During the streak of 13 consecutive Big 12 titles, Kansas has faced its share of must-see players: Kevin Durant, Michael Beasley, Blake Griffin, Marcus Smart and Buddy Hield. Next up: Oklahoma superstar Trae Young.
Leading the nation in points and assists, Young will try to close the gap in the Big 12 standings when the two schools tip off at 6 p.m. Tuesday (TV: ESPN) at Lloyd Noble Center. The Jayhawks (16-3, 6-1 in Big 12) have a two-game lead as teams near the halfway point.
The 12th-ranked Sooners (14-4, 4-3) have surpassed most expectations this season, despite losses last week to Kansas State and Oklahoma State. They were sixth in the preseason Big 12 coaches poll.
“He’s not a one-man team,” said KU coach Bill Self, referring to Young. “They’ve got other guys that are good. We’ve got to figure out a game plan on how we can try to slow them all down, not just focus in on one.”
Oklahoma, the second-highest scoring offense in the country, is ranked 20th by KenPom (fifth in Big 12). Kansas is ranked eighth, two spots ahead of Texas Tech.
**Fun fact:** The Sooners have scored 100 or more points in six games this season. It’s the second-highest total by any Big 12 team since the conference was formed in 1996, only trailing the 2001-02 Kansas squad (12 games).
**Series history:** Kansas leads 146-66. The Jayhawks have won the last four meetings and own a 19-17 record inside of the Lloyd Noble Center. Bill Self has a 17-3 record vs. the Sooners while at Kansas.
**BREAKING DOWN OKLAHOMA**
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**TOP PLAYER**
*No. 11 — PG Trae Young | 6-2, 180, fr.*
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In an era of star one-and-done freshmen, nobody has dominated college basketball like Young. He’s leading the country in points (30.5) and assists (9.7) per game. Since he started Big 12 play, he’s actually scoring more: averaging a ridiculous 33.3 points in seven games.
The Norman native is shooting 39.6 percent from the 3-point arc and 83.6 percent at the free-throw line while attempting nearly 21 shots each night. His biggest negative against conference opponents is turnovers, committing 28 turnovers in his last three games.
His dad, Rayford, played at Texas Tech and scored 41 points in a game against Kansas. Young picked the Sooners in his recruitment over KU and Oklahoma State. He’s the fourth McDonald’s All-American to play at Oklahoma.
– “What I was most impressed with is his touch on passing,” said Wichita State coach Gregg Marshall after his team lost to OU in December. “He’s got a real feel for the game and he sees things a little bit before most young players see them. Then he has a great touch. He’s kind of a combination between Chris Paul and Steve Nash, along with a Steph Curry jump shot.”
**SUPPORTING CAST**
*No. 35 — F Brady Manek | 6-9, 210, fr.*
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Averaging 11.1 points and 5.1 rebounds, Manek takes most of his shots from behind the 3-point line. He’s the team’s most efficient shooter from deep, connecting on 41.9 percent of his 3-pointers.
From Harrah, Okla., he’s scored more than 20 points in four of the last 10 games. In Big 12 play, he’s shooting 56 percent from the field in wins and 36 percent in losses. His older brother, Kellen, plays basketball at Oral Roberts.
*No. 0 — G Christian James | 6-4, 211, jr.*
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In a shooting slump, James is averaging nine points in Oklahoma’s last five games. With that included, he ranks second on the team in scoring (11.9 points per game) while averaging 4.7 rebounds.
James doesn’t make it to the free-throw line often, but has made 40.7 percent of his 3-point attempts. He ranks second on the team with 23 steals. Against KU last year, James scored 15 points on 4 of 10 shooting.
*No. 3 — F Khadeem Lattin | 6-9, 220, sr.*
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The only senior on Oklahoma’s roster, he ranks third in program history with 215 career blocks (15 behind the school record). He’s averaging 7.4 points, 6.6 rebounds and 2.3 blocks. According to hoop-math.com, he’s converted on 72 percent of his shot attempts at the rim.
Lattin, from Houston, leads the Sooners with 44 offensive rebounds using his 7-foot-2 wingspan to his advantage. His mother, Monica Lamb, played college basketball at Houston and USC before playing for the WNBA’s Houston Comets. His grandfather, David “Big Daddy” Lattin, was a starter on Texas Western’s famed 1966 team.
*No. 1 — G Rashard Odomes | 6-6, 217, jr.*
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Known as Oklahoma’s best perimeter defender, Odomes is averaging 6.6 points and 3.6 rebounds per game. He’s a strong offensive rebounder and slasher, he takes his shots almost exclusively at the rim.
Odomes is only making 53.5 percent of his free throws in 43 attempts. He’s grabbed a combined 21 rebounds in the last three games. Texas Tech coach Chris Beard said he was “one of the best players in the Big 12 that doesn’t really get talked about.”
**ONE THING OKLAHOMA DOES WELL**
It’s a simple concept, but Oklahoma does job of giving Trae Young room to operate and camping shooters at the 3-point line. The Sooners are making 41 percent of their shots from deep during Big 12 play. They even made 19 3s in an overtime win against TCU earlier this month.
**ONE AREA OKLAHOMA STRUGGLES**
The Sooners are suited to run as much as possible and play at a quick pace, but they’ve struggled to create turnovers lately. In their seven conference games, opposing teams are averaging 11.7 turnovers per game. Oklahoma is averaging 10.4 fast-break points this season, but has only surpassed that mark twice against Big 12 teams.
**MEET THE COACH**
Lon Kruger, now in his seventh season with the Sooners, ranks ninth among active coaches with 615 career wins. He’s led five schools to the NCAA Tournament, which includes a Final Four run with the Buddy Hield-led team in 2016. Before he became a coach, he he was the Big Eight Player of the Year in 1973 and ’74.
Since 1995, when Kruger was at Florida, he’s never missed the NCAA Tournament in back-to-back seasons.
**VEGAS SAYS…**
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Oklahoma by 1.5. It’s probably the most highly-anticipated Big 12 games since Buddy Hield was playing in Norman. After two straight losses, I think the Sooners view this matchup as an opportunity to put their season back on the right track. I’m not sure the Jayhawks have shown they can truly stop penetration from elite point guards (see Tra Holder at Arizona State or Keenan Evans at Texas Tech), so I’ll give the edge to OU at home.
**My prediction:** Oklahoma 94, Kansas 88. **Bobby’s record vs. the spread:** 9-9.