OSU BASKETBALL
NFL
Patsy Sutton dies at age 74
Cowboys fire defensive coordinator
Patsy Sutton, the wife of former Oklahoma State coach Eddie Sutton and a woman long projected as the matriarch of the state’s first family of basketball, was often called the Sutton family’s ‘rock.’
Rob Ryan has been released as the Cowboys’ defensive coordinator. Ryan is the second coach to be let go in the past 24 hours and had one year left on his contract.
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SPORTS
C THE OKLAHOMAN | NEWSOK.COM
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 9, 2013
Thunder still has work to do
INSIDE OKLAHOMA FOOTBALL
SHOCKING LOSS | OKC NOT YET PLAYING UP TO ITS STANDARD
FOCUSED ON THIS YEAR’S RECRUITING CLASS OU postponed this weekend’s scheduled junior day while several top-flight seniors will be in Norman for official visits, including Garland, Texas, defensive tackle Charles Walker, below.
Darnell Mayberry dmayberry@ opubco.com
THUNDER As he sat at his locker Monday night, getting peppered with one question after the next about how the defending Western Conference champions came back better, Kevin Durant quickly tried to put a stop to any premature coronation that was creeping into the conversation. “We got a good chance to be in every game if we play hard, play defense and play together. That’s the ingredient for us. We just got to keep plugging away every single day,” Durant said before taking on the league-worst Washington Wizards. “We can lose to any team in the league, so we got to be prepared and not take these guys lightly.” Three hours later the SEE THUNDER, PAGE 4C
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Playing with the
BIG BOYS
MARCUS SMART | FRESHMAN HAS COME UP BIG IN BIGGEST GAMES THIS SEASON
John Helsley jhelsley@ opubco.com
OSU BASKETBALL STILLWATER — The youngest of four
THUNDER VS. TIMBERWOLVES I When: 7 p.m. Wednesday I Where: Chesapeake Energy Arena I TV: Fox Sports Oklahoma (Cox 37/HD 722, DirecTV 679, Dish 446, UVerse 754/HD 1754). I Radio: WWLS 98.1-FM, WWLS 640-AM
brothers, Marcus Smart learned early that he had to elevate his game against the big boys. “You’ve got to bring a little something special,” Smart said. Nothing’s changed for the Oklahoma State freshman, who so far has broken out his basketball best in the biggest games. Against the Cowboys’ five major foes — Tennessee, North Carolina State, Virginia Tech, Gonzaga and Kansas State — Smart has averaged 20.6 points, all while giving OSU all it envisioned at the point
guard position: assists, steals, leadership, even rebounds, an average of 6.2 in those games. “A lot of people say I play better in big games,” Smart said. “To an extent, I’d like to think that’s the case. It’s just something about having a big crowd there, that feeling of the atmosphere going and how big of a game it is, just gets me prepared and going.” Smart’s play, coupled with an influence that has already transformed the attitude of his team, remains a major reason the Cowboys are expected to contend in the Big 12.
OSU VS. TCU I When: 7 p.m. Wednesday I Where: Gallagher-Iba Arena I Radio: KXXYFM 96.1 I TV: KOCB-34 (Cox 11/HD 711; Dish 34; DirecTV 34; U-Verse 34, HD 1034)
SEE SMART, PAGE 8C
ONLINE LIVE CHAT WITH JOHN HELSLEY Join OSU beat writer John Helsley at 11 a.m. on Wednesday for the Power Lunch live chat. Get your Cowboys questions ready and log on at NewsOK.com/sports to join in.
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PHOTOS BY NATE BILLINGS, THE OKLAHOMAN; AP
Alabama’s Jones stands up for linemen everywhere NEW HERO | SHOVE OF QB APPLAUDED BY SEVERAL LINEMEN
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Alabama’s AJ McCarron, right, and Barrett Jones argue during the second half of the BCS National Championship game against Notre Dame on Monday. AP PHOTO
ootball’s unsung heroes have a new hero. A patron saint. A man who boldly went where few had gone before. Sir Barrett Jones, the Alabama center, has been knighted by his fellow offensive linemen of many generations. Toasts, if not statues, will be raised to the man who stood up to a quarterback. Jones shoved his quarterback, AJ McCarron, on Monday night in the na-
Berry Tramel btramel@ opubco.com
COMMENTARY tional championship game, relieving the frustrations of 100 years of quarterbacks getting all the glory while the linemen do all the grunt work.
“One of the coolest things I’ve ever seen,” said former OU center Vince Carter, now a regional director for Oklahoma’s Fellowship of Christian Athletes. With seven minutes left in the Big Bowl and Alabama rolling over Notre Dame 42-14 Monday night, McCarron animatedly called for the snap, but Jones was changing the line call. McCarron SEE TRAMEL, PAGE 3C
The Oklahoman Sports Department P.O. Box 25125 Oklahoma City, OK 73125 I Phone: (405) 475-3313 (800) 375-6397 ext. 3313 I Fax: (405) 475-3315 I Website: NewsOK.com I Email: sportsdesk@ oklahoman.com Mike Sherman, Sports Editor (405) 475-3164 msherman@ opubco.com