Oklahoma
Third quarter Tuesday shows why Timberwolves staring up at Oklahoma City
Ahead of two games against the NBA’s top two title favorites — Oklahoma City and Boston — Wolves wing Jaden McDaniels told Minnesota radio voice Alan Horton on Tuesday morning that the Wolves are “right up there with those teams.”
“Our record might not show it,” McDaniels told Horton, “but I feel like we’re one of the best teams.”
Tuesday — specifically, the third quarter Tuesday — was a reminder that the Wolves are not, as Minnesota fell 113-105 to the Thunder in Oklahoma City.
The Wolves had proven again over the three-game winning streak they carried into Oklahoma City that they are indeed a good team. A great one, though? Not at the moment. That’s a high standard that only a few teams have achieved to date this season, and Oklahoma City again proved why it’s in that club.
Mike Conley hit a trio of triples in succession to put Minnesota up 12 early in the third stanza. Oklahoma City didn’t so much as call a timeout. The Thunder merely locked in, going on an immediate 10-0 run to force Wolves coach Chris Finch to call time. But that did little to slow the avalanche.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander sliced through Minnesota’s defense for a pretty finish at the rim at the end of the quarter to put the Thunder up 14. Oklahoma City outscored Minnesota 34-10 over the final 8 minutes, 30 seconds of that third quarter. The Thunder — who sport the NBA’s best defense — turned up their dial to a 10 on that end of the floor, suffocating Minnesota’s offense while breathing life into its own.
Minnesota didn’t help itself in the situation. The Wolves committed 10 of their 24 turnovers Tuesday in the third quarter.
“We did the one thing that we couldn’t do. We turned it over at a high level. We talked about that coming in here – we’ve got to take care of the ball,” Wolves coach Chris Finch told reporters after the game. “We were up 10, missed a dunk, leads to a run out, 10-0 run, and then the turnovers started after that.”
Gilgeous-Alexander was the best player on the floor. The MVP candidate tallied 40 points on 15-for-23 shooting. He was the best player on the floor, even on an evening when Anthony Edwards was relatively productive.
Edwards finished with 20 points, but he simply cannot control the game with the same consistency as Oklahoma City’s star guard. Gilgeous-Alexander seemed to get whatever he wanted, whenever he wanted, even against a defense as traditionally dominant as Minnesota’s.
Minnesota (17-15) went toe to toe with the Thunder at various points in Tuesday’s bout, as Oklahoma City struggled to find any offensive rhythm and couldn’t buy a made triple. The Thunder didn’t clear the 30-point threshold until midway through the second quarter. Oklahoma City went 3 for 19 from deep in the first half.
And again late, Minnesota delivered one final push to make things interesting. The Wolves pulled within three in the closing minutes and looked to be on the verge of another stunning victory after rallying past San Antonio and Houston in dramatic fashion of its two previous contests.
But Oklahoma City (27-5) is a tier above even those quality teams, and the Thunder made enough plays late when they were required to close the deal.
Minnesota’s had lapses like what it experienced in the third quarter seemingly every game. And the Thunder are good enough to make Minnesota pay for them.
Cleaning those up is what will be required for Minnesota to return to true championship contention.
“If we don’t turn the ball over, we can control this game,” Finch said. “No doubt about it.”
Originally Published:
NORMAN — The Sooners were behind the eight ball for much of Tuesday’s game against Oral Roberts.
But one swing of the bat got them in a more favorable position.
Shortstop Jaxon Willits blasted a grand slam in the sixth inning to give No. 14 Oklahoma its first lead before eventually winning 7-6.
The Sooners trailed by as many as five runs before they rallied late.
In the first inning, Oral Roberts’ Cooper Combs hit a two-out grand slam to give the Golden Eagles a comfortable cushion. OU infielder Deiten Lachance got the Sooners on the board in the second inning with a solo home run, but ORU responded with a solo shot of its own in the next frame.
The Golden Eagles made it a 6-1 run game in the top of the fourth, and they appeared to be on cruise control. But in the bottom of that frame, OU’s rally began.
Dasan Harris made it a four-run game again with a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the fourth before Camden Johnson hit a sacrifice fly of his own in the fifth.
Then, in the sixth, the Sooners took their first lead of the game.
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Harris singled before Kyle Branch and Connor Larkin walked to load the bases. Willits then swung at the first pitch he saw, sending it well over the right-center field fence.
Neither team scored after Willits’ home run, as OU relief pitcher Xander Mercurius retired nine ORU batters in a row to seal the Sooners’ one-run win.
Michael Catalano started on the mound for Oklahoma, but his outing was short-lived — he gave up four earned runs on two hits and five walks in 1 ⅓ innings.
