Hield named Sporting News Player of the Year
SOONERS BASKETBALL JOURNAL
Oklahoma’s was named the Sporting News Player of the Year on Monday, a day after earning Big 12 Player of the Year honors from the league’s coaches.
Hield edged out Michigan State’s for the Sporting News award, lifted by his 25.1 points per game average, 49.5 percent shooting from the field and 47.3 percent from behind the 3-point line. Hield also averaged career highs in rebounds (5.5) and assists (2.1).
Hield’s offense was a big improvement from his junior year, when he averaged 17.4 points but shot just 41.2 percent from the floor and 35.9 from behind the arc.
“To be honest with you, I’m not going to lie. I did not envision it,” Hield told the Sporting News. “I thought it would be impossible to average 25 with how everybody guards me so tight. I thought (I) could get it above 20. I never imagined averaging 25, 26 points because the way I’ve been guarded the past four years. I didn’t know that was going to be possible. Once I saw I could do it, I just took advantage of my opportunities.”
Hield and the Sooners open the Big 12 Tournament against Iowa State at 8 p.m. Thursday at the Sprint Center in Kansas City.
HIELD ADDS CONFERENCE HONOR
Hield was also named Big 12 Player of the Year by The Associated Press on Monday. Hield is the first two-time winner of the AP award. Hield was joined on the first team by Iowa State’s
and Kansas’ and Texas’
Sooners senior forward the second team.
Kansas’
was named to
earned Coach of the Year honors.
WOODARD PRACTICES AFTER THIGH BRUISE
Lon
After Saturday’s win over TCU, Oklahoma coach said he was a bit worried that the thigh bruise
suffered in the second half of the game would bother him more Sunday.
But Woodard, while sore, wasn’t any worse off Sunday and then Monday showed no ill effects at practice.
Woodard has started 98 consecutive games for the Sooners — alongside Hield, Spangler and
After a rare week of stability at the top of the polls — with each of the top six teams in the AP poll winning out — Oklahoma remained at No. 6.
The Sooners beat Baylor and TCU last week to maintain their spot behind Kansas, Michigan State, Villanova, Virginia and Xavier.
No. 7 Miami was the highest-ranked team to fall. The Hurricanes fell to No. 11, allowing West Virginia to move up a spot to No. 10. Iowa State is at No. 21, followed by Baylor and Texas. In the USA Today coaches’ poll, the Sooners are in the same position. The only difference in the top seven is Villanova is at No. 2 in that poll, followed by Michigan State.