Can the Sooners' Precision from Beyond the Arc Overcome Cyclones' Paint Dominance?
The Oklahoma Sooners, ranked 11th, secured a victory over the Iowa State Cyclones with a final score of 71-63. The Sooners now hold an impressive record of 11-1, while the Cyclones stand at 0-11 after this encounter. The game unfolded at Lloyd Noble Center in Norman, where 11,333 fans witnessed a competitive matchup that saw five ties and four lead changes.
The home team displayed remarkable accuracy from long range, converting ten out of twenty-five three-point attempts to achieve a forty percent success rate. This sharpshooting contributed significantly to their overall field goal percentage of forty-seven percent on fifty-one attempts. Inside the arc was just as efficient for the Sooners; they made fourteen out of twenty-six two-point shots resulting in a fifty-four percent conversion rate.
The Oklahoma team's free throw performance was also noteworthy as they made thirteen out of sixteen attempts, translating to an eighty-one percent success rate from the charity stripe. Their ball distribution was evident with seventeen assists leading to an assist-turnover ratio of 1.7. Defensively, they managed three blocks and three steals while committing seventeen personal fouls throughout the game.
On offense, Oklahoma capitalized on turnovers by scoring ten points off them despite having eleven turnovers themselves. They were less dominant in terms of rebounds with twenty-nine personal rebounds—twenty-three defensive and six offensive—and second-chance points were limited to five.
In contrast, Iowa State excelled inside with thirty-eight points in paint compared to Oklahoma's twenty-six but struggled beyond the arc with only nineteen percent accuracy on sixteen attempts. They had nine assists and turned over the ball eight times which gave them an assists-turnover ratio slightly above one at 1.13.
Despite their efforts inside and fifteen second-chance points thanks largely to ten offensive rebounds among their total thirty-one personal rebounds (twenty-one defensive), it wasn't enough for Iowa State against Oklahoma's balanced attack and superior shooting efficiency.
Looking ahead for fans eager to follow their team's progress: The next challenge for the Oklahoma Sooners will be against TCU Horned Frogs at Schollmaier Arena located in Fort Worth, Texas on January 10th at 8:00 PM Central Time Zone (CT). This away game will be broadcast nationally on ESPN2 channel two hundred nine for those who wish to tune in and support their team from afar.