Oklahoma 80, St. Bonaventure 74.

NORMAN, Okla. (AP) _ Oklahoma coach Kelvin Sampson has been waiting for Aaron McGhee to discover his nasty side. <br><br>On Wednesday night, McGhee was in an accommodating mood as he equaled his season

Thursday, December 6th 2001, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

NORMAN, Okla. (AP) _ Oklahoma coach Kelvin Sampson has been waiting for Aaron McGhee to discover his nasty side.

On Wednesday night, McGhee was in an accommodating mood as he equaled his season high with 19 points and pulled down a career-best 19 rebounds to lead Oklahoma to an 80-74 victory over St. Bonaventure.

McGhee was especially vile, at least where the Bonnies were concerned, in the second half when he dominated the boards with 13 rebounds and 13 points.

``No question, that's Aaron's best effort since he's been here,'' Sampson said. ``I like my players to play with a little mud in their blood. Aaron had a little nasty in him tonight.''

McGhee helped the Sooners (4-1) take control by scoring 11 points during the final 7:53.

He hit a 3-pointer to tie the game at 61-61 and then scored six points during a decisive 10-0 run that ended with his bucket that gave OU a 75-66 lead with 2:12 left.

``I just took it on myself to try to get every rebound and really attack the glass,'' McGee said. ``I was hoping to give our team a lift, give us some energy by really going hard on both ends. This was my best game of the year and it felt good.''

The Sooners iced the game in the closing moments as Ebi Ere scored on a backdoor layup and Jason Detrick made three free throws. Ere finished with 17 points and six rebounds, while Detrick had eight points.

Quannas White added 11 points and four assists for Oklahoma.

St. Bonaventure (3-2) kept the game tight much of the opening half. Vidal Massiah made three 3-pointers. Massiah's second 3-pointer gave the Bonnies their first lead at 19-16.

St. Bonaventure extended its lead to 21-16 before White answered with a 3-pointer to start an 11-0 run by Oklahoma.

The Sooners led 36-35 at halftime, but the Bonnies opened the second half with an 11-4 run _ started by J.R. Bremer's 3-pointer _ to grab a 46-40 lead.

Bremer finished with a game-high 23 points, while Massiah had 21.