University of Oklahoma Sooners Men's Basketball Team Profile

One of the top college basketball teams in the 1980's under Billy Tubbs, the University of Oklahoma was a Big 8 powerhouse, winning 30 or more games 5 times and competing for a National Championship in 1988 against Kansas. After early exits from the NCAA Tournament in the 90's, OU turned to Kelvin Sampson who won a Big 12 regular season Championship as well as 3 Big 12 Tournament Championships.

The 2002 Sooners made a Final Four run, and Sampson directed the team to postseason tournaments in every season as Head Coach, with 10 NCAA Tournament appearances. Sampson's tenure again brought the Sooners to national basketball prominence before he left for Indiana. In 2006, OU hired Jeff Capel, former Head Coach at Virginia Commonwealth.

In Jeff Capel's 3rd season, the Sooners made it back to back postseason appearances. But 2008-2009 was even better. Really gelling behind superstar Blake Griffin, Oklahoma went 30-6 and 13-3 in the Big XII to earn a 2 seed in the NCAA tournament. The Sooners won 3 straight games in the tournament to reach the Elite Eight before falling to top-seeded North Carolina, eventual National Champions.

The Sooners play in Lloyd Noble Center on the University of Oklahoma campus in Norman Oklahoma. Opening in 1975, the arena was renovated in 2001 and now seats 12,000 fans.

Tickets for Oklahoma Sooners Men's Basketball games can be purchased online at SoonerSports.com or by calling the OU ticket office at (800) 456-4668. Prices are typically around $17-$22, and family packs that include a hot dog, soda and t-shirt with admission are available by calling the ticket office.

Head Coach: Jeff Capel - since 2006
Led Virginia Commonwealth to NCAA and NIT Tournament appearances in 4 seasons
Assistant Coach: Mark Cline - since 2006
Virginia Commonwealth Assistant Coach for three years
Assistant Coach: Ben Betts - since 2006
Former Head Coach South Carolina State for three years
Assistant Coach: Oronde Taliaferro - since 2007
Five seasons as an assistant coach at Arkansas

1 Ryan Wright F 6-9 F SR
2 Steven Pledger G 6-4 FR
3 T.J. Franklin G 5-11 SO
4 Andrew Fitzgerald F 6-8 FR
5 Tony Crocker G 6-6 SR
11 Tommy Mason-Griffin G 5-11 FR
13 Willie Warren G 6-4 SO
15 Barry Honoré F 6-7 JR
21 Orlando Allen C 6-10 JR
22 Ryan Randolph G 6-4 FR
24 Tiny Gallon F 6-9 FR
25 Kyle Hardrick F 6-8 FR
34 Cade Davis G 6-5 JR
41 Ray Willis G 6-6 SO
45 Beau Gerber F 6-8 SR

The Sooners 2006-2007 season ended a nation's-best 25 year postseason streak when the team finished just one game over .500. But it was the beginning of a new era in Oklahoma basketball under Jeff Capel, one that has brought a great deal of optimism with an up-tempo style and new stars such as Blake Griffin. In 2007-2008, Griffin helped lead a drastic improvement as the team finished 22-11 and made the NCAA tournament as a 6 seed and 2008-2009 was a dominating year for the Sooners as they sent Griffin off in style with an Elite Eight campaign.

With Griffin now in the NBA, though, the Sooners have a tough task of retooling ahead of them. In addition, the gameplan will likely need to change as well. Blake Griffin was a dominating presence inside, both scoring and rebounding. The focus now shifts to another young star-in-the-making in Willie Warren, an athletic guard who can score from anywhere on the court.

Tony Crocker returns as a perimeter threat and senior leader, but much of the season's success will be dependent on a couple of new faces, Tommy Mason-Griffin and Tiny Gallon. Both were highly recruited out of high school and will get plenty of playing time. Mason-Griffin will need to handle point guard duties, in order to allow Willie Warren the scoring opportunities, and the not -at-all like his name Tiny Gallon is a near-300 pound force inside. With Oklahoma losing a great deal of its depth on the inside, including Taylor Griffin and transfer Juan Patillo, Gallon has big shoes to fill.

The Capel era is now in full-swing, and 2009-2010 will be an interesting year. Can Oklahoma become somewhat of a new team without a once in a lifetime player such as Blake Griffin? Can they adapt and continue to win games? Can the highly-touted youngsters play up to their potential early? As you can see, that's a lot of questions.

It won't be an easy task; that's for sure. The top of Big XII is stout with Kansas and Texas, and there are solid teams from top to bottom, including Missouri and Oklahoma State. Expect Oklahoma to struggle early in the adaptation, but by January, they should have the pieces in place and working well together. Still, a lack of experience and depth likely keeps the Sooners from any shot at a Big 12 Championship, but a 3rd straight trip to the NCAA tournament is certainly not out of the question.