National Basketball Association
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Oklahoma 63, Kansas St. 60
When: 7:00 PM ET, Saturday, January 28, 2012
Where: Fred Bramlage Coliseum, Manhattan, Kansas
Officials: # Terry Davis, # Rick Randall, # Bret Smith
Attendance: 12528

Lon Kruger’s return to Bramlage Coliseum couldn’t have gone better.

Steven Pledger had a game-high 30 points and Cameron Clark added 11 points and six rebounds as visiting Oklahoma held off No. 22 Kansas State 63-60 on Saturday.

Kruger, in his first season at Oklahoma, was a former player and coach at Kansas State. He played for the Wildcats in the early 1970s and served as coach from 1986-90.

Aside from having his jersey retired in 2006, this was Kruger’s first trip back to Manhattan since leaving for Florida following the 1989-90 season.

Kansas State (15-5, 4-4 Big 12) trailed 59-58 late and forced an Oklahoma miss with 11 seconds left. But after Jordan Henriquez snagged the rebound, the junior forward had the ball stripped away by Sooners guard Sam Grooms.

Oklahoma (13-7, 3-5) extended the lead to three at the free-throw line.

With a chance to tie at the end of regulation, the Wildcats came up empty. Rodney McGruder, who finished with a team-high 19 points, misfired on a 3-point attempt at the buzzer as Oklahoma celebrated the win — their second of the season against Kansas State.

Angel Rodriguez had 10 points and Jamar Samuels added nine points and a team-high eight rebounds for the Wildcats, whose three-game win streak came to an end.

Kansas State trailed 34-28 at the half and fell behind by as many as 10 before taking a 51-49 lead with 5:46 left. But Pledger, who had eight points in a late 10-3 run, keyed the Sooners’ comeback.

The Wildcats committed 20 turnovers and lost at home for only the second time this season.
Top Game Performances
 
Oklahoma   Kansas St.
Steven Pledger 30 Scoring Rodney McGruder 19
Sam Grooms 7 Assists Martavious Irving 2
Cameron Clark 6 Rebounds Jamar Samuels 8
Romero Osby 5 Free Throws Made Rodney McGruder 6
Carl Blair Jr. 4 Steals Martavious Irving 2
Romero Osby 2 Blocks Jamar Samuels 2
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Oklahoma 63 40.0 4-9 15-20 16 25 3 12 14
Kansas St. 60 41.2 3-17 15-18 11 32 3 4 20