STILLWATER – We’re just a few days away from a great Bedlam double-header down in Oklahoma City at Paycom Center. The Cowboys are first up with a noon CT tip on FOX and the Cowgirls are 3 p.m. CT on ESPNU.
As far as match ups and games go, these games are more anticipated than in recent years. The Cowboys are currently off to a 9-0 start to the season and are receiving enough votes to check in at No. 27 in the latest AP Poll. They’re coming off an 84-78 win over Grand Canyon this past weekend, just ahead of OU’s 86-70 loss to Arizona State on the same court a few hours later.
So, in a rare moment, the Cowboys’ staff had a chance for an in-person scout of the Sooners.
“I wish I would’ve gotten to watch them, unfortunately I had to do media after the game, which takes up a substantial amount of time. And then after that, we had plane issues, so we had to get out of there. With that being said, our staff stuck around and scouted the [ASU-OU] game like they did ours, and they think [OU] is a very good basketball team.
“It should be a heck of a game on Saturday, it should be two great games on Saturday, to be honest with you, I mean you’ve got two women’s teams that are ranked in the top 25, you’ve got us who’s close to being ranked in the AP Poll. Oklahoma, who I think is a good team, I watched their Gonzaga game, and they got done early but in the second half, they beat Gonzaga. Porter [Moser’s] got a bunch of new guys like I do, we’re still trying to find our way, but he’ll have them ready to play on Saturday.”
The Sooners are led by journeyman guard Nijel Pack, former Kansas State and Miami player. He’s started in all nine games for the Sooners, averaging 17 points per game on 50% shooting from the floor and nearly 49% from 3-point range. He’s also second on the stat sheet with 27 assists.
Another player Lutz mentions in his next quote is Tae Davis, who’s posting just over 13 points per game on 53% shooting from the floor, and Xzayvier Brown, who’s posting 13 points per game on 44% shooting from the floor and leading the team with 31 assists.
“Nijel Pack, I think is one of their leading scorers and obviously has been a ball-dominant guard who’s scored the ball at several levels for several schools for several years,” said Lutz. “But that’s not to discount [Xzayvier] Brown or Tae Davis and all those other guys, I mean [Moser’s] got a good team. It’s a different team than last year but they’re longer, they’re athletic, they can play in transition, they can shoot, they rebound the basketball at a high level, and we’ll have our hands full. It should be a fun afternoon.”
Does this in-person scout give the Pokes a leg up on the Sooners? No, because the Sooners’ coaching staff had guys in the crowd for the Pokes’ win over Grand Canyon. But it should make it for a much more exciting game.
