Oklahoma

3 thoughts before the Dallas Mavericks face off against the Oklahoma City Thunder

Published

8 months ago

May 8, 2024

3 thoughts before the Dallas Mavericks face off against the Oklahoma City Thunder

The Dallas Mavericks will take on the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 2 of the Western Conference semi-finals Thursday night at Paycom Center. The Mavericks will be looking to even the series after losing Game 1. They’ll need to win a game in Oklahoma City to win the series, so it might as well be Game 2.

Dallas looked a little off as Game 1 went on Tuesday night. It was easy to tell the Thunder had been sitting around waiting for their next opponent, developing some rust. The Mavericks, meanwhile, showed some carry-over rhythm from their series against the Los Angeles Clippers. But eventually the Thunder found their footing and showed why they’re the number one seed. The Mavericks will have to play a solid 48 minutes in order to escape down I-35 with a victory Thursday night.

Here are three things to think about before the game:

Rebound, just a little, please

The Mavericks were out-rebounded by the Thunder 52-39, and 16-11 on the offensive glass. That led to a 25-15 OKC advantage on second-chance points. That just can’t happen against Oklahoma City. The Thunder finished the regular season 29th in defensive rebounding rate. They tightened things up after the all-star break, finishing 12th in that span. But the Mavericks are bigger and longer, and have more experience. They should be winning the rebounding battle, or at the very least, be even with the Thunder. Giving a team like Oklahoma City more possessions is dangerous, considering their shooting ability.

Doncic and Irving must be better

Your instinct might be to defend the Mavericks’ star backcourt duo. “They carry this team night after night, why can’t someone else step up when they have an off game?”

But that’s not how the Mavericks are built. Dallas can get away with offensively limited but defensively oriented role players like P.J. Washington, Derrick Jones Jr., and Dereck Lively II because Doncic and Irving can more than carry the load on offense. The Mavericks don’t need their role players to get buckets—the two superstars take care of that. But if they don’t, Dallas just doesn’t have another option to create offense. Doncic and Irving combining for less than forty points, like they did in Game 1, is just a recipe for disaster.

Make free throws, I’m begging you

The Mavericks went 17-of-25 from the charity stripe in Game 1, 68 percent. That didn’t matter for the final score, but this series won’t be a parade of blowouts. There will be close games. Dallas can’t take the risk of coming a free throw or two short against a team as talented as the Thunder. For whatever reason, free throw shooting has been an issue for the Mavericks for the last few years. They’ve got to get that figured out, before it costs them a close game at the absolute worst time.

How to watch

The game tips off 8:30 p.m. CDT on ESPN.

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Oklahoma

Gophers help fill need on defense with Oklahoma State linebacker

Published

8 hours ago

January 10, 2025

Press Room

Gophers help fill need on defense with Oklahoma State linebacker

The Gophers football program addressed a need in the middle of its defense for the 2025 season with Oklahoma State linebacker Jeff Roberson on Thursday night.

The 6-foot-2, 225-pound graduate transfer from Choctaw, Okla., totaled 58 tackles, including 8.5 for lost yards, three sacks and one interception in 12 games in 2024. He had a middling 57.7 grade from Pro Football Focus, along with 19 pressures, but also 11 missed tackles last season.

Roberson played 670 snaps last season, but only 107 across 2021 and 2023. He played special teams as a freshman in 2020 and missed the 2022 season with injury.

Roberson will help fill the void left by leading tackler Cody Lindenberg; the Anoka native declared for the NFL draft after the regular season and skipped the Duke’s Mayo Bowl. Maverick Baranowski and Devon Williams top the U’s depth chart at linebacker going into next season.

The Gophers have added 15 total players via the NCAA transfer portal since early December and are still looking for help at cornerback and possibly defensive line.

Originally Published: January 10, 2025 at 12:00 AM CST

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Oklahoma

Ole Miss Linebacker Transfer Trip White Commits to Oklahoma State

Published

15 hours ago

January 9, 2025

Press Room

Ole Miss Linebacker Transfer Trip White Commits to Oklahoma State

TRANSFER PORTAL TRACKER

The Cowboys went to the SEC to pick another linebacker out of the portal.

Ole Miss transfer Trip White, who was listed at 6-foot-3, 220 pounds last season, pledged to Oklahoma State, according to CBS Sports’ Matt Zenitz. White played in all 13 of the Rebels’ games this past season, his redshirt sophomore year. He made one tackle, primarily playing special teams.

White played in three games while maintaining a redshirt as a true freshman in 2022. He appeared in five games in 2023, and to this point has totaled nine career tackles.

Out of Parkview Magnet in Little Rock, Arkansas, White was a three-star prospect in the 2022 recruiting class and chose Ole Miss over offers from Arkansas, Kansas State, Baylor, Louisville, Oklahoma State, Indiana and others. The 247Sports Composite system tabbed White as the No. 1,103 player in the class, the No. 109 linebacker in the class and the No. 12 player from Arkansas in 2022. He also started as his team’s quarterback as a high school senior, throwing for 2,035 yards and 19 touchdowns to go with 445 rushing yards and seven more scores.

White becomes the third linebacker the Pokes have grabbed out of the portal, joining Bryan McCoy (Akron) and Brandon Rawls (Saginaw Valley State). White’s addition comes a few days after Jeff Roberson hopped in the portal. With Roberson, Nick Martin, Collin Oliver and Kendal Daniels all gone from last season’s squad, OSU’s linebacker room — like most position rooms — will look quite a bit different heading into 2025. Kap Dede is set to coach that group, with new OSU defensive coordinator Todd Grantham bringing him in from Western Kentucky.

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Oklahoma

Trio of Oklahoma Sooners selected to preseason All-American teams

Published

23 hours ago

January 9, 2025

Press Room

Trio of Oklahoma Sooners selected to preseason All-American teams

The Oklahoma Sooners will open the 2025 softball season on Feb. 6 against the CSUN Matadors in San Diego. After a historic season, Oklahoma faces a lot of turnover after losing a number of fixtures in the lineup to graduation.

The Sooners certainly aren’t lacking for talent, however, as a trio of players were named to Softball America’s preseason All-American teams on Tuesday.

Sophomore outfielder Kasidi Pickering and Utility/DP Ella Parker were named to Softball America’s first team. Newcomer Abby Dayton was named to the second team.

Parker led the Oklahoma Sooners with a .415 batting average from the utility role. She also had 13 home runs and 62 RBIs as a true freshman. Parker hit .500 over Oklahoma’s final four games to clinch their fourth-straight national title.

Pickering hit .389 with 12 home runs and 51 RBIs as a true freshman for the Sooners. In the Women’s College World Series final against Texas, she had home runs in both games against the Texas Longhorns to win the championship.

Abby Dayton is one of a number of impact transfers for the Oklahoma Sooners this season. She led the Pac-12 in batting average, hitting .431 and also had an on-base percentage of .510 for the Utah Utes.

The Oklahoma Sooners will have a new look, but led by this trio of stars, the defending national champions will be ready to compete in the SEC.

More: 5 Oklahoma Sooners included in Softball America’s top 100

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