamstring injury last week, has rushed for 1,290 yards and 16 touchdowns and has also recorded 50 receptions for 399 yards and one TD in 2019.
Ed Orgeron on Clyde Edwards Helaire: He's a little bit better. He's off crutches and off the scooter. We will see if he can do anything tomorrow ... I don't know if he's going to play. It'll be day-by-day. #Sooners
— Eric Bailey (@EricBaileyTW) December 23, 2019
- Speaking of OU hoops, the Sooners are one of eight teams that have been invited to the 2020 Diamond Head Classic in Hawaii next Christmas. If you recall, Oklahoma won this tournament in 2015. Boomer!
Christmas in Hawaii!
— Oklahoma Basketball (@OU_MBBall) December 22, 2019
The #Sooners are one of eight teams who will play in the 2020 Diamond Head Classic next December. https://t.co/DOhCzDlrRR pic.twitter.com/D7e6iksAjb
- Sooners Wire’s Kegan Reneau notes that LSU fans figure to heavily outnumber Oklahoma fans in Atlanta this Saturday, according to a recent updated look into ticket sales. This will be nothing new for OU in the CFP, but it does add to the underdog narrative that has gradually evolved over the last two weeks.
- The Tulsa World’s Eric Bailey caught up with ESPN’s Todd Blackledge — one of the commentators set to call the Peach Bowl semifinal between Oklahoma and LSU. Blackledge was there when the Sooners upset Alabama in the Sugar Bowl years ago, and he’s giving OU a better chance than a lot of others are against the Tigers.
- Believe it or not, both Oklahoma and LSU are each riding their own waves of momentum heading into the College Football Playoff. The Tigers’ is from an undefeated regular season and all the postseason awards, while the Sooners draw momentum from their role as massive underdogs, explains the Norman Transcript’s Tyler Palmateer.
- Senior CB Parnell Motley has faced a lot of adversity on the field throughout his OU career, but through it all he’s risen up and persevered. Now he’s about to face his greatest challenge as a Sooner, but fortunately for he and his teammates, he’s raring to make a lasting impression, writes the OU Daily’s Vic Reynolds.
- Make sure you check out Allen’s glance into Oklahoma’s less-than-stellar red zone defense in recent years. While the numbers show opponents have had a high rate of success from that area of the field, is playing red zone defense really a matter of simply playing differently, or could it be something else?
Around the Sports World
- Kyle Lowry led the Toronto Raptors to their largest comeback win in franchise history after trailing the Dallas Mavericks by as many as 30 points. The reigning champs ultimately prevailed, 110-107.
- Speaking of the Great White North, the Toronto Blue Jays have signed LHP Hyun-Jin Ryu to a four-year, $80 million deal.
- CBS Sports’ Will Brinson has an updated look at every possible seeding scenario remaining for the NFL Playoffs with one week left to play before the postseason kicks off.
- The Seattle Seahawks could be reuniting with Marshawn Lynch for one final playoff run after recent reports of ‘Beast Mode’ traveling to the Emerald City. Seattle is in dire need of talent at the running back position after losing now three players for the season.
- South Carolina’s Tyasha Harris made one of the most amazing last second shots I’ve ever seen in a basketball game. 70 feet, one handed, running the opposite direction, and all of this with almost no time to line up the attempt. Baller stuff.
.@TyHarris_52 from WAAAAY beyond half court #SCtop10 pic.twitter.com/ACkDI8QWg4
— SEC Network (@SECNetwork) December 22, 2019
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