For the 250th time, No. 13 Oklahoma and Oklahoma State will play each other in basketball when they meet Saturday night in Oklahoma City.
But this version of the Bedlam series, which will be contested for the 98th consecutive season, will mark the first time since 1958 this has been a nonconference game. Oklahoma’s move to the Southeastern Conference this summer means the programs go from at least two meetings a year in the Big 12 to just this one, barring an unexpected matchup in a postseason tournament.
This one should have a bit more juice than some might suspect. The Sooners (9-0) have gone from unranked two weeks ago to 13th in this week’s AP Top 25 poll after following up the Battle 4 Atlantis title with wins over Georgia Tech and Alcorn State.
On Dec. 7 against Alcorn State, Oklahoma played most of the first half like a team trying to muddle through a “trap” game. The winless Braves led by as many as nine points early before the Sooners finally reeled them in during the last four minutes of the first half on their way to a 94-78 victory.
Jalon Moore, who scored 19 of his 20 points that night in the second half, leads Oklahoma in scoring at 18.2 ppg and is tied for the team’s rebounding lead at 6.3. Freshman guard Jeremiah Fears adds 16.7 ppg to go along with 4.7 assists.
Fourth-year coach Porter Moser has molded a solid, efficient team that scores a lot (81.7 ppg), makes its foul shots (80.5 percent) and has one of the best assist-turnover ratios in the country. The Sooners have played well enough that Moser was reduced to saving a “but” line — coach’s ways of worrying about things after a win — about something not found in the stat sheet.
“I thought we were a step behind in our communication,” he said.
That can’t be a problem against the Cowboys (6-2), who are playing like a different team under first-year coach Steve Lutz. They’re coming off an 85-76 win Sunday at Seton Hall in the Big 12-Big East Challenge, giving the Big 12 a 6-5 series win.
Oklahoma State is playing much faster under Lutz than it did during most of Mike Boynton’s tenure. The Cowboys use full-court pressure and look to run consistently. They sped the Pirates up in taking a 19-point halftime lead, creating sizable advantages of 17-2 in points off turnovers and 16-0 on the fast break at the half.
Still, Lutz would like to see his team find more consistency, citing specifically the defense. After managing only 26 points in the first half on Sunday, Seton Hall exploded for 50 in the second half.
“We’ll hold a team to 19 points in 16 minutes and then all of a sudden, that last four minutes we’ll give up 10, 12, 14, 16 or 20 points,” Lutz said. “There’s no rhyme or reason as to why we do it. We’ve got to get past ourselves and be more consistent with our defensive effort.”
Xavier transfer Abou Ousmane averages 12.3 ppg, leading three Oklahoma State players in double figures. Marchelus Avery hits for 12.1 ppg, and Bryce Thompson chips in 11.3.
–Field Level Media
