The Tribune

By RENALDO DORSETT

Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

WITH sophomore sensation Marcus Smart in the midst of a three-game suspension, Bahamian guard Buddy Hield took centre stage and led the Oklahoma Sooners to a two-game sweep in this year’s edition of the “Bedlam Series”.

Hield scored a side high 22 points to lead the Sooners to a 77-74 win over the Oklahoma State Cowboys in Stillwater, Oklahoma, on Saturday afternoon.

He shot 5-13 from three-point range, including three pointers on consecutive plays, to give the Sooners a 71-68 lead with just over one minute left to play in regulation.

“Coach [Lon Kruger] called two good plays for me and I was able to execute and knock down shots and try to get a win for my teammates,” the sophomore guard said. “Coaches and my teammates keep telling me to shoot the ball, and I’ve been shooting the ball all my life so I’m not going to stop. I had some great looks in the (Texas) Tech game that just didn’t go down. The coaching staff and my family — everybody is giving me the confidence to shoot the ball. I kept my confidence and I was able to knock down some shots late in the game for us.”

After a four-game winning streak, which included wins over two ranked teams, the Sooners came into the showdown with the Cowboys losers of three of their last four games and fell out of both the AP and USA Today Coaches Poll.

“Coach told us to keep playing together and make the extra passes. We did that. Frank [Booker]started making shots and Je’lon [Hornbeak] came in and made a big bucket. Cameron [Clark] had a big three. Everybody played their role and we started playing together as a group,” Hield said. “When we play together as a group, good things happen for us. We were able to do it in the last-minute stretch.”

Hield, the Sooners’ leading scorer at 16.7 points per game, bounced back from a woeful shooting performance February 12 when he shot just 1-13 and finished with a season low three points in a 68-60 loss to the Texas Tech Red Raiders.

The Sooners return to the court February 22 when they are scheduled to face the Kansas State Wildcats. Two days later will be the rematch with the No 7 ranked Kansas Jayhawks.