Sam Grooms made a key steal in the closing minute and two free
throws with 5 seconds left for the Sooners (13-7, 3-5 Big 12), who
watched as Rodney McGruder's potential tying 3-pointer from the
wing at the buzzer bounced off the back iron and fell to the floor.

McGruder finished with 19 points and Angel Rodriguez had 10 for
the Wildcats (15-5, 4-4), who trailed by 10 in the second half but
went on a 12-2 run and later pulled into the lead.

The Sooners led 59-56 on a pair of free throws by Pledger with
1:07 left, but Will Spradling trimmed the lead to a point on a
slicing layup moments later.

It was still 59-58 when the Wildcats' Jordan Henriquez corralled
a loose ball on defense with just over 10 seconds remaining, but
Grooms managed to poke it loose before it could be cleared.

Romero Osby hit two free throws to restore Oklahoma's
three-point lead, and the Sooners fouled Henriquez on purpose with
5.2 seconds left. He made both fouls shots to get Kansas State
within 61-60, but Grooms came through with his free throws to make
it 63-60.

It was Kruger's first game back in Bramlage Coliseum as the
opposing coach.

Kruger was a star for the Wildcats in the 1970s, twice earning
Big 8 player of the year honors, and later returned as an assistant
coach. Kruger then came back as head coach when Jack Hartman
retired and led the Wildcats to four consecutive NCAA tournaments.
He received a nice round of applause when he walked onto the
court before the game.

Then the teams got down to business, and Rodriguez gave the
Wildcats a spark in the opening minutes, scoring eight of their
first 13 points and helping them take an 18-12 lead.

Rodriguez picked up his second foul at the 12-minute mark,
though, and Oklahoma finally settled down behind Pledger's hot hand
and heady play. The Sooners quickly reeled in the Wildcats and then
pulled ahead when Andrew Fitzgerald scored with 3:21 left to make
it 25-24.

Cameron Clark went soaring for an alley-oop dunk on Oklahoma's
next possession, and Pledger's 3-pointer just before halftime gave
the Sooners a 34-28 lead.

Kansas State introduced several former players and coaches as
part of its reunion weekend during intermission, including greats
such as Clent Stewart and Ernie Barrett.

Wildcats coach Frank Martin probably wished he could have suited
them up.

Spradling had fits trying to guard Pledger, who came in
averaging 17.2 points but had 18 in the first 20 minutes alone. He
consistently beat the sophomore guard off the dribble and, when
McGruder switched onto him, buried an array of outside jumpers.

The lead swelled to 40-30 early in the second half before Kansas
State mounted a charge.

Henriquez started it with a putback, Rodriguez scooped in a
layup and McGruder capped it off with a jumper that knotted the
game 40-all.

The Wildcats pulled ahead 44-42 when Spradling was fouled by
Pledger going to the basket and made both free throws. It was the
fourth foul on Pledger and he took a seat on the bench with 10:55
left, but Kansas State couldn't capitalize when he was out of the
game.

He checked back in at the 6:48 mark and immediately got to the
foul line, making both free throws. Pledger then buried
back-to-back 3s with about 5 minutes left, giving the Sooners a
55-51 advantage and hushing a sellout crowd stuffed inside Bramlage Coliseum.

Oklahoma managed the tense final minutes with aplomb, allowing
Kruger to walk off the court with a 4-2 record against his former
team, victorious in his return to Kansas State.