A couple weeks ago I begged for someone – anyone – to nominate me for an Okie Blog Award. I thought it would be fun to see my name at least be in the nominated blogs listing. Everyone needs a little validation now and again, and I am – admittedly so – no different in that respect.
And, what do I see today when the finalists are announced? MY BLOG! As a finalist!!
I am shocked and excited (and hopeful that I will at least receive a vote or two). So, if you are an Oklahoma blogger, please take the time to look at these great blogs that have been nominated in the vast array of categories. I do hope that when you cast your vote for Best Single Topic Blog, you’ll at least consider my humble little sports-crazed site. For the full slate of entries and the email address to which to send your vote, please click here.
Oklahoma won the first matchup of the 2009-10 season with the 77-66 victory in Stillwater over their bedlam rivals, Oklahoma State. After the game, both teams took time to talk about their play and the game. Here are some notes and quotes from the stat sheet and the speakers:
Oklahoma guard Danielle Robinson ended the day with 36 points on 10-of-22 shooting and was a perfect 16-of-16 from the line. 23 of her 36 came in the second half in the game. Her work from the charity stripe extends to a record-high 35 consecutive free throws made. She also chipped in nine rebounds and six assists while only committing one turnover in the contest.
Sooner center Abi Olajuwon, after taking no shots in the first half, ended the day with 14 points and nine boards in her 28 minutes of play, going 5-of-6 from the field and 4-of-4 from the line, where OU was 23-of-25.
Forward Amanda Thompson chipped in 10 rebounds and six points in the game. The Sooners outrebounded the Cowgirls by 18 – holding a 49 to 31 advantage on the glass.
Oklahoma now holds a 49-36 all-time series advantage and the Sooners have won 21 of the last 22 meetings between the schools.
Head Coach Sherri Coale, Danielle Robinson, Abi Olajuwon and Amanda Thompson post-game interviews:
Sherri Coale on Danielle Robinson’s play – If you’ll just indulge me for a second, I don’t know that I’ve seen a finer individual performance from a point guard than what you saw from Danielle today. And I know the numbers are gaudy and speak for themselves, but it was her leadership. It was the way she ran our team, it was the decisions she made throughout the game, it was her cool head. That’s what great point guards do, so when you want to talk about who’s the best in the country, I think you’ve got to include her because today she was just phenomenal.
For OSU, the team was led by Riley and Cunningham, as has been the case for the majority of this season, but the downfall was no one else stepped up for the Cowgirls. As previously noted, Oklahoma State was outrebounded 49 to 31, gave up 30 points in the paint, 13 fast break points and shot 37.1 percent from the field in the tough home loss.
Oklahoma State seniors Andrea Riley and Tegan Cunningham were the only two Cowgirls in double figures, with Riley getting 30 points on an unimpressive 11-of 34 from the field (4-of-12 from beyond the arc). Riley also had six rebounds, five assists and five turnovers in her 40 minutes of play. Cunningham netted 16 points and only three boards in the Bedlam loss.
Andrea Riley and Tegan Cunningham post game conference audio:
Andrea Riley on Oklahoma’s performance - They outworked us, they outplayed us and that’s why they won.
Head coach Kurt Budke spoke on the loss and his team’s performance:
Kurt Budke on the loss - I thought they executed like a more experienced team than we did. I thought the point guards would kind of cancel each other out and I think that’s kind of what happened. It just came down to the boards. You can not win in this league giving up 20 offensive rebounds.
Budke on Big 12 leader Nebraska – If they stay healthy they’re not going to be caught, I don’t think. That’s a really special team up there.
bed-lam pronunciation [bed-luhm] 1. a scene or state of wild uproar 2. a place or situation full of noise, frenzied activity and confusion synonyms: -disorder, tumult, chaos, clamor, turmoil, commotion, pandemonium.
Any time the definition of Bedlam is prominently displayed on the game notes, you know it’s going to be a hard-fought contest between in-state rivals Oklahoma and Oklahoma State. And today is no exception.
The Oklahoma State Cowgirls are playing host to the Oklahoma Sooner women in their first meeting of the 2009-10 season. Both teams are looking to rebound from huge losses in their last game – OSU falling at undefeated Nebraska and OU at home to Texas.
The starting lineups are as follows: for the visiting Sooners - guards Danielle Robinson and Nyeshia Stevenson, forwards Carlee Roethlisberger and Amanda Thompson and center Abi Olajuwon. And don’t be surprised if you recognize some of those famous last names – yes, you read them right. For Oklahoma State, Budke is starting guards Andrea Riley and Lakyn Garrison, forwards Tegan Cunningham and Precious Robinson and Megan Byford at center. Keep reading →
Just finished a huge 2 week road trip (more like 2 separate weekends of traveling but it feels like we’re never home). We were in Cleveland and Pittsburgh 2 weekends ago and Rochester and Atlanta this past weekend. I’d just like to point out that there is absolutely no rhyme or reason we take the flights we do. We never take a direct flight, we always decide to leave before the sun comes up, half the kids traveling always check in to find their names spelled wrong so we wait around for an hour there and we have 3 hour layovers everywhere we go. Traveling is probably more tiring than the games.
