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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
NORMAN, Okla. (AP) -- Aaron McGhee remedied his pregame jitters
and then took care of Alcorn State.
McGhee excused himself from warmups to tend to an upset stomach and made the most of his relief by hitting his first seven shots as No. 21 Oklahoma beat Alcorn State 75-56 in the opening round of the Sooner Invitational.
"I don't know if it was nerves, but my stomach started bubbling
during warmups," said McGhee, who shot 11-for-20 from the field.
"Once I got out there and into the flow, I started to feel a whole
lot better."
McGhee scored 18 of his 27 points in the first half and helped
stake the Sooners to a 35-27 halftime lead.
The Sooners used a balanced attack to finish off Alcorn State.
Relentless pressure defense forced Alcorn State into 26
turnovers. Despite shooting only 40 percent (28-of-70), the Sooners
were able to turn just enough of Alcorn State's miscues into extra
scoring opportunities.
The Sooners were particularly bad from behind the 3-point arc,
finishing 5-of-20. Senior Kelley Newton was the lone bright spot as
he connected on 3-of-6 3-pointers.
Hollis Price delivered the Sooners five steals and a career-high
10 assists. He finished with 10 points.
"I didn't think we played all that well tonight, but I saw
enough potential to feel that we are going to be pretty good
eventually," OU coach Kelvin Sampson said. "Aaron played well. I
looked up and saw Aaron had 27 points and nine rebounds, and I
started thinking, 'Aaron missed nine shots, he missed four free
throws and he only had nine rebounds.' When he learns to compete
harder and expect more from himself, there's no telling what he can
do."
Alcorn State, which trailed by only 10 points with just over 11
minutes remaining, was led by Walter Harper's 15-point,
eight-rebound effort.
The victory advances the Sooners to the finals on Saturday
against La Salle, which defeated North Carolina-Wilmington, 78-71,
in the tournament opener.
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ALSO SEE
Mens College Basketball Scoreboard
Alcorn State Clubhouse
Oklahoma Clubhouse
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