Wednesday, February 2, 2011

oklahoma senior ready for super bowl sunday


Oklahoma senior Carlee Roethlisberger has a pair of reasons to celebrate on Sunday.

First, her team has the day off. And she also will get a chance to see her big brother, Ben, in Super Bowl XLV as the Pittsburgh Steelers face the Green Bay Packers in Arlington, Texas, which is three hours from the Oklahoma campus.

When Carlee was a sophomore, she got to watch her brother play in Super Bowl XLIII against the Arizona Cardinals on her day off. The next day, Roethlisberger helped Oklahoma beat Tennessee 80-70 at Oklahoma City.

So far this season, Roethlisberger is helping the Sooners turn in another strong season. Oklahoma will take a 16-4 record into Wednesday's matchup with top-ranked Baylor at Waco. The Sooners also have a home game on Saturday against Iowa State, which is a game big brother Ben is trying to attend.

"Bigger than the Super Bowl," the Steelers quarterback said in the Daily Oklahoman on Wednesday. "Saturday, my sister's got a home game in Norman, Oklahoma. I'm trying to go to it. I don't think it's going to happen."

But if Ben doesn't go to Saturday's game, he'll still be rooting for his little sister helping the Sooners getting a win over the Cyclones before her day off on Sunday.

"That's a big game," Ben said. "I'm rooting for her. Hope she does good."

Carlee has been a valuable member for the Oklahoma program since her arrival in 2007, helping the Sooners reach the Final Four twice. This winter, she's averaging 6.4 points and 4.9 rebounds per game.

While Carlee gets Sunday off, a total of 82 teams will not be so lucky. A total of 41 games will be played on Sunday, including the one between top-ranked Baylor at Oklahoma State.

Also, UCLA and USC will square off in its crosstown showdown. It's the only Pac-10 game scheduled for Sunday.

All of the Big Ten teams except Minnesota will play on Sunday. Northwestern and Ohio State will square off at 5 p.m. EST, meaning the game will end about an half-hour past kickoff time (6:29 EST). What's up with that?

All of the SEC teams except Tennessee and Kentucky will play on Sunday. Ironically, Tennessee and Kentucky are the only ranked SEC teams in the polls.

Northern Iowa and Missouri State will square on Sunday in a battle for first place in the Missouri Valley Conference. Northern Iowa is in first place at 8-1 and Missouri State is tied for second at 7-2 with Creighton.

Houston will look to bump its Conference USA record to 9-0 on Sunday, when it travels to Tulane.

Big jump: After beating Cincinnati and West Virginia last week, the DePaul Blue Demons made the biggest jump among the top 25 teams in this week's polls. DePaul is ranked ninth with a 21-2 record.

The Blue Demons will take an eight-game winning streak into their contest with UConn on Saturday in a battle of undefeated Big East teams. UConn is 9-0 and DePaul is 8-0.

Welcome aboard, Marquette: For the first time in four years, the Marquette Golden Eagles are back in the top 25.

Marquette earned a spot in the top 25 after beating Louisville and Pittsburgh last week. The Golden Eagles are ranked No. 23, making it the first time since 2007 Marquette made an appearance in the polls.

The Golden Eagles boosted their record to 18-4 with a 62-57 win over Tuesday. They'll play a home game against St. John's on Saturday.

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