Without Ellis, Alexander, short-staffed Jayhawks will have to scramble against Sooners
Oklahoma squandered its chance at a league title after a catastrophic collapse.
The 15th-ranked Sooners, though, still have a shot to salvage the Big 12's second seed Saturday when they host No. 9 Kansas, which is undermanned after wrapping up another conference crown.
Oklahoma (20-9, 11-6) fell into a second-place tie with Iowa State following Monday's 77-70 loss to the 17th-ranked Cyclones. The Sooners appeared to be cruising to a de facto conference championship matchup with the Jayhawks, taking a 19-point halftime lead, but everything fell apart after Isaiah Cousins was called for a technical foul in the second half for shouting at the Iowa State bench. The Cyclones went on a 22-0 run and outscored Oklahoma 59-33 in the second half.
"We just have to do a better job executing and getting better shots when they make big runs like that," said Buddy Hield, who scored 26.
The Sooners continue to live and die with their 3-point shooting, going two of 11 over the final 20 minutes and 6 of 24 for the game. Reserve Frank Booker was 0 for five after going 12 for 26 in his last five, and the Sooners dropped to 6-8 when shooting 34.6 percent from beyond the arc.
Oklahoma can still earn the second seed in next week's tournament in Kansas City with a win and help, but it can also be seeded as low as fourth.
Despite claiming the top seed after clinching their 11th consecutive conference title, the Jayhawks (24-6, 13-4) enter Norman as an underdog with leading scorer Perry Ellis (14.2 ppg) and second-leading rebounder Cliff Alexander (5.3 rpg) expected to be out.
Ellis sprained his right knee in Tuesday's 76-69 overtime win over No. 20 West Virginia. Ellis had scored 23-plus in three straight before being limited to four prior to his first-half exit. Coach Bill Self said he hopes to have the junior forward back for the Big 12 tournament.
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Alexander is likely to miss a third straight game since the NCAA alerted Kansas about possible eligibility concerns. The freshman forward's family reportedly may have received impermissible benefits from an agent.
"I don't know that it will affect the preparation for the postseason a lot," Self said of Alexander's absence, "but it will certainly affect how we go and play well and win Saturday in Norman."
Third-leading scorer Wayne Selden Jr. also suffered a sprained ankle in the second half but is expected to play.
"So you're going down there with three bigs and Wayne's (Selden, Jr.) ankle isn't 100 percent," Self said. "So who knows what our team will be going down there."
The attrition could be especially difficult to overcome considering Kansas has dropped three of four on the road, scoring 63 points or fewer in each loss. Meanwhile, the Sooners are 13-1 at home and have won their last three matchups there with top-10 teams, though Kansas has won 13 of the last 14 meetings overall.
Ellis and Alexander were big factors in an 85-75 home win over Oklahoma on Jan. 19, combining for 29 points and 21 rebounds.
The Jayhawks prevailed against the Mountaineers despite being short-handed, missing all 15 of their 3-pointers and trailing by as many as 18, however.
"Guys were stepping up and we fought back," said Jamari Traylor, who scored a season-high 14. "We don't get scared."
Self will likely need to continue to rely heavily on Frank Mason III, who scored 19 points in 42 minutes and is averaging a league-high 33.6 minutes.
