Porter Moser: Oklahoma still has opportunity to make most of season

It’s been a tough season for the Oklahoma Sooners. Now, on a five-game losing streak after losing to the Florida Gators on Tuesday night, the program is looking for answers late in the season.

Head coach Porter Moser knows finding a way to turn things around is going to be vital. With a difficult upcoming schedule, he still believes that his Sooners team has an opportunity to make the most out of this season.

“Opportunity,” Porter Moser said. “I know I keep saying that, but there is still opportunities and a lot to play for. We just need to get back in the winning column for confidence, for a lot of reasons.”

Oklahoma is now just 3-10 in SEC play this season. That means they’re tied with the LSU Tigers for 14th in the conference standings. That comes in a season where the SEC has been dominant. Now, with five regular-season games remaining, the Sooners aren’t in the race to win the conference but that doesn’t mean there isn’t a chance to start winning and finding success before the SEC Tournament.

“But that’s the message. I’m going to meet with them again, and in life sometimes you don’t know why you got put in those positions. This was a very, very tough loss for these young men,” Moser said. “And the only thing I know how to do is continue to teach with them, continue to fight, show a picture, show a path. We have a path. It’s a hard path, but it’s an attainable path, and that’s the belief. Leadership’s a transfer of belief. Our belief and confidence right now is cracked, and we’ve got to get it back. And I thought these last couple days, they prepared, they did all the things that you want. We got into that tight situation, and we had a complete meltdown with that.”

In their final five games, Oklahoma is facing a very difficult schedule. The Sooners’ next four games this season come against teams ranked in the current AP Top 25 Poll. They’ll then finish the season by playing the Texas Longhorns, who beat the Sooners in their January meeting.

“But the message is, yes, there are some Top 25 games,” Moser said. “We’ve got to play better, got to play better winning basketball. We didn’t play winning basketball the last 24 seconds. And it’ll start with me. I will not stop trying to get us to play winning basketball.”