NORMAN —
When a slumping player carries a team for a half, winning gets a whole lot easier. It happened for Oklahoma on Wednesday night in its 81-63 victory over Texas Tech at Lloyd Noble Center.
The slump belonged to forward Andrew Fitzgerald. The senior hadn’t scored in double figures since the season opener. In the 13 games since, he was shooting just 39.1 percent and hadn’t scored more than nine points in any of those games.
Something changed in the first half against the Red Raiders.
Fitzgerald pumped in 10 points before halftime en route to 12 points.
“I thought Andrew really carried us through that stretch,” OU coach Lon Kruger said,” he had a great stretch.”
The Sooners, who improved to 12-3 overall and 3-0 in the Big 12 Conference, needed every one of those baskets. They were the reason they buried the Red Raiders (8-7, 1-3) in the second half, instead of needing it to grab the lead.
Romero Osby, who led the Sooners with 17 points, scored 15 in the second half and was the unstoppable force Texas Tech had no answer for. The forward positioned himself on the block and wouldn’t budge.
“Coach and my teammates did a good job of running stuff for me and getting the ball to me in good spots. I was trying to post up deep so they wouldn’t have time to double-team me,” Osby said. “They found me in spots where I didn’t have to work too hard to make moves.”
It wasn’t that easy for Fitzgerald. He scored off of jump shots, put-backs and an occasional layup. Wednesday night, he looked like the player who had averaged over 12 points a game his sophomore and junior seasons instead of the one averaging 5.5.
What changed?
“My coaches and my teammates have been trying to build my confidence up. The first couple games … well, the last couple games I was in a slump,” he said. “I guess today, I wasn’t really trying to score. I was trying to rebound and get it on the defensive end and whatever happens, happens. I’m really thankful the coaches did what they did to get me through this slump I’ve been going through.”
On the back of Fitzgerald, the Sooners held a 34-29 halftime lead. They extended it throughout the final 20 minutes.
Osby asserted himself and freshman guard Buddy Hield did the same, scoring 14 of his 16 points in the second half.
When it ended, OU had a very balanced stat sheet. Steven Pledger added 11 points and Cameron Clark came off the bench to add 10.
The Sooners shot 47.5 percent (28-for-59), but that effort was greatly aided by a 15-for-26 effort in the second half.
“We had better shots and more efficiency in the second half,” Kruger said. “We had some offensive boards that kept them from doing what they wanted to do defensively.”
The Red Raiders (8-7, 1-3) were led by Dejan Kravic’s 20-point, nine-rebound effort. Jaye Crockett added a double-double (11 points, 10 rebounds) off the bench. Texas Tech shot 42.4 percent (25-for-59).
The win was the Sooners’ fifth straight and gave them a 3-0 start to Big 12 Conference play for the first time since 2009. It’s a lot easier to do that when production comes from unexpected places.
“Good balance in scoring has been a trademark for this group at this point. That’s great,” Kruger said. “Defensively, it’s hard to sit on one or two scorers when have a group of guys step up.”
Wednesday night it was Fitzgerald who made the leap.
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Sooners top Texas Tech
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Bronchos hit final match play spot in first round
Dillon Rust got off to a blazing start and ended up shooting a one-under-par 70 to lead Central Oklahoma in the second round of the NCAA Division II Men’s Golf Championships in Hershey, Pa. Tuesday.
Rust birdied four of his first five holes en route to his under-par round and the Bronchos ended up with a 300 on the day, giving them a 36-hole total of 597. The 300 leaves UCO eighth in the 20-team field heading into final round of stroke play, with the top eight teams advancing to match play that will determine the national champion. -
Area players earn All-State honors on the diamond
Three area baseball players were selected to the All-State Team this week.
Right-handed pitcher Holden Lyons from Edmond North, made the team after posting a perfect 7-0 mark with a 1.65 earned run average.
Deer Creek’s Cole Lindley made it as an outfielder and Oklahoma Christian’s Austin Brooks landed on the list in the designated hitter’s spot.
The threesome will compete on the Large West squad on July 30 at Oral Roberts University in Tulsa. -
Tennis camps offered in Edmond
Edmond Raquet Club is offering a pair of tennis camps beginning May 28.
For ages 5-8, a camp is offered from 8:45-9:30 a.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays and for ages 7-15 a tennis camp is available from 6-6:55 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Both camps run from May 28-June 13 and cost is $99 per camp.
A camp session for ages 8-16 will run on Mondays and Wednesdays from 8:30-9:25 a.m. May 29-June 12 for the identical cost.
