NCAA Basketball Tournament 2013 March Madness Update Oklahoma vs. San Diego State: Watch South Region At Wells Fargo Center In Philadelphia

Mar 22, 2013 09:10 PM EDT

Oklahoma Sooners coach Lon Kruger is bringing some history with him to Friday's game against San Diego State in the South region, as he is the first coach to lead five teams to the big dance after doing it with Kansas State, Florida, Illinois and UNLV previously.

The Sooners are the 10th seed and are technically underdogs against San Diego State, but after a strong finish to the tournament, they will be ready. Steve Fisher, the coach on the other side of the court, has plenty of experience himself in the NCAA tournament, as he coached Michigan to a national championship and two runner-up appearances in the late 80s and early 90s. Both coaches are well acquainted with each other and will bring that experience to the court on Friday.

Kruger has over 500 career wins and led the Sooners to the Big dance for the first time since 2009 when Blake Griffin was still slamming down dunks in the Big 12. Oklahoma defeated Kansas this season and was an at-large selection out of the conference, which was won by the Jayhawks.

Kruger is getting his players ready for a possible deep run, as he did in 1988 with Kansas State. He also brought Florida to the final four and UNLV to the Sweet 16 before moving to Illinois, where he never was able to get past the first weekend. Romero Osby has been the primary reason for Oklahoma's success, as he is leading the team in scoring and rebounding.

Osby originally transferred from Mississippi State and was All-Big 12 this season while scoring nearly 16 points and grabbing seven boards per game while also leading the team in field goal percentage.

San Diego State enters the game after Fisher turned around one of the country's worst teams, taking them from 0-14 in the conference in his first season to the Sweet 16 two years ago. The team is also playing in its fourth straight tournament. The team ranks 125th in the nation in scoring and 76th in rebounding, while they are 201st in assists and 143rd in field goal percentage.

Oklahoma ranked 87th in scoring with over 70 points per game and were 80th in rebounding. The team was 191st in assists and 161st in field goal percentage. The team finished the year with two losses but will be looking to rebound on Friday.

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