Big 12 Basketball: December Power Rankings
2. Oklahoma Sooners
Dec 3, 2015; Norman, OK, USA; Oklahoma Sooners guard Jordan Woodard (10) drives to the basket in front of Central Arkansas Bears guard Mike Martin (30) during the second half at Lloyd Noble Center. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports
Record: 5-0
Notable games: beat Memphis 84-78
Overview: While things are great for the Sooners thus far, it’s hard to say they’ve proved anything. With a terrible strength of schedule (other than Memphis, they’ve played McNeese St., Incarnate Word, Wisconsin, and Arkansas), it’s hard to draw too much from what has happened. But there’s something to be said for the fact that they took care of their work and didn’t get caught looking forward to Monday’s matchup with Villanova in Hawaii.
What I liked: Jordan Woodard playing off the ball
Last season Isaiah Cousins posted an assist rate of 14.6%. Through the first five games this season, it’s up to 20.8%. Cousins and Woodard are sharing point guard duties this season, as opposed to last year, when Woodard was really the only point guard on the roster.
Not that point guard is a particularly difficult job on this Sooners team. Buddy Hield does most of the offensive work, and most of the point guard duties revolves around just giving the ball to him. But Woodard playing off the ball allows him to play down hill and off of screens, where he can really utilize his speed more so than ever before.
Woodard is averaging 12 points, five rebounds, and about four assists per game thus far. Even better, he’s shooting 47% from the floor, up from 36% last season. And he’s shooting a scorching hot 55% from three (and on a decent number of attempts in 20).
Again, the competition hasn’t exactly been stiff so far. Wisconsin is the only team they’ve played so far that might make the tournament, and that was Woodard’s worst performance (four points on one of eight from the floor). But I love the idea of moving Woodard off the ball. It might just give Oklahoma the extra scorer they so desperately need to take pressure off of Buddy Hield.
What I didn’t like: the frontcourt
I really don’t want to write about this some more, but I feel obligated because that’s the obvious hole in this team. Lon Kruger has yet to find a consistent producer to plug in next to Ryan Spangler in the frontcourt. Khadeem Lattin has been getting the starts for the Sooners at the four, but still struggles to stay on the floor as he fouls a ton. Though he’s produced mediocre per game averages, his offensive rating is second on the team behind Woodard, at a massive 143.4. His defensive rating is also second on the team at 75.5.
Behind Lattin is Akolda Manyang and Jamuni McNeace. Manyang is a towering 7-foot JUCO transfer, and defensive game changer. His block rate of 17.9% would be historically high, if sustained. In comparison, Anthony Davis posted a block rate of 13.7% in his one season at Kentucky. Small sample size for Manyang, but it’s still very impressive, but unfortunately he, like Lattin, fouls quite a bit.
If one of these three were to drop out of the rotation, it would probably be McNeace, which is acceptable, considering he’s just a freshman. He’s shown flashes of perhaps being a good player, but tends to play very erratically, and like the other two, has had quite a bit of foul trouble despite limited playing time.
Lon Kruger has options to play with. While they haven’t been consistent thus far, it’s easy to see the potential is there, particularly with Lattin and Manyang. But for now, Kruger seems to be blindly stabbing at who he should be plugging in when.
Next: Iowa State