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Who? The Sooners of Oklahoma.
What? I have never understood why Oklahoma glamorizes the people who jumped the gun when Oklahoma was opened up to white settlement. But Boomer and Sooner and the Sooner Schooner are pretty awesome symbols.
Where? Norman, Oklahoma, home to Lake Thunderbird.
When? March 22nd, in Durham, North Carolina.
Why? You're going to have to ask the committee about that one. I wouldn't have put them in, but there's always at least one Big XII team I say that about.
How? They were an at-large selection.
Surprise? Predicted to finish first in the conference, they tied with Iowa State for fifth and fell to sixth on the tiebreaker. We're still trying to figure out what went wrong in Norman.
RPI: 57
SOS: 18
Record: 18-14 (9-9 Big XII)
Good wins: Oklahoma State.
Bad losses: At TCU. At Marist is not as good as it was in the day, but better than it could have been.
Who's running this show? Sherri Coale, since 1996.
Extra, Extra! The Tulsa World and The Oklahoman.
Senior guard Aaryn Ellenberg leads the Sooner charge with 18.8 points per game. More than half her shots come from beyond the arc, at a 35.3% clip. Backcourt classmate Morgan Hook chips in 11.3 points and a shade under five assists. Staying in the game is a problem for Oklahoma; they have 31 DQs spread out among seven players, including all top five scorers. DePaul might actually be the worst possible match-up for them.
Random thing that pleases me: I'm going to say it until other teams do it- I appreciate Oklahoma putting weights on their roster. It makes it a lot clearer why 6-2 Maddie Manning is a guard, but 6-1 Portia Durrett is a forward.