For more information concerning these camps and others, call 341-4241. -
UCO winds up 10th nationally
Taylor Neidy fired a final-round 75, but Central Oklahoma failed to move up in the team standings at the NCAA Division II Women’s Golf Championships in Daytona Beach, Fla. Saturday.
The Bronchos closed with a 323 — making 11 double bogeys and three triples — and finished 10th in the four-day, 72-hole tournament with a 1,298 total on the 6,228-yard, par-72 Arthur Hills Legends Course at LPGA International.
Lynn ended Nova Southeastern’s four-year reign as national championships, finishing with a 1,187 total to edge the Sharks by three strokes. -
Central Oklahoma softballers make World Series again
Hayley Hudson gave Central Oklahoma a 5-4 lead with a run-scoring single in the fifth inning and the No. 19-ranked Bronchos staved off a seventh-inning Winona State threat to capture the NCAA Division II Central Super Regional championship Saturday afternoon at Edmond North High School.
The Warriors put two runners on with two outs in the bottom of the seventh in a bid to pull out a late win and force a deciding game in the best-of-three series, but left fielder Devyn Frazier made a running catch in foul territory for the final out to set off a wild celebration on the field.
UCO improved to 47-11 — a school-record for wins — with its 23th consecutive home victory and advanced to the Division II World Series for the second straight year. The Bronchos will face Armstrong Atlantic in the eight-team World Series at 11 a.m. Thursday in Salem, Va.
“I’d say that was a nail-biter,” head coach Genny Stidham said. “It was a good game, both teams played well. Winona has a great team and they didn’t give up, but we came up with some big plays and came out on top. -
Central Oklahoma golf coach picks up award
Central Oklahoma’s Michael Bond has been named the NCAA Division II Central Region Coach of the Year by the Women’s Golf Coaches Association, with Aly Seng and Erica Bensch both earning All-Central Region honors.
Bond led the Bronchos to perhaps the best season in school history in 2012-13 with top-five finishes in 10 of their 12 tournaments. UCO won three titles, including the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association crown and its first-ever regional championship, and finished 10th in the Division II national tournament. -
Workman's blast cranks UCO's engine; Bronchos cruise to 5-2 win
Nicole Workman’s solo home run gave Central Oklahoma a lead it would never relinquish and the No. 19-ranked Bronchos went on to topple Winona State 5-2 in the first game of the NCAA Division II Central Super Regional Friday night at the Edmond North High School Softball Complex.
Workman blasted her 14th homer of the season to lead off the second inning, with UCO adding three runs in the third and one more in the fifth to take a commanding 5-0 lead before the Warriors created some anxious moments in their final at bat.
WSU scored two runs and had runners on second and third on with just one out in the top of the seventh, but Kalynn Shrock got the final two batters to close out her fourth straight complete-game outing of the postseason and put the Bronchos in control of the best-of-three series. -
Richters rip competition at KickingBird
The KickingBird 2-man scramble was won by Jeff and Josh Richter, finishing with a 57.9 on May 11.
Jeff Jester and Kevin Wright wrapped up second-place honors with a 59.9 and Rick Morales and Ronnie Roberts placed third (60.1).
In the second flight, the top score was 60.4 by Jerry Bernhardt and Ted Carter. Picking up silver was the tandem of Jerry Fuller and Ramona Jacobi (61.2) and the third-place squad was Dyke Hoppe and Mark VanSickle at 62.0.
Morales was closest to the pin on No. 6 and Jeff Richter landed a dart on hole 14. -
Eagles' season finished; Lopez earns national honor
Southeastern, Fla. eliminated Oklahoma Christian 4-0 om the National Christian College Athletic Association World Series in Mason, Ohio today to advance to the tournament semifinals, while OC closes at 26-26.
OC would have advanced to the semifinals with a win, but completed a terrific turnaround from an 8-34 season in 2012. The Eagles made only the second national-tournament appearance in the program's history, with the other coming in 1972, when OC finished third in the NAIA World Series. -
Multiple baseball camps offered in Edmond
Edmond Schools baseball coaches Kyle Roberts (Edmond Memorial), Jeff Shafer (Edmond Santa Fe) and Karl King (Edmond North) will instruct the Edmond All-Star Baseball Camps starting May 28 at Edmond North High School.
A pair of all-skills camps will take place for kids ages 5 and older from May 28-31 and June 3-6. Times are the same, 9 a.m.-2 p.m.
On June 7, a pitcher/catcher camp will be offered for ages 8 and older with the identical time frame. Cost is $35 for the pitcher/catcher camp and $125 for the all-skills camp.
For further inquiries, contact Karl King at 863-3570. - More Sports Headlines
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Bronchos hit final match play spot in first round
