Porter Moser reveals his message entering Big 12 Tournament

In the deepest Big 12 perhaps in league history on the basketball court this season, somebody had to come in last. Unfortunately for Sooner fans, that team was Oklahoma. Porter Moser’s group definitely wasn’t bad, but they were simply decent in a conference full of great teams and ultimately finished in last place. As of now, they’re also the only program officially outside of the bubble entirely entering this weekend.

So, they’re maybe the only team in the field that has no path to the NCAA Tournament aside from winning the whole thing in Kansas City. At 15-16, the Sooners wouldn’t even make the NIT unless they win two or more games in the Big 12 tourney, making every game out a win-or-die contest. For Coach Moser, how does he properly motivate his team for such high-stakes situations while also keeping them loose.

He answered that question to open his press conference Monday ahead of the team’s trip to KC:

“Momentum. Keep getting, keep building on, visualizing. When we’re at our best we talked about it before the game… let’s visualize when we’re at our best. When we’re at our best, we’ve competed against the best in the country and that’s what we want. That’s all we wanted to visualize on. And, you know, in these last three games, you know, we’ve beaten two ranked teams and you just got to build on it. Like I said, you know, belief, confidence in everything going on.”

Play loose and play free says Porter Moser. Oklahoma fans and national folks aren’t expecting this squad to make a run, so the pressure’s off. Could be the last collegiate game for a number of seniors on the OU roster — might as well make the most of it.

For the Big 12 Tournament schedule, including matchups, tip times and TV info, go ahead and check out the official bracket below:

Big 12 Tournament

All times are listed in CT

First Round: Wed., March 8
Game 1: (8) West Virginia vs. (9) Texas Tech | 6 p.m. (ESPNU)
Game 2: (7) Oklahoma State vs. (10) Oklahoma | 8:30 p.m. (ESPNU)
Quarterfinals: Thurs., March 9
Game 3: (4) Baylor vs. (5) Iowa State | 11:30 a.m. (ESPN2)
Game 4: (1) Kansas vs. Game 1 winner | 2 p.m. (ESPN2)
Game 5: (2) Texas vs. Game 2 winner | 6 p.m. (ESPN2)
Game 6: (3) Kansas State vs. (6) TCU | 8:30 p.m. (ESPN2)
Semifinals: Fri., March 10
Game 7: Game 3 winner vs. Game 4 winner | 6 p.m. (ESPN2)
Game 8: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner | 8:30 p.m. (ESPN2)
Championship: Sat., March 11
Game 9: Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner | 7 p.m. (ESPN)