• Oklahoma hopes Saturday’s win will be enough to get a regional
OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma was able to ride out the Big 12 tournament on a wave of positive reinforcement. Beating Oklahoma State 21-6 will do that.
But the question hounding the Sooners Saturday was, will salvaging one win in the conference tournament be enough to land them an NCAA Tournament regional?
OU coach Sunny Golloway wasn’t ready to make any predictions.
“I don’t have a gut feeling,” he said. “I don’t really think I can speak on that. I’m not trying to duck the question. The (NCAA Tournament selection) committee is made up of really smart baseball people. Know this: Anytime a Big 12 coach talked to a Big 12 coach here there was a lot of conversation about that.”
The Sooners certainly have a case. Saturday’s victory lifted them to 40-19 and they finished third in the Big 12 regular-season standings.
Delve deeper into the numbers and the case gets stronger. OU was No. 9 in the Ratings Percentage Index entering Saturday’s game and ranked in the top 15 in all four major polls.
Its only stain is being swept by Oklahoma State in the regular season and going 1-2 in the conference tournament.
The Sooners know their résumé isn’t perfect.
“I know that you back it up by winning Bedlam and winning the tournament,” Golloway said. “Otherwise, you put it in someone else’s hands. We understand.”
Regional sites will be announced at 2:30 p.m. today and the Sooners will accept whatever happens. The 64-team field will be released Monday.
“My saying is don’t be afraid of the scoreboard and be a man about what happened,” Golloway said. “If we played up to being a host, if we played up to being a No. 1 on the road or if we’re a No. 2 on the road, our effort is going to be the same.”
And their psyche will be a lot better because of Saturday’s performance. Entering the NCAA Tournament after a victory is a huge bonus. Exorcising the Bedlam demons that developed during the regular season is even better.
“We were upset about the Bedlam series, for sure,” OU first baseman Kevin Smith said after going 3-for-5 and driving in four runs. “It helps a little. It should bring our confidence up for next week.”
And next week is what matters most.
John Shinn366-3536jshinn@normantranscript.com
OU Sports
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