OU basketball with a rude SEC welcoming at Alabama
The good vibes were out the window pretty early for OU basketball. There were things head coach Porter Moser stressed repeatedly. And OU still simply had no answers as to how to stop the train from going the wrong way.
Alabama dominated, basically, from beginning to end. The Crimson Tide give the Sooners their first loss of the season in a 107-79 setback Saturday in Tuscaloosa in the SEC opener for both teams.
You can look at any number of stats, but it’s rebounding. And breaking it down even more, it’s offensive rebounding that simply was going to tell the story. Alabama had a 51-26 edge on the glass. Offensively? Just as bad, 22-8.
If OU could keep Alabama off the glass, it could be competitive. But it didn’t.
Then there was one. OU and Florida both bit the dust Saturday, leaving Tennessee as the lone undefeated team in the country.
Game No. 14 OU Takeaways
*Finally had that freshman game from star guard Jeremiah Fears. He could not get it going early, and pressed for maybe the first time in his career.
He had 1 point, shooting 0-7 from the field in the first half. And if Fears doesn’t have any assists, either, then you know things just weren’t clicking.
Fears eventually found his shot, making his first field goal with more than 11 minutes left in the second half. The first ‘he’s a freshman’ type of game. Fears finished with a nice stat line, but the bulk came when the game was no longer competitive.
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Fears had 16 points, five rebounds, three assists and two steals.
*A homecoming for senior Jalon Moore. The Alabama native played well, but this just wasn’t a game where any individual effort was going to spur a huge boost.
Moore had 20 points and seven rebounds.
*A real steady game from Sam Godwin. Again, it wasn’t going to matter in this type of contest. However, if Godwin can keep doing that moving forward, would be a bonus. He had 15 points and five rebounds and three steals.
*This is the SEC test. Not just physical, but mental. Games like this are going to happen. But you can’t let ‘em snowball into two or three losses. That will be the key, obviously.
Up next
OK, now it’s time for the SEC in Norman. This is where things need to be different. OU needs to have that type of fan support Alabama just had in Tuscaloosa. Up first? Ranked opponent Texas A&M is coming to the Lloyd Noble Center 8 p.m. on Wednesday.
