No. 7 Oklahoma 69, Texas Tech 64, OT

<br>NORMAN, Okla. (AP) _ Oklahoma guard Hollis Price has had a troublesome shooting elbow for two years. He wears a brace on each of his ankles and has been bothered by a knee injury. <br><br>After all

Tuesday, January 21st 2003, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

NORMAN, Okla. (AP) _ Oklahoma guard Hollis Price has had a troublesome shooting elbow for two years. He wears a brace on each of his ankles and has been bothered by a knee injury.

After all that, a little cut under the eye wasn't going to keep him off the floor against Texas Tech.

Price came through in the clutch Monday night, hitting a 15-foot jumper at the buzzer to force overtime, then scoring five points in the extra period as the seventh-ranked Sooners won 69-64 for their 32nd straight home victory.

``We just found a way to win this game tonight,'' Price said, sporting a butterfly bandage under his right eye. ``I'm proud of what our guys did tonight.''

The Sooners (12-3, 3-1 Big 12) saw an eight-point second-half lead turn into a three-point deficit with 35.3 seconds remaining before Price bailed them out.

First he made three free throws after getting fouled near the top of the key with 22.3 seconds to play. Those tied the score at 58.

Then, after Will Chavis sank both ends of a 1-and-1 with 4.5 seconds remaining to give the Red Raiders a 60-58 lead, Price pushed the ball up the floor, got open on the left side of the lane and hit his jumper as the buzzer sounded.

``I almost tripped at the other end but I found a way to stay up and hit the bucket,'' Price said.

Was his eye a problem?

``I can see,'' he said. ``I made the shot.''

Price, who finished with 23 points, had to leave early in the second half after getting hit by Nick Valdez while chasing an outlet pass. He returned three minutes later with the Sooners leading 43-37.

Oklahoma's biggest lead was 47-39 after Price made two free throws at the 10:29 mark, but Tech (11-3, 1-2) rallied, going on an 11-5 run to get to 52-50 and it stayed close the rest of the way.

A layup by Ronald Ross with 1:29 to play, coming after Chavis stole the ball from Price near midcourt, gave Tech a 56-55 lead _ its first since 36-35 early in the half.

Oklahoma missed two shots on its next possession and Kasib Powell, who scored 19, hit from inside for a 58-55 Tech lead with 35.3 seconds remaining in regulation.

Then came the three free throws by Price, the two by Chavis at the other end, and Price's tying shot at the buzzer. The Sooners scripted the final play during a timeout after the first Chavis free throw.

``We tried to contain him,'' coach Bob Knight said. ``During the timeout, we told our kids that four seconds was enough time to get a shot off. He's just really so hard to contain. It was a tremendous effort he made.''

Price started the overtime by making two free throws, then added a 3-pointer with 2:46 remaining for a 67-62 lead. Tech got to 67-64, then Powell missed the front end of a 1-and-1 and Quannas White made two clinching free throws with 40.9 seconds remaining.

``If you're a basketball fan, you have to admire the kids on both teams,'' Knight said. ``We made the plays we had to to stay in the game. We got back in it and made a couple of plays. Price just made a tremendous play.''

Oklahoma coach Kelvin Sampson was at a loss for words in describing Price.

``I don't know,'' he said. ``Look in your archives. Whatever my best stuff is, pull it out.''

Texas Tech played much better than in its previous conference road game, a 68-44 loss to Kansas State in which the Red Raiders shot 26 percent. They had four players in double figures, shot 45.8 percent, turned the ball over just nine times and were only outrebounded by one.

``It was like two stubborn donkeys butting each other and neither will give,'' Sampson said. ``Texas Tech didn't lose that game. We just won it.''