Porter Moser takes responsibility for losing rivalry game vs. Texas

Oklahoma entered Tuesday night with a tremendous opportunity to show out in front of its fans. Porter Moser had the Lloyd Noble Center rocking for a big matchup against Red River rivals Texas. The Sooners have been playing good basketball, winning two in a row and ranked at No. 11 in the AP poll.

Things began to unravel in the second half though, with Oklahoma falling flat in the final 11 minutes of the game. Texas was able to pull ahead and never looked back, earning a huge win of their own. A tough loss for Moser to swallow and one he takes full responsibility for.

“I’m disappointed,” Moser said. “The fans were awesome. I worked my ass off to get people in here and that’s on me. That’s on me. We’re thinking about the race this year. Obviously, we didn’t play to our standards. We got to give them credit but it starts with me. I put that team out there today and I thought we were ready.

“We looked tired in the second half and I got to give them credit. Because I thought they made some crucial, key baskets in a seven, eight-minute stretch. They got separation.”

Both teams were playing well on the defensive end for most of the game. Not too many easy shots were presenting themselves, while the physicality was up there without committing too many fouls. Oklahoma was down just three points heading into the under-12 media timeout, 55-53.

From there, Oklahoma was unable to score on Texas. The final 11 minutes saw just seven Sooner points, with two of them coming at the free throw line coming out of the break. Oklahoma closed the game making just three of their final 15-shot attempts.

Moser mentioned his team being tired in the second half, maybe leading to those missed shots. Either way, everyone involved with the program will be disappointed with the result. Not only could they have stayed near the top of the Big 12 standings but Moser dropping another game to a rival stings.

Even after a tough loss against Texas, there are no easy games in the Big 12. So Oklahoma will have the immediate opportunity to get back on the right track. Texas Tech will be in Norman over the weekend, having just one loss in conference play.

Moser will take some time to reflect on Tuesday’s loss before refocusing for the weekend.