3 Things to Know: Mizzou Hosts Oklahoma

With the Sooners coming to town, here are the most important details about what they bring to the table for Missouri's upcoming home game.

Oklahoma Sooners forward Jalon Moore (14) goes up for a layup as Auburn Tigers take on Oklahoma Sooners at Neville Arena in Auburn, Ala., on Tuesday, Feb. 4, 2025. / Jake Crandall/ Advertiser / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Life in the Southeastern Conference isn't getting any easier.

Even if it isn't a top-five matchup or a ranked road game, Missouri has another challenge right in front of it against the Oklahoma Sooners.

"This is a great ball club that's well coached, that's balanced," Missouri head coach Dennis Gates said in a press conference Tuesday. "They shoot the ball at a high clip, they have inside play, they have experience, and it's going to be another SEC battle."

Having the game at home is helpful but the Sooners are still a talented team. Sitting at 16-7 this season, a few ups and downs have seen Oklahoma drop out of the AP Top 25. That might not be a fair assessment of the Sooners, who are full of talent and have some big wins on their resume.

The individual talent on Oklahoma's roster is impressive and should pose a threat to any team in the country. Its two leading scorers look like two of the best at putting the ball in the hoop in the SEC, despite their age or experience. That pair has led them to plenty of big wins this season.

In general, Oklahoma is a really solid offensive basketball team. They score the ball frequently and efficiently, two keys to winning in the SEC. Missouri will have opportunities to exploit the weaker defensive unit of the Sooners, only if done correctly.

Here are three things to know about the Oklahoma Sooners:

Freshman Flamethrower

He might not be at the top of the Freshman of The Year list, but first-year guard Jeremiah Fears has been a fun player to watch this season. Fears can score in a variety of ways and has done it at a high level on the biggest stages of college basketball.

Fears is averaging 15.5 points, 3.7 rebounds and four assists per game this season on 45.4% shooting. He is only shooting 26.6% from the perimeter but has proven he can make them. He is not a guy Missouri will want to let get open for any sort of shot.

In arguably Oklahoma's best win of the season, Fears shined. The Sooners won 87-86 thanks to a thrilling four-point play courtesy of Fears, who finished with 30 points on 8-for-12 shooting. That level of clutch play is impressive, especially for a freshman. If Fears catches fire, the Sooners could make this game closer than Missouri might like.

Free Throw Specialists

Not only does Oklahoma own the best free-throw shooting percentage in the SEC, but they also have a top-10 mark in the entire country. Sitting at No. 7 nationally, the Sooners are shooting 80.5% from the charity stripe this year.

On average, Oklahoma is basically missing four free-throw attempts per game. They are in the middle of the SEC in attempts per game at 20.7 and are fourth in the SEC in makes per game at 16.7. They don't get to the line as much as other SEC teams, including Missouri, but take advantage of it when they do.

If these two teams get into a free-throw battle, it might favor the Sooners. No team gets to the free throw line in the SEC more than the Missouri Tigers do, but they are in the middle of the pack in efficiency. It will be a true battle of quality against quantity at the free-throw line in a game where the stripe could be a deciding factor.

Top-Five SEC Scorer

If having one great scorer wasn't enough, the Sooners have two. Forward Jalon Moore, who played his first two seasons with the Georgia Tech Yellowjackets, has emerged as one of the conference's best pure scorers.

Moore is averaging 17.7 points per game, currently the fifth most per game in the SEC. Moore seems primed for an All-SEC spot as he finds himself playing the best basketball of his career. He's taken a six-point-per-game jump from last year, a welcome sign for the Sooners.

Not only is he scoring at a high volume, but Moore is doing it efficiently. He's shooting 52.1% from the field, the fourth-best in the conference. He also takes 11.3 shots per game, standing No. 13 of all players in the conference.

All those stats mean is that the Tigers have another big name to defend. Standing at 6-foot-7, 215-pounds, Moore is a tough player to defend. Whoever has the responsibility will have their hands full, as Moore is now one of the best players in the SEC.

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