Price bites into challenge of Big 12 matchup with MU

SAN JOSE, Calif. -- Hollis Price left last season's NCAA tournament with an opponent's tooth in his elbow. This spring, Oklahoma's star guard is within one game of a more pleasant reward.

Strong outside shooting has been the talk of the West Regional, where two teams from the physical Big 12 Conference showed plenty of finesse in reaching the final eight.

The Sooners (30-4), on an 11-game winning streak, are big favorites in today's final against the Tigers (24-11), the first 12th seed to get this close to the Final Four.

Price, a year removed from his gruesome collision with Indiana State's Kelyn Block, hit six 3-pointers in Oklahoma's win over Arizona on Thursday. Later, Missouri's Kareem Rush and Clarence Gilbert poured in four 3-pointers apiece while beating UCLA.

"We know they can shoot the lights out, but we have to try to match them and then stop them," Price said. "Since we both know we can both shoot, I think it will come down to which team plays defense. That's where it'll be decided."

Price was good in the semifinals -- but so was Rush, a preseason All-American who once struggled under high expectations but has emerged to propel Missouri on an unlikely run. Rush scored 16 of his 20 points in the second half against UCLA, hitting several key shots down the stretch.

The winner will become the first Big 12 team to make the Final Four since the conference adopted its current form in 1996-97.

Though Oklahoma and Missouri have met every year since 1920, both coaches say their familiarity doesn't make the task any easier.

"You'd think it would cut down on preparation time, but you're still up until 4 or 5 in the morning watching videotape and trying to find an edge," Missouri coach Quin Snyder said.

Oklahoma has beaten Missouri eight straight times since 1997, including an 84-71 victory in Norman in January, when Price had 24 points -- including five 3-pointers. But you'll never catch a savvy coach such as Oklahoma's Kelvin Sampson admitting to any extra edge in such a high-pressure setting far away from home.

"What we've done against them in the past really means nothing," Sampson said. "There's nothing guaranteed. We have a good opportunity, but our opportunity is really no different from Missouri's."

West Coast fans who had never seen Price, the Sooners' rail-thin, 6-foot-1 shooting star, didn't take long to realize what Sampson has said for three years: Despite his small stature, Price is a huge talent.

A year ago last week, Price and Block got tangled up as Price went for a layup late in the Sooners' loss. Price's elbow crashed into Block's mouth, chipping three of Block's teeth and tearing Price's triceps tendon.

"I didn't really have any worries about coming back, but my arm was hurting a lot until (somewhat) recently," Price said. "The worst part was rehab, when I couldn't play basketball. That's like taking away one of your kid's toys, and he cries a lot."

After three operations and several months of rest, Price still needs extra warmup time to get his arm in game shape. But when he's right, Price is one of the game's most dangerous streak shooters -- and he found himself on a remarkable streak against Arizona, scoring 22 of the Sooners' 33 points in the first half.

"I've never seen that kid have any fear," Sampson said. "He attacks."

While Price has overcome injury, Rush said his biggest challenge has been far more ephemeral. After scoring 29 points in the Tigers' tournament loss to Duke, Rush graced the covers of national magazines last fall as Missouri became everybody's favorite new power.

But when Missouri slumped from a No. 2 national ranking all the way out of the polls, Rush felt the pressure.

"Early in the season, I thought that the only way I could impact a game was by scoring," Rush said. "As I got more confidence in my teammates, I got more confidence in our ability to win. I realized I didn't have to do it all."

Rush's newfound trust in his teammates has been obvious in recent games. Even though his scoring has remained relatively constant -- and even improved, thanks to increased confidence in his outside shot against tough defense -- he doesn't hesitate to set up Gilbert or Arthur Johnson for a big shot.

"Kareem is a totally different player now," Sampson said. "When we played them, for some reason, he was hesitant. Now he's playing with a kind of confidence. He's a fine player, and that's what Quin has done for him."