Men's Hoops Finalizes 2018-19 Schedule
NORMAN – The Big 12 Conference released its 90-game 2018-19 men's basketball schedule Wednesday, completing Oklahoma's slate for the upcoming season. The Sooners will begin their league schedule on the road against Kansas on Wednesday, Jan. 2.
Oklahoma's Big 12 home schedule includes five Saturday contests (compared to three last season), beginning with the first round of Bedlam on Jan. 5 against Oklahoma State. OU plays its other eight league home games Jan. 12 vs. TCU, Jan. 16 vs. Kansas State, Jan. 28 vs. Baylor, Feb. 4 vs. Iowa State, Feb. 9 vs. Texas Tech, Feb. 23 vs. Texas, March 2 vs. West Virginia and March 5 vs. Kansas.
The Sooners' remaining eight road contests are Jan. 8 at Texas Tech, Jan. 19 at Texas, Feb. 2 at West Virginia, Feb. 11 at Baylor, Feb. 16 at TCU, Feb. 25 at Iowa State and March 9 at Kansas State.
With Big 12 play opening on a Wednesday, the schedule provides a "bye week" for all 10 teams throughout the conference season. The Sooners will go without a midweek contest during the week of Feb. 17, allowing six straight days without a game before they resume play on Feb. 23.
The Phillips 66 Big 12 Men's Basketball Championship will be played March 13-16 in Kansas City's Sprint Center.
At least 16 of Oklahoma's Big 12 contests will air on an ESPN network and will also be available through the ESPN app, accessible on computers, smartphones, tablets and connected devices to fans who receive their video subscription from an affiliated provider.
As a conference, the Big 12 finished the 2017-18 season in the nation’s top spot for both Conference RPI and Strength of Schedule. Additionally, the league sent 90 percent of its teams to postseason play with seven in the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship and two in the National Invitation Tournament. The Big 12 is the first league since at least 1996-97 to accomplish the feat of 90 percent of its teams in the postseason.
In each of the past three seasons, ESPN’s College Basketball Index has ranked the Sooners’ strength of schedule as one of the top-five toughest in the country. The 2018-19 season is shaping up to be another year of marquee matchups and big games. In addition to OU’s challenging round-robin conference slate, the Sooners’ non-conference portion of the schedule is highlighted by home games against Wichita State (Dec. 8 in Oklahoma City) and Creighton (Dec. 18) and neutral-site contests against Florida (Nov. 21 in Bahamas), Notre Dame (Dec. 4 in New York City) and Southern California (Dec. 15 in Tulsa).
With the inclusion of Big 12 opponents, 12 of the 14 regular-season home games included in OU's season ticket package are against teams that have reached the NCAA Tournament at least once in the past two seasons.
Season tickets for OU men's basketball start at just $195 per seat. Tickets can be purchased online or by calling the OU Athletics Ticket Office at (800) 456-4668. Student tickets are also on sale for $60 and can be purcahsed here.
The Sooners are coming off a trip to the 2018 NCAA Tournament and will return four of their top six scorers on a team highlighted by seniors Christian James, Rashard Odomes and Jamuni McNeace.
OU's entire 2018-19 schedule is below. Dates and times are subject to change.
| 2018-19 Oklahoma Men's Basketball Schedule | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date | Opponent | Site | Time | TV |
| Nov. 1 | Pittsburg State (Exh.) | Norman | TBD | TBD |
| Nov. 9 | at UTRGV | Edinburg, Texas | TBD | TBD |
| Nov. 12 | at UTSA | San Antonio, Texas | TBD | TBD |
| Nov. 18 | Wofford | Norman | TBD | TBD |
| Nov. 21 | vs. Florida + | Paradise Island, Bahamas | 11 a.m. | ESPN |
| Nov. 22 | vs. Stanford or Wisconsin + | Paradise Island, Bahamas | TBD | ESPN Network TBD |
| Nov. 23 | vs. TBD +* | Paradise Island, Bahamas | TBD | ESPN Network TBD |
| Nov. 27 | North Texas | Norman | TBD | TBD |
| Dec. 4 | vs. Notre Dame # | New York, N.Y. | 6 p.m. | ESPN |
| Dec. 8 | Wichita State @ | Oklahoma City | TBD | TBD |
| Dec. 15 | vs. Southern California ^ | Tulsa, Okla. | TBD | TBD |
| Dec. 18 | Creighton | Norman | TBD | TBD |
| Dec. 21 | at Northwestern | Evanston, Ill. | TBD | TBD |
| Jan. 2 | at Kansas | Lawrence, Kan. | 8 p.m. | ESPN2/U |
| Jan. 5 | Oklahoma State | Norman | TBD | TBD |
| Jan. 8 | at Texas Tech | Lubbock, Texas | 8 p.m. | ESPNews |
| Jan. 12 | TCU | Norman | TBD | TBD |
| Jan. 16 | Kansas State | Norman | 6 p.m. | ESPN2/U |
| Jan. 19 | at Texas | Austin, Texas | TBD | Longhorn Network |
| Jan. 23 | at Oklahoma State | Stillwater, Okla. | 8 p.m. | ESPNU |
| Jan. 26 | Vanderbilt $ | Norman | TBD | ESPN Network TBD |
| Jan. 28 | Baylor | Norman | 8 p.m. | ESPN/U |
| Feb. 2 | at West Virginia | Morgantown, W. Va. | 11 a.m. | ESPN/2/U |
| Feb. 4 | Iowa State | Norman | 8 p.m. | ESPN/2 |
| Feb. 9 | Texas Tech | Norman | 3 p.m. | ESPN/2/U |
| Feb. 11 | at Baylor | Waco, Texas | 8 p.m. | ESPN/2 |
| Feb. 16 | at TCU | Fort Worth, Texas | 11 a.m. | ESPN/2/U |
| Feb. 23 | Texas | Norman | 11 a.m. | ESPN/2/U |
| Feb. 25 | at Iowa State | Ames, Iowa | 6 or 8 p.m. | ESPN/2/U |
| Mar. 2 | West Virginia | Norman | 1 p.m. | ESPN/2/U |
| Mar. 5 | Kansas | Norman | 8 p.m. | ESPN/2 |
| Mar. 9 | at Kansas State | Manhattan, Kan. | 5 p.m. | ESPN/2 |
| Mar. 13-16 | Big 12 Championship ! | Kansas City, Mo. | TBD | ESPN Network TBD |
+ Battle 4 Atlantis
# Jimmy V Classic at Madison Square Garden
@ Played at Chesapeake Energy Arena
^ Played at BOK Center
$ SEC/Big 12 Challenge
! Played at Sprint Center
*Potential Battle 4 Atlantis Third Game Opponents: Butler, Dayton, Middle Tennessee State, Virginia
Dates and times are subject to change, all tip times are CT
