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OU freshman guard Jeremiah Fears ready to bounce back

Bob Przybyloby:Bob Przybylo•01/07/25•

BPrzybylo

Jeremiah Fears13
OU point guard Jeremiah Fears. (Bryan Terry - Imagn Images).

The numbers didn’t suggest OU freshman guard Jeremiah Fears had his first off outing with the Sooners. It’s not a bad final stat line, honestly.

Finishing with 16 points, five rebounds, three assists and two steals seems like a solid performance. But Fears knows, and head coach Porter Moser knows, that was the first real learning experience.

Fears only had one point on 0-for-7 shooting with zero assists at halftime in the 107-79 loss to Alabama. He picked it up in the second half, clearly, but the damage had already been done.

OK, chalk it up as a growing moment and move on.

“He was very honest, and that’s what you love, his youthful honesty,” Moser said. “And that’s what he learned. That’s why I put my arm around him when he came out of the game. I said, ‘What’d you learn?’ and he said that right away. ‘I let some of that bother me earlier.’ I’m like, ‘Man, it’s gonna happen all the time.’

“You’re a huge, huge part of what we’re doing, part of our success, and his growth is directly correlated to our growth. And so he’s got so much ability that he can help us in so many other ways. He just can’t let it affect his defense and his mentality running the offense.”

Alabama was rough, tough and physical. Copy and paste with No. 9/10 Texas A&M coming to No. 16/17 OU at 8 p.m. Wednesday on SEC Network.

The Aggies are the best offensive rebounding team in the country. They’re going to bring the toughness once again. It’s up to Fears and some of the senior leaders to make sure Fears and OU are able to successfully bounce back.

“The biggest thing is keep lifting the confidence and build the self-esteem,” guard Duke Miles said. “It’s going to be a long journey, a marathon and not a sprint. I’ve been playing a lot of college basketball, me and Kobe here. We’re going to have his back by leading him. Things are going to be OK. It’s going to be rocky. You’re going to face adversity, but we’re going to face it together. When we have each other’s backs, we can accomplish anything.”

Senior guard Kobe Elvis mentioned that might have been the first valley for Fears at OU. Coach him back up and be ready because the SEC feels sorry for nobody.

“Duke is there with him all the time,” Elvis said. “He’ll take care of him. All the rest of us will take care of him. We’ll make sure he’s ready to play come Wednesday.”

Fears still averages 17.9 points, 4.4 assists per game.

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