COLLEGE BASKETBALL / NCAA MEN’S BASKETBALL : Sooners Can’t Take Manhattan : Southeast: Jaspers back up selection by defeating fourth-seeded Oklahoma, 77-67.

All week long, they were asked to justify their position in the NCAA tournament. Or better yet, apologize for it. Manhattan was almost no one’s idea of a tournament team, and fortunately for the Jaspers, the few who supported the team were on the eight-man selection committee.

Today, that committee feels as much a sense of justification as Manhattan. The Jaspers, seeded 13th in the Southeast Regional, dropped fourth-seeded Oklahoma, 77-67, Thursday at Memphis’ Pyramid. Four days after receiving their at-large bid, you might say the Jaspers were finally approved.

Manhattan was perhaps the most controversial entrant in the 64-team tournament, a mid-level school that did not have an automatic bid. Cries of injustice were heard on campuses such as Georgia Tech, Iowa and George Washington, major schools that believed their exclusion was at the expense of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference runner-up with the puny schedule. Now the Jaspers find themselves a victory away from the Sweet 16, should they get past Arizona State, an 81-66 winner over Ball State on Thursday.

“I know some didn’t think we belonged here,” Jasper Coach Fran Fraschilla said, “but Manhattan College acquitted themselves today.”

They did so by staying composed in the first half and taking control in the second. They blended a balanced offense with an alert defense that pestered the Sooners’ top player, forward Ryan Minor. They benefited from the close calls. They let the Sooners no closer than six points in the game’s final eight minutes.

Forward Jeronimo Bucero made three second-half three-point shots to maintain the lead; guard Keaton Hyman scored seven of his 13 in the first eight minutes of the second half, when the Jaspers (26-4) seized control for good, and Ted Ellis added seven steals.

It was only the Riverdale, N.Y., school’s second tournament victory and first in 37 years. In 1958, the Jaspers ruined the tournament for top-ranked West Virginia and an up-and-comer named Jerry West. That one was bigger, but not necessarily more satisfying.

“We had to state our case and defend ourselves,” Ellis said. “I’d say we did a good job of that.”

It’s hard to argue that, although Oklahoma Coach Kelvin Sampson, stung by the defeat, fell short of giving the Jaspers their due. “The best teams don’t always win, and I thought that’s what happened today,” he said. “The team that played the best won the game.”

The Jaspers helped themselves by spotting Oklahoma (23-9) only a five-point lead at halftime.

Then the balance shifted in Manhattan’s favor. Hyman was the reason, but he was an odd savior: The Jaspers’ playmaker, his career-high is only 14 points. He was stunned himself.

“I took eight shots in 19 minutes,” said Hyman, staring in disbelief at the stat sheet.

The Jaspers used a 10-0 run to lead, 52-43, with 11 minutes left, and their cushion grew to 67-53 with the help of Bucero’s three-pointers.

Minor scored 24 points, but in an 18-minute stretch sandwiched around halftime, Minor took only three shots, making none.