Anyways, we won 4 big games so we’re really happy about that. Every team in the UAA is real solid this year and it feels like on any given night any team could beat anyone else so you can’t relax for a second this year in conference play. Keep reading →
I know you aren’t as enamored with me as I am, HOWEVER I had the good fortune to be on Lamar’s Oklahoma City billboards via my Twitter account (@j_lantz) twice in one day. My new personal best – if anyone other than myself was wondering.
The first was pertaining to the Oklahoma State women’s basketball upset in College Station, Texas:
The women trailed for much of the game, but rallied from a 14-point second half deficit to pull off the 67-63 win over the Aggies. Andrea Riley, saddled with three fouls early, shook off her foul trouble to lead all scorers with 31 points. She also had a game-high nine turnovers for the Cowgirls in the sloppily played game. Fellow senior Tegan Cunningham chipped in a double-double, scoring 18 points and soaring for 14 rebounds in the contest. Both teams had poor shooting statistics, with OSU only connecting on 33.8 percent of their shots on goal and Texas A&M fairing only a slightly better 36.9 percent from the field.
And the second was while I was sitting in Loud City at the Ford Center:
Led by an insanely impressive and season-high 45 points off of just 21 shots from All-Star Kevin Durant, the Oklahoma City Thunder crowd was roaring with approval for the hometown team on Sunday night. Durant also added 11 rebounds to his stat line to grab himself a double-double. Durant wasn’t the only Thunder player to pour in the points however, as he was nicely complimented by a 28-point performance by Russell Westbrook. Oklahoma City (26-21) continues to improve in the standings and stay in the race for a Western Conference playoff spot with every win they notch.
photo courtesy of Katie Carlson, PRISM Press Group
On Thursday, Zac Robinson had a chance to get some of the media spotlight in a media conference to end the day. And in this question and answer session, some interesting revelations have come to light.
Did you think the Oklahoma State offense always focused on just one receiver? Well, it’s because they did. Did you know that Robinson thinks the offensive changes upcoming could be just what the Cowboys needed? He’s hoping new offensive coordinator Dana Holgorsen will spread it out more. Did you think that Zac has been getting little to no press coverage this week? You were right – he is on Tebow’s team.
He also gabbed about his fellow Senior Bowler, Perrish Cox, and Oklahoma State teammate Dez Bryant along the way. So, sit back and enjoy a glimpse into the mind of Zac Robinson… Keep reading →
When discussing a football team’s offense, few mention the linemen first.
The offensive line is the unsung hero on that side of the ball, protecting the quarterback, opening up holes for th running backs and creating enough time and space for the wide receivers to get open. And on that line, perhaps none could be as important as the center. You notice him every down as he exchanges the ball with the quarterback, but do you even know his name?
Well, at Baylor for the last three years the center of the o line was J.D. Walton. This week at the Senior Bowl Walton is working with a trio of great quarterbacks that you just might have heard of Zac Robinson of Oklahoma State, Jarrett Brown of West Virginia and Tim Tebow of, well the world it seems – ok, of Florida.
Walton took a few minutes after practice to talk to my colleague Jason Roberts of sister site PRISM Press Group and talk about the Senior Bowl, the Baylor Bears and the Big 12: Keep reading →
Spoooooon - the crowd watching the action at Faurot Field would chant when linebacker Sean Weatherspoon made a spectacular play. And over his four years as a Missouri Tiger, he kept the crowd was busy.
Weatherspoon had over 100 tackles in each of his final three seasons for Mizzou, including career-highs - 149 total tackles, five sacks, three interceptions and two touchdowns in 2008. The ‘09 season wasn’t as good for Spoon or the Tigers and ended with a bowl loss to Navy. Weatherspoon isn’t dwelling on the past though, rather looking forward to his future and showing why he will be an asset to an NFL organization while at the Senior Bowl.
My colleague Jason Roberts of PRISM Press Group caught up with Weatherspoon after Senior Bowl practice earlier this week and he dished about his week – and his vocal play, his fellow Big 12ers - even mentioned a Cornhusker! - and his Twitter habit – perhaps I can get him to do a Twitterview next?: Keep reading →
Oklahoma State cornerback Perrish Cox has a lot to prove in this Senior Bowl game.
Firstly, to the Senior Bowl selection committee. To show that as a late addition, his selection was a worthy one. Secondly, to himself. To cement in his own mind that he is a top caliber player. And thirdly, to this doubters. To show that his suspension prior to the Cotton Bowl is not a reflection on him, his play on the field or his potential future at the next level.
Cox is working hard to show his value in Senior Bowl practices in Mobile, Alabama and this hard work is not going unnoticed. In Wednesday’s practices, Cox picked off back-to-back passes and turned the heads of the scouts watching his performance. This Senior Bowl opportunity is a welcome one for Cox and if followed by a strong game performance and combine showing could vault this Cowboy up the draft board in into the place he dreams of playing – the National Football League.
After practices early in the week, Perrish stopped to talk with Jason Roberts of sister-site PRISM Press Group to share his thoughts on the Oklahoma State season and his week at the Senior Bowl: Keep reading →
