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OU Basketball: Oklahoma Back in the Top 10 Ahead of Big Week

The Sooners climbed in the polls once again with two massive Big 12 Conference games on deck this week.
Ross Lovelace|
OU Basketball: Oklahoma Back in the Top 10 Ahead of Big Week
OU Basketball: Oklahoma Back in the Top 10 Ahead of Big Week

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Oklahoma Sooners

Oklahoma is back in the AP Poll's Top 10, checking in at No. 9 this week.

OU only played one game a week ago, but it was a big one. The Sooners pulled away from Iowa State's impressive defense to notch a 71-63 home win to open up Big 12 conference play. That win launched the Sooners back into the Top 10, from No. 11 to No. 9.

Porter Moser's group has looked much improved to start the 2023-24 season and now sits at 13-1 overall. The team's only loss came in Charlotte against North Carolina, who is up to No. 7 in the country in the latest rankings.

North Carolina is Oklahoma's only ranked opponent so far, which explains why a handful of two-loss and three-loss teams are ahead of the Sooners. Both Providence and Iowa State are receiving votes.

Oklahoma has a huge chance to gain more respect this week, though. On Wednesday, the Sooners travel to Fort Worth to take on TCU (11-3, 0-1 Big 12), a team that nearly knocked off Kansas at Allen Fieldhouse last weekend. Road wins are hard to come by in the Big 12, and stealing one so early in the season would be massive for OU.

The Sooners will finish their big week on Saturday with a top-10 clash in Lawrence as Oklahoma faces No. 3 Kansas (13-1, 1-0) on the road. Saturday is the last time the team will play at the historic venue for the foreseeable future, as Oklahoma transitions to the SEC next season. The last time OU beat Kansas at Allen Fieldhouse was way back in 1993. 

A big reason for Oklahoma's success has been the full team contribution. As Jon Rothstein pointed out Monday morning, Oklahoma has 38 assists on its last 51 made field goals. This is an unselfish team that thrives at working the ball around.

Only time will tell if the Sooners can compete in a loaded Big 12 Conference, but the upcoming week will be a huge test. Moser and company are off to a good start.

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Ross Lovelace
ROSS LOVELACE

Ross has covered the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Oklahoma Sooners since 2018. He's made guest appearances on various radio stations and the Sooners On SI podcast. Ross enjoys public speaking and has done so at multiple churches and high schools across the OKC metro area. In addition to writing, Ross has been the Play-by-Play announcer for Crossings’ basketball and football programs since 2020. In high school, Ross started with Thunder Digest, where he discovered his passion for writing. From there, he worked for the OU Daily as a women's basketball reporter and worked for Sooners On SI and Thunder On SI. Ross holds a bachelor's degree in Public Relations and a minor in Communication from the University of Oklahoma. Born and raised in Oklahoma City, Ross played basketball and wrote for his own Thunder blog at Crossings High School in OKC. He enjoys reading, New York Jets football and a week at the beach. Ross and his wife live in New Orleans, where he is a Marketing and Volunteer Coordinator at the Greater New Orleans Sports Foundation and the New Orleans Super Bowl Host Committee. His Twitter handle is @Rosslovelace.

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