Tuesday, December 5.1967
UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
5
Defense stressed by Sooner's coach
By Mike Jones Kansan Staff Reporter
Editor's note: This is the fourth in
analyzing each of the Big Eight, best
recorded.
Oklahoma's new basketball coach John MacLoed believes that his team will have to play better defense if it is to be a contender in the Big Eight basketball race.
"Our biggest problem will be our lack of ability to play top-notch defense. We aren't helping each other out on defense—we have too many breakdowns," MacLeod said. "We have a whole new philosophy in regard to defense and rebounding and we've been having trouble adjusting to it."
"We did score a lot of points last year." MacLeod said. "But the boys who scored those points also gave up a lot of points. Last year we threw the ball away 22 or 23 times a game and I'm afraid we're throwing it away about the same number of times this year. The transition from an offensive game to a defensive game isn't going to be an easy one."
Although Oklahoma led the conference in scoring last season, it also had the worst defense against scoring. Consequently, MacLeod is emphasizing defense this year.
But things at Oklahoma should not be as bad as MacLeod suggests. Last year's two leading scorers, Don Sidle and Willie Rodgers, are back along with five other lettermen.
Sidle averaged 24.9 points a game, the best in the conference, and was an all-Big-Eight selection. He averaged 10.9 rebounds a game, second only to Iowa State's Don Smith.
Rodgers is a 6-3 forward who averaged 16.5 points a game last year and was the team's second leading rebounder.
The surprise of the team could be the other forward, Rick Kersey. Kersey is a 6-7, two-year letterman from Norman. He averaged only five points a game last season, but MacLeod feels Kersey has improved greatly.
In Oklahoma's 91-73 opening game victory over Centenary, Kersey scored 11 points and came up with some timely rebounds.
The Sooners have at least two newcomers who could brighten the picture. Six-six sophomore forward Garfield Herd led the freshman team in scoring and rebounding last season. He had a knee operation last summer that might hamper him early in the season.
"If Herd's knee recuperates, he'll play a lot of ball for us this year." MacLeod said.
The Kansan predictions for Oklahoma: fifth.
Classical Film Series
presents MAN OF ARAN (England, 1934)
A film by the master of the artistic documentary ROBERT FLAHERTY
director of MOANA & NANOOK OF THE NORTH
7:00 and 9:00 p.m.—Wednesday—Dyche Aud. Single Admission: 60c
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