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KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Oklahoma Athletics Director Joe Castiglione knows what a vibrant, talented young coach he has in Jeff Capel.

Anyone else who wants to know needs only two words (or one word twice): Longar Longar.

There isn't a scale to measure how much Longar has improved in two years. OU's 6-foot-11 center went from a player who barely deserved to be on the court as a sophomore to an NBA prospect as a senior, and there's no doubt Capel and his staff — primarily frontcourt coach Mark Cline — were a major factor in his turnaround.

But Capel's accomplishments span far beyond Longar's dramatic improvement. The 33-year-old coach's two seasons at OU have been nothing more than one constant adjustment.

And he's handled it all smoothly.

"The leadership qualities he shows, watching how hard his team plays for him,” Castiglione said. "That validates how much his players love playing for him.”

It hasn't been easy getting there. In Capel's first year, depth was so poor that he stepped in as the scout team center so they could have five-on-five scrimmages during practice. This year, injuries kept popping up, so at times he abandoned his usual physical practice routine to ease up on the few healthy players he had left.

He has battled the loss of a player to academics and recruiting limitations for the transgressions of the previous staff.

And he came out on the other side with a fourth-place finish in the Big 12 Conference and a virtual lock on an NCAA Tournament bid.

"The way he and his team compete when adversity strikes, or a situation is so difficult, or the opportunity for success is bleak,” Castiglione said. "They keep on fighting, and that's something that comes from Jeff. Those are the qualities that good leaders and good coaches have.”