What’s up, everybody?

In the second round at the Pullman Golf Regional, senior Blaine Hale carded a program-record low of 62 (-8) to help keep the Oklahoma Sooners in second place through two rounds.

Just the day before, Hale’s teammate Garett Reband turned in an opening round of 64, which marked the lowest opening round by a Sooner ever in NCAA Regional play. After coming into Pullman as the No. 1 seed, Oklahoma is within striking distance of Texas A&M’s three-stroke lead.

The third and final round will begin Wednesday at 9:30 a.m. CT for OU, as the Sooners will be paired with the first-place Aggies and Georgia Tech, which currently sits in third. The low five teams out of 14 will advance to the NCAA Championship.

Now for today’s Hot Links! UMBC will try to slay another top-seeded giant in Oklahoma, the Sooners’ backfield is loaded with talent and experience, the 2019 NBA Lottery gets rolling tonight and more!

OU Links

• Every college football season, a group of Oklahoma Sooners gain the status of being the new faces of the team. Last season, guys like Kyler Murray, Marquise Brown and really the offensive line as a whole represented the team’s identity. So who could this year’s group be? OU Insider’s Joey Helmer offers his take, and when looking at all the players who should be the faces of the team this year, it makes me excited for those who may not be on the radar as of now but in time will step to the forefront to take on more of a leadership role.

• Going into the NCAA Softball Tournament, Oklahoma is the unanimous No. 1 team in the NFCA poll, and rightfully so. Winning 39 consecutive games and losing only twice (to fellow top 10 teams) makes for quite the compelling argument.

• The Tulsa World’s Guerin Emig wrote about the parallels between UMBC’s matchup with No. 1 seeded Virginia in 2018 and the school’s upcoming softball bout against top-ranked Oklahoma. Could the Retrievers pull off another historic upset this Friday in Norman?
• In the fourth episode of ‘Why Oklahoma’, Rodney Anderson, Kyler Murray and crew talk about the benefits of patience for young players coming into the fold.

• Trey Sermon and Kennedy Brooks are poised to be the Big 12’s top backfield duo this fall. As long as the Sooners’ retooled offensive line comes together, Oklahoma’s run game should once again be among the best in the nation.

• 2019 Florida signee Chris Steele has announced his decision to transfer to Oregon. Oklahoma was in the running during his initial recruitment, and now the Ducks have gained the DB’s services.

• Jackie Stiles has built herself quite the reputation in the world of women’s college basketball both as a player and a coach. After six seasons at Missouri State, her next challenge is to help Sherri Coale restore the OU program back to its winning ways. The Sooners’ new assistant coach recently spoke about her latest venture plus her own personal battle off the court. Eric Bailey of the Tulsa World has more.
• In case you missed it, class of 2020 three-star OL Noah Nelson announced his verbal commitment to Oklahoma on Monday. The Gilbert, Arizona product stands at a towering 6’8” and potentially adds another great offensive tackle for Bill Bedenbaugh to mold.

Around the Sports World

• Cleveland, New York and Phoenix all have great chances to win the first overall pick in tonight’s NBA Draft Lottery. So what all is at stake for teams in the hunt for Zion Williamson?

• Kevin Durant is expected to miss tonight’s Game 1 between the Golden State Warriors and the Portland Trailblazers after suffering a calf-strain during the Houston series.
• New York Yankees third-baseman Miguel Andujar has been placed back on the 10-day injured list after suffering a right labrum tear.
• Bobby Petrino is out at Louisville, and Scott Satterfield is in. The former Appalachian State coach has his work cut out for him, but by all accounts he’s the right man for the job. Bill Connelly previews the Cardinals’ 2019 season.
• A nine-year-old girl wrote Joel Embiid a letter after the 76ers were eliminated from the playoffs, and it’s quite possibly the sweetest, most pure thing I’ve read in a while. Great stuff.

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