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Big 12 baseball preseason poll: Oklahoma State picked third, OU tied for sixth

the oklahoman
·4 min read

OSU picked third, OU tied for sixth in Big 12 baseball poll

Oklahoma State baseball was picked to finish third and OU was selected to finish in a tie for sixth in the Big 12 preseason poll, the conference announced Thursday.

TCU, which advanced to the semifinals of the College World Series last summer, was picked to win the conference for the second straight preseason, receiving 11 of the 12 first-place votes available. Coaches cannot vote for their own team.

Texas was picked to finish second, receiving two first-place votes.

Last season, OSU, Texas and West Virginia ultimately finished in a three-way tie for the conference regular season title.

Rounding out the poll is Texas Tech at fourth, followed by Kansas State, OU and West Virginia tied at sixth, Kansas, Houston, UCF, Baylor and BYU and Cincinnati tied at 12th.

Only 10 teams will advance to the conference tournament at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas, on May 21-25.

The Oklahoma bench celebrates a three-point shot late in the second half of the Longhorns' game against the Oklahoma Sooners at the Moody Center in Austin, Texas, Jan 24, 2024. The Sooners won the game 91-87.
The Oklahoma bench celebrates a three-point shot late in the second half of the Longhorns' game against the Oklahoma Sooners at the Moody Center in Austin, Texas, Jan 24, 2024. The Sooners won the game 91-87.

OU women's basketball upsets No. 10 Texas late

Skylar Vann had 19 points and 12 rebounds, Payton Verhulst scored 18 points and Oklahoma beat No. 10 Texas 91-87 late Wednesday night.

Texas (18-3, 5-3 Big 12), which trailed by as many as 13 in the third quarter, cut the deficit to one on a basket in the lane by Madison Booker with 59 seconds left. But Lexy Keys made a 3-pointer from the left corner 19 seconds later for Oklahoma, assisted by Nevaeh Tot.

Booker then banked in a 3-pointer with 7.2 seconds left, but Tot's free throw put the game out of reach.

“We're gonna enjoy this one,” Oklahoma coach Jennie Baranczyk said. “We've had some lows in our season (a 79-70 loss to Southern at home). We’ve had a roller coaster season. So if we’ve learned anything, we’ve learned that we need to just stay in the process.”

Keys scored 15 for the Sooners (12-6, 6-1). Tot made 10 of the Sooners' 21 assists without committing a turnover. The Sooners had just nine turnovers, half their average.

Booker, a freshman, scored a season-best 29 points, including 15 in the fourth quarter. Texas senior Shay Holle scored a career-high 22, converting 10 of 12 from the field.

Wizards move Unseld to front office, promote ex-Thunder assistant Keefe

Wes Unseld Jr. is out as coach of the Washington Wizards midway through his third season with the team, which has the second-fewest wins in the NBA.

President Michael Winger announced Thursday that Unseld would be transitioning to a front office advisory role. Washington at 7-36 is in 14th place out of 15 teams in the Eastern Conference. The Wizards hakd lost five in a row and 11 of their past 12 games before hosting the Utah Jazz on Thursday night.

Assistant Brian Keefe was promoted as the interim replacement.

Keefe joined the team in July after spending the past two seasons as an assistant with Brooklyn. He has also been on staffs with Oklahoma City and the New York Knicks. He started his career as a video coordinator with the San Antonio Spurs, who won a championship in 2007.

The Wizards said they will conduct a search for a full-time replacement in the offseason.

Extra points

COLLEGE FOOTBALL: Michigan is the type of job that could set off a chain reaction of openings across college football the way Nick Saban's retirement from Alabama did two weeks ago. The difference between Michigan and Alabama, though, is the Wolverines might very well have their man already on campus in offensive coordinator Sherrone Moore. Michigan athletic director Warde Manuel released a statement saying the school is “working quickly to hire the next head coach for the program and will do everything possible to keep this current staff and team together.” With Harbaugh serving two separate suspensions last season for potential NCAA rules violations, Michigan went 4-0 with Moore leading the team on game days. The former OU football player was in charge when Michigan beat Penn State and Ohio State.

NFL: The Atlanta Falcons hired Los Angeles Rams defensive coordinator Raheem Morris as their head coach after an exhaustive search that included six-time Super Bowl winner Bill Belichick, a person familiar with the decision told The Associated Press. ...

Former OU stars Baker Mayfield and CeeDee Lamb and former Oklahoma State receiver Tyreek Hill were announced as finalists for two of The Associated Press 2023 awards. Mayfield is a finalist for Comeback Player of the Year along with Joe Flacco, Matthew Stafford, Tua Tagovailoa and Damar Hamlin. Lamb and Hill are finalists for Offensive Player of the Year alongside Dak Prescott, Lamar Jackson and Christian McCaffrey. ...

The Carolina Panthers agreed to hire Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive coordinator Dave Canales as their new head coach. Canales has informed the Buccaneers that he is taking the job, although there are still details that need to be finalized before the move is announced, according to the people who spoke to The Associated Press on Thursday on condition of anonymity.

—Staff and wire reports

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Big 12 baseball preseason poll: OSU picked third, OU tied for sixth