If you are not aware, the Oklahoma Sooners come into Gallagher-Iba tomorrow on a 4 game winning streak, and are starting to worry the rest of the Big 12. Two weeks ago we had all decided that OU and Tech would be everyone's easy wins, now OU is screwing that up. Sure, there are some excuses for the streak (3 of 4 were at home, other team was struggling, etc), but a streak is a streak... and we should note that the 4 wins came against teams that OSU is 1-3 against.
Anyway, I wanted to see the statistical differences in what OU is accomplishing these last 4 games versus their first 17 to see if we can glean some insight from it. While it won't show us any stylistic differences, it will show which players are contributing the most to this improvement.
And here it is.... this table is the difference in the last 4 games compared to the first 17, in all the major stat categories at a per game level, for all players that average at least 10 minutes per game. (stats via statsheet.com)
| MIN | PTS | FGM | FGA | FG% | 3PM | 3PA | 3P% | FTM | FTA | FT% | AST | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C. Clark | 7.2 | 5.7 | 2.5 | 3.8 | 5.9% | 0.4 | 0.3 | 14.1% | 0.2 | 1.0 | -31.7% | 0.8 |
| S. Pledger | 9.6 | 7.2 | 2.4 | 3.6 | 4.4% | 1.0 | 2.5 | -3.1% | 1.5 | 1.3 | -9.2% | 1.9 |
| C. Blair Jr. | 12.7 | 7.6 | 0.8 | 1.6 | 7.7% | 0.1 | 1.3 | -17.9% | 6.1 | 7.7 | 14.3% | 1.7 |
| A. Fitzgerald | 3.9 | -1.3 | -0.9 | -1.0 | -6.8% | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.6 | 1.3 | -10.9% | 0.7 |
| C. Davis | 1.2 | 1.2 | 0.7 | 0.9 | -0.6% | -0.4 | 0.5 | -11.0% | 0.3 | 0.5 | -33.8% | -1.1 |
| C. Washington | 1.1 | -0.6 | -0.1 | -0.8 | -6.6% | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0% | -0.3 | -0.8 | -26.9% | 0.5 |
| C. Newell Jr. | -6.5 | -2.5 | -1.2 | -2.1 | -33.8% | -0.3 | -0.9 | -18.8% | 0.2 | 0.7 | -58.9% | -1.7 |
| Team | 10.3 | 1.3 | 0.5 | 2.1% | 0.0 | 2.3 | -3.7% | 7.6 | 13.9 | -34.9% | 0.9 |
The Total column is pretty impressive. 10 more points per game, putting up more shots and hitting them at a higher rate, attempting 14 (FOURTEEN!) more free throws per game, and totaling 1 more assists. Obviously the Sooners are playing more aggressively on offense, pushing tempo, and not shying away from contact.
At a micro level, the players that are most to thank for this improvement are:
Carl Blair Jr who is on the court for almost 13 more minutes per game and is getting to the line 10 times per game, a jump of 8 a game!. Steven Pledger who is playing 10 more minutes per game, and putting in 7 more points. And Cameron Clark who is seeing 7 more minutes of action and throwing in an extra 6 points per game.
As we aren't sure which version we will see of either team on Saturday,