Tournament Preview: Oklahoma

Breaking down the Competition
Oklahoma was a shoe-in for a number 1 seed for almost the entire year until Blake Griffin went down with an injury late in the year. Playing without him, and trying to work him back into the lineup, the team lost 4 of its last 7 games to end the season, dropping them to a 2 seed in the tournament. The drop is justified, but it does put Oklahoma at a disadvantage, especially considering the bracket they ended up in. The South regional, in my opinion, is the most competitive bracket in the tourney this year, featuring the toughest 1, 2, and 4 seeds. 3 Seed Syracuse are no slouches either, having finished the year on an excellent note with a gutsy performance in the Big East Conference Tournament. Oklahoma should have a pretty easy road to the sweet sixteen, though the winner of the Clemson/Michigan game could be dangerous if they play as well as they are capable.

Syracuse is the likely sweet sixteen matchup, and they will be a good test for the Sooners. Barack Obama (video) even went so far as to call for the upset. The potential is definitely there, but I am not sure that Obama's reasoning is justified. He questioned the depth of Oklahoma, apparently ignoring the fact that Syracuse has one of the tightest lineups in College Basketball. This was exposed when the Orange took UCONN to 6 overtimes in the Big East tournament, and were forced to play reserve Justin Thomas, who had played just 25 minutes all year due to foul trouble. The real reason Syracuse is a threat is that when their studs stay on the floor, they have the personnel to challenge anyone. Johnny Flynn might be the best point guard in the tournament, Eric Devendorf and Andy Rautins are snipers with range out to the NBA 3 point line, and Arinze Onuaku is a force in the paint. they will play physical on both ends of the floor like most big east teams, and if Oklahoma can't adjust they could very well find themselves bowing out early.

I wouldn't be surprised to see Gonzaga knock off North Carolina in the sweet sixteen, but Oklahoma would probably see the Tar Heels in the elite eight if Ty Lawson is healthy. They are the deepest and most talented team in the country. Lawson is an absolute blur running the floor, Wayne Ellington and Danny Green can shoot over defenses, Ed Davis and Tyler Zeller provide a ton of size off the bench, and Tyler Hansbrough is a 4 time first team all american that can score from anywhere on the floor. The only hiccup with this team is their unwillingness to play defense. They rely completely on outscoring their opponents, which they do very well when they stay out of foul trouble and Lawson is 100 percent. They will play Oklahoma very tough, but they don't have an answer for Blake Griffin Defensively, and will be in trouble if Lawson is not fully recovered from his toe injury.

Breaking Down Oklahoma
Everybody knows about Blake Griffin. If you don't, watch this video, you'll get the idea (If you do, watch it anyway because he is the man). Griffin is a powerful 6'10" 251 pounds, and is an absolutely explosive athlete. When he gets the ball around the basket there is little anyone can do to stop him. There is simply nobody that can match his combination of size, speed, and skill on the college level. Griffin averaged 21.9 ppg, 14.6 rpg, and shot a sickly .635 from the floor. The Sooners' entire gameplan is predicated on Griffin being able to assert himself on the offensive end of the floor and no game is complete without at least one highlight worthy slam. Blake is joined on the frontline by his older brother Taylor Griffin. He can't do the things his brother can do, (who can?) But he does give the team a stable veteran presence that can play defense and be an aggresor on offense.

Freshman Willie Warren is the star of the backcourt. He can light it up with the best of them, and when his shot is going down Oklahoma becomes almost impossible to beat. They will need to get him going to have success. Flanking Warren on the wings are Junior Tony Crocker and Senior Austin Johnson, both of whom can shoot the three when left open--vital once defenses start keyin in on Griffin and Warren.

Depth could become an issue for OU if they get their big guys into foul trouble, but I think that issue is overplayed in the media. Oklahoma bowed out early in their conference tournament giving them plenty of time to rest up and get back on track for a strong run in the postseason tournament that really counts. I think that Oklahoma will put the pieces together, beat the odds, and do what their football team could not and bring home a national championship.

I will post my bracket before games begin tomorrow as well as my preview for Villanova. Get ready for the madness!