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It's now or never for OU basketball, Porter Moser

Bob Przybyloby:Bob Przybylo•02/21/25•

BPrzybylo

Kobe Elvis5
OU seniors Kobe Elvis, Glenn Taylor. (Kevin Jairaj - Imagn Images).

The word of the week has been belief for OU men’s basketball coach Porter Moser. Keeping it, instilling it and pushing forward with it.

There aren’t many people coming along for the ride right now with Moser. Social media is calling for his head. A five-game losing streak amplifies a miserable initial SEC experience. A once-promising 13-0 start has turned into a 16-10 ‘here we go again’ type of season.

The Sooners have been on the right side of the NCAA Tournament all season. Until Friday. ESPN, for the first time this Bracketology season, now has OU as the First Team Out.

Don’t remind anybody, obviously, as the Sooners were that team last season. The way OU is playing right now, though? It would be lucky to still be in that conversation.

The Sooners have trailed at halftime by at least 20 points in three of the last four games. That other one? Yea, that’s when OU blew a 13-point second half lead against LSU and blew a 79-74 advantage with 24 seconds left.

All the goodwill from massive victories against Michigan, Arizona and Louisville are gone. It has all been used up during this stretch.

So here comes OU, back to the Lloyd Noble Center, for the first of the three final home games against elite competition.

Up first? Mississippi State. The Bulldogs are ranked No. 21 in the country and are coming off impressive wins at Ole Miss last weekend and vs. No. 7 Texas A&M on Tuesday.

Moser knows the Bulldogs all too well as MSU head coach Chris Jans was an assistant for Moser during his Illinois State days 20 years ago.

The teacher needs to get the best of the student Saturday or else? Well, nobody wants to go there, but you might have to. OU has to turn back the clock and become that squad it was in the initial two months of the season.

Moser knows nothing else except pouring confidence into his players. Trying to transfer that belief into the rest of his guys.

If OU has anything mentally left in the tank, let it all out Saturday afternoon. Because if you don’t, nobody is going dancing.

Resilience, fighting through the hard – we’ve heard it all from Moser. It’s actually really sound advice, but the players have to respond to it. If Moser is going to keep his job in Norman, then this three-week stretch is where it has to turn things around.

Not many consider that possible. But Moser still has the belief. We’ll find out if the Sooners have any of it left, too, this weekend.

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