LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) – There is a nice bit of symmetry to the fact that Kansas and Oklahoma could be meeting Monday night at Allen Fieldhouse as the top two teams in the country.
That’s because they were also 1-2 the last time their league had such a matchup.
Of course, those were the days of the old Big Eight, before the Big 12 expanded to 12 – and then became 10. It happened in the conference tournament semifinals at Kansas City’s Kemper Arena, when the top-ranked Sooners ran roughshod over the second-ranked Jayhawks on their way to the title.
This time, Kansas will likely be No. 1 and Oklahoma will be No. 2, assuming voters move both up a notch when the AP poll is released Monday. Top-ranked Michigan State lost to Iowa this past week.
“It’s going to be fun,” Sooners star Buddy Hield said.