Oklahoma
Injuries to Key Big Men Prove Catastrophic for OKC
Choosing Gonzaga middle Chet Holmgren with the second total choose within the 2022 NBA Draft was presupposed to be step one in fortifying the Oklahoma Metropolis’s inside protection.
Holmgren, who was heralded for his defensive prowess in highschool and school, averaged a whopping 3.7 blocks per recreation as a freshman. His size, footwork and intelligence give the previous five-star recruit plug-and-play potential when he his wholesome.
Because of Holmgren’s season-ending damage over the summer time, nonetheless, OKC entered the season already at an obstacle within the frontcourt. With Aleksej Pokusevski and Jeremiah Robinson-Earl now out of the lineup with accidents of their very own, the Thunder are missing depth at middle.
Oklahoma Metropolis now depends on Jaylin Williams, Eugene Omoruyi, Darius Bazley and Mike Muscala to occupy the large man roles on a nightly foundation. Within the staff’s earlier two outings, 6-foot-10 second spherical rookie Jaylin Williams has been the staff’s tallest starter with 6-foot-8 guard Josh Giddey working because the squad’s second-tallest starter.
This has created points for the Thunder on each ends of the ground, as OKC has missed the rim safety talents of Pokusevski and the power of Robinson-Earl on protection whereas lacking the ground spacing every present on offense. Moreover, Oklahoma Metropolis has been outrebounded in every of its final two video games.
Within the staff’s New 12 months’s Eve matchup towards the Philadelphia 76ers, celebrity middle Joel Embiid recorded a triple-double on the Paycom Heart. Whereas Embiid is a spectacular participant, it’s doubtless that Pokusevski and Robinson-Earl would’ve given the Thunder a greater likelihood at slowing down the previous Kansas Jayhawk.
Offensively, the staff is lacking the output that their two injured huge man often present. Between Pokusevski, a 37.6% 3-point shooter, and Robinson-Earl, a 38% shooter from past the arc, OKC is lacking out on over 17 factors and 10 rebounds per recreation.
Within the two video games since Poku and JRE appeared on the damage report, Jaylin Williams, Omoruyi, Bazley and Muscala have pitched in a mixed 14 factors, three lower than Pokusevski and Robinson-Earl mix to common in a single recreation.
With their two important huge males sidelined for the foreseeable future, it seems as if Oklahoma Metropolis will wrestle early within the New 12 months.
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Oklahoma State has plenty of talent to replace next season, but no one will be more difficult to replace than its star receiver.
Over the past few years, no one has embodied the OSU program better than Brennan Presley. Since he stepped on the field for the first time in 2020, he has been a symbol of consistency for the Pokes.
Although he has played significant roles on a couple of OSU teams that made the Big 12 Championship, he had no issues staying focused throughout the three-win campaign in 2024. In a season where it was easy to find the negatives in just about everything the Cowboys did, Presley remained a bright spot. Entering the season on the Biletnikoff watch list, Presley finished his final collegiate season with 90 catches for 767 yards and seven touchdowns.
The reason Presley will be so difficult to replace is not only because of his impressive numbers each season but also because of how consistent he has been at putting those numbers up.
His consistency led to him breaking the Cowboys’ all-time receptions record in 2024, becoming the first player to cross the 300-catch mark in an OSU uniform by ending his career with 315.
Without Presley out there to be a reliable target next season, there will be some growing pains for whoever suits up under center. Along with always being available for a pass, Presley could be used in a variety of ways.
While it wasn’t his best ability, Presley was also occasionally used as a rusher throughout his career. He ended his OSU tenure with 30 rush attempts for 160 yards and six touchdowns, with most of his carries used as a wrinkle near the goal line.
Of course, the five-year Cowboy was well-known for his ability to return on special teams. His most notable was a kickoff return touchdown in Bedlam in 2021, and 1,667 kick and punt return yards helped him break 5,000 career all-purpose yards.
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An 8-year-old Oklahoma girl is still missing in Texas after floodwaters carried away the family SUV on Christmas Eve.
According to local reports in Sherman, Texas, the SUV ran off the road into a drainage ditch before succumbing to the flood. The Sherman Police Department said six people were inside the vehicle when it crashed.
Four family members were rescued. CBS News reported that the missing girl’s father, Will Robinson, did not survive. Robinson was a coach for the Durant High School Lady Lions basketball team.
By the afternoon of Christmas Day, searchers had covered seven miles of creek in the area without success.
“We are shifting our focus into the county, targeting some possible locations where we have not looked to as yet,” the department wrote on Facebook Wednesday. “Our search will continue until dark today, then we will resume searching again (Thursday) before daylight.”
NORMAN, Okla. — — Raegan Beers matched a career high with 28 points, and No. 10 Oklahoma rolled past Omaha 111-65 on Sunday.
Beers, a 6-foot-4 center, made 11 of 13 field goals and grabbed nine rebounds to help Oklahoma win its fifth straight since an overtime loss to Duke.
Skylar Vann had 12 points, eight rebounds and eight assists and Kiersten Johnson added 12 points for the Sooners (11-1). Oklahoma scored at least 100 points for the third time this season after entering the day ranked fourth nationally with 90.7 points per game.
Ja Harvey scored 21 points and Cora Olsen added 15 for Omaha. The Mavericks (8-5) had won seven straight since a 79-77 loss to Wisconsin, but gave up a season-high point total against the Sooners.
Oklahoma led 52-34 at halftime, with Beers producing 15 points and six rebounds.
The Sooners exploded in the third quarter, outscoring the Mavericks 35-25 to take an 87-59 lead. It matched the most points Oklahoma has scored in a quarter this season. The Sooners made 14 field goals and five 3-pointers in the period.
Omaha: Aside from Harvey, none of the Mavericks could get going. Harvey made 8 of 14 field goals while the rest of the team made 15 of 52.
Oklahoma: The Sooners continued to bully opponents in the paint and beat them with pace. They outrebounded the Mavericks 57-33 and forced 20 turnovers.
Oklahoma set the tone from the beginning by scoring the game’s first eight points. The Sooners led 26-10 at the end of the first quarter.
Omaha made just 2 of 21 3-pointers while Oklahoma made 13 of 35.
Omaha hosts North Dakota on Jan. 2. Oklahoma hosts New Mexico State on Dec. 29.
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