How to Watch Oklahoma vs. Gonzaga

The No. 13-ranked Oklahoma Sooners midweek malaise nearly lasted both games against the visiting and then-undefeated Arizona State Sun Devils.

Pitching struggles in the second and third inning of Tuesday's match led to a 15-3 run rule loss. Wednesday's game appeared to be going the same direction with the Sooners surrendering three runs in the opening inning, only to plug the pitching leak soon after, to outlast the Sun Devils with a Jaxon Willits walk-off double winner.

Now, Oklahoma (8-1) looks to get back to its explosive and efficient play it showed in their opening games. Gonzaga (2-5) travels to Norman for the first in their program's history to try and catch the weekend starters on a bad stretch.

The Sooners enter the weekend leading the SEC in runs scored (106) and are wanting to get back on the same track that saw them outscore opponents 32-6 at the Shriners Children's College Baseball Showdown in Arlington.

How to Watch the Sooners vs. the Bulldogs

Game 1: Friday, 4 p.m., SEC Network+
Game 2: Saturday, 2 p.m., SEC Network+
Game 3: Sunday, 1 p.m., SEC Network+

With projected starters Cameron Johnson (2-0, 1.64 ERA), LJ Mercurius (2-0, 0.87 ERA) and Cord Rager (2-0, 0.90 ERA), Oklahoma is well positioned to combat a Gonzaga squad that has struggled to do much of anything so far this season.

The Bulldogs dropped their four-game series to start the season across the sea against Hawaii, winning only one. They followed that up by losing their second series to Texas State, also on the road.

To make matters worse, Gonzaga hasn't beaten a ranked opponent since winning 9-8 over No. 6 Vanderbilt in 2024.

Oklahoma Sooners, Jaxon Willits — Oklahoma infielder Jaxon Willits throws to third base against Arizona State. | Carson Field, Sooners On SI

They'll be up against it with this Sooners pitching staff, which has combined for with 98 strikeouts to 40 walks in the early season. Specifically, the weekend rotation has combined for 52 strikeouts to 12 walks and 4 earned runs on the year.

If it's not pitching, then the Oklahoma bats will strike fear into opponents.

Seventeen Sooners have been sent to the plate in this young season—16 have registered a hit.

Sophomore Camden Johnson leads the team with a .407 batting average. Five players—Johnson, Trey Gambill, Willits, Brendan Brock and Deiten Lachance — are hitting above .350. Brock, Gambill and sophomore Drew Dickerson share the team lead in home runs with two apiece, and nine different Sooners have combined for 12 homers overall.

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Oklahoma hitters will be tested against the 'Zags pitching staff