Steven Pledger scored 26 points to lead the Oklahoma Sooners to an 85-73 win over the Santa Clara Broncos in the semifinal round of the 76 Classic college basketball tournament at the Anaheim Convention Center. Oklahoma will advance to play the Saint Louis Billikens for the tournament championship on Sunday night.
The Sooners had four players in double figures, with Sam Grooms (12 points), Andrew Fitzgerald (12 points), and Cameron Clark (11 points) joining Pledger. Oklahoma shot 46.7% (28 for 60) from the field.
Evan Roguemore led the Broncos with 27 points, making seven of his 11 three-point attempts. Kevin Foster added 19 points for Santa Clara in defeat. The Broncos will battle the Villanova Wildcats for third place in the tournament at 3:30 p.m. PST on Sunday afternoon, in a game televised by ESPNU.
Sooners head coach Lon Kruger won the 76 Classic in 2010 with the UNLV Runnin' Rebels, and looks to make it back-to-back in his first season in Oklahoma. The championship game, featuring Oklahoma and St. Louis, will be played at 6 p.m. PST Sunday night, and will be televised by ESPN2.