Oklahoma and Kansas State are coming into tonight’s contest each having lost their last two outings. For the Wildcats it was back-to-back road losses at Iowa State and at Houston. For the Sooners it was losing at home to Texas and Texas Tech. Both teams are reeling a bit as they prepare to face each other, but home losses are much more damaging than losses on the road, especially in conference play. Now, OU finds itself in a “must win” position and facing a team that is hoping to get on track now that they’re back on their home court.
Oklahoma at Kansas State
Date: Tuesday, Jan. 30
Tip Time: 7:01 p.m.
TV: ESPN+
Location: Bramlage Coliseum
The Sooners picked up their first true road win of the season when they defeated Cincinnati 69-65 at Fifth Third Arena. This is their first time back out since then, and the first of back-to-back games on the road (at UCF on Saturday). OU is currently locked in a four-way tie for eight place in the Big 12 standings, but can do themselves some real favors by coming home from this road trip having swept both games. That starts tonight in Manhattan, and taking advantage of trips to the free throw is going to be the key factor.
Oklahoma played well enough to win against Texas Tech on Saturday. The top team in the Big 12 sent the Sooners to the free throw line for 24 attempts, and OU only converted 15 of them. Nine missed free throws is hard to look at when you’re discussing a 1-point home loss to the team that is sitting atop the conference standings. The Sooners beat the Red Raiders on the boards, shot a higher percentage from three-point range, forced 10 turnovers, and came away with six steals. Bricking nine free throw attempts was the culprit on Saturday and the performance from the charity stripe has to get better moving forward.
OU ranks 43rd nationally in free throw percentage (75.3%) so you have to think that their 62.5% performance against the Red Raiders was an anomaly. I guess we’ll know more after tonight.
Team Stats
| TEAM | PTS | PA | FG% | REB | AST | BLK | STL | STRK |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| OU | 78.6 | 66.6 | 48.0 | 37.3 | 14.4 | 3.5 | 6.8 | L2 |
| KSU | 73.0 | 68.2 | 43.7 | 37.5 | 14.8 | 4.6 | 6.9 | L2 |
Senior Rivaldo Soares recorded his first double-double as a Sooner against Texas Tech on Saturday. He finished with a team-high 19 points on 6-for-10 shooting, 10 rebounds and four assists, giving Oklahoma a scoring boost off the bench. Backed by Soares performance, the Sooner bench produced 30 points. Finding consistency off the bench is another critical key to winning on the road and certainly something to keep an eye on tonight.
Otega Oweh should lead this team in shot attempts each time they play. Yes, he’s the focal point when the opponent is on defense, but good teams find ways to get their best players opportunities to shoot the ball. Oweh ranks 68th nationally in field goal percentage (54.3%) and has to be the guy Oklahoma’s offense runs through.
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