After coach Skip Johnson relieved Catalano in the second inning, six different OU arms entered the game. Reid Hensley collected the win, while Mercurius got the save.
OU improved to 28-12 overall with the win, while Oral Roberts dropped to 23-15. The Sooners are 7-3 in midweek games this season, and they clinched the season sweep of the Golden Eagles on Tuesday.
Next, the Sooners will hit the road for a three-game series against Auburn. The Tigers, ranked No. 11 by D1Baseball, are 10-8 in SEC play and took two of three games against Florida over the weekend.
The series will open on Friday, and first pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m.
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NORMAN — After an up-and down week that saw Oklahoma drop the lone Bedlam match of the season, and then split two tight games with Arkansas before blowing out the Razorbacks on Sunday, the Sooners remained No. 1 in the NFCA/Go Rout coaches’ poll released Tuesday.
But there’s far from a consensus.
Oklahoma received 12 first-place votes — the same total they had last week — but five other teams received first-place votes.
Texas Tech remained No. 2 with four four-place votes and Alabama No. 3 with seven. Nebraska moved up two spots to No. 4 with four first-place votes, followed by Florida with two and UCLA with two.
Texas is No. 7, followed by Tennessee, Arkansas and Florida State.
Texas A&M, the Sooners’ opponent for the final regular-season weekend in two weeks, comes in at No. 11.
Other SEC teams include Georgia at No. 15, Mississippi State at No. 17 and LSU at No. 20.
OU hosts the Georgia Bulldogs in a three-game series beginning Friday.
Other Sooners’ opponents this season in the polls include No. 14 Duke, No. 18 Oklahoma State, No. 19 Arizona, No. 24 Arizona State and No. 25 Washington.
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Oklahoma also remained in the top spot in the D1Softball poll, with Alabama No. 2 there followed by Texas Tech, Nebraska at Texas.
The Sooners dropped a spot in the Softball America poll, with Nebraska elevating to No. 1 behind the two-way stardom of former OU standout Jordy Frahm (formerly Jordy Bahl).
Frahm is 13-4 with a 1.36 ERA and 157 strikeouts in 118 2/3 innings in the circle and hitting .440 with 16 home runs and 42 RBIs. Another former Sooners player, Hannah Coor, is among the Cornhuskers’ regulars as well.
The Sooners have 158 home runs, just three away from tying their own season record in the category, but UCLA has closed the gap in a major way, sitting just four behind Oklahoma.
OU freshman sensation Kendall Wells leads the nation with 34 home runs, three ahead of UCLA’s Megan Grant. Wells tied Jocelyn Alo‘s program record for home runs in a season with her home run in Sunday’s win.
The Sooners host Arkansas-Pine Bluff at 6 p.m. Tuesday in their final non-conference game of the season before opening the series against Georgia at 6:30 p.m. Friday at Love’s FIeld.
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Putnam City West High School will shift to virtual learning on Tuesday after an incident involving two students prompted an investigation by the district and Oklahoma City police, according to Putnam City Schools.
District officials said administrators were alerted near the end of the school day Monday to an altercation involving two students in the school’s arena area.
Officials said the students left campus, and the case was turned over to Putnam City Campus Police and the Oklahoma City Police Department for investigation.
District officials said no students or staff were harmed and there is no ongoing safety threat related to the incident.
What we know
Putnam City West sent the following email to all families and staff at the school:
All PCW students and staff will transition to virtual learning for Tuesday, April 21st.
Today, an isolated serious incident involving two students occurred on school grounds. Near the end of the school day, administrators were alerted to an altercation between two students in the arena area. The individuals involved quickly left campus, prompting an initial fact-finding response by school administrators before the matter was turned over to Putnam City Campus Police and the Oklahoma City Police Department for further investigation. Because this is an active investigation involving students, no further information will be released at this time.
We understand this information may be concerning to students, staff, and families. Please know we are committed to maintaining a safe, secure, and positive learning environment for all students. At Putnam City Schools, student and staff safety remains our highest priority. Therefore, out of an abundance of caution and to allow for a thorough investigation, all PCW students and staff will transition to virtual learning for Tuesday, April 21st. Students will need to check Google Classroom for updates from teachers.
Thank you for your understanding and continued support of PC West.
Putnam City Schools
All students and staff at Putnam City West will transition to virtual learning on Tuesday, April 21, while investigators continue their work, according to the district.
Students were told to check Google Classroom for instructions from teachers.
The district said it is withholding additional details because the case involves students and remains under investigation.
School officials have not said what triggered the incident or whether any arrests have been made.
This is a developing story. Updates will be added as more information becomes available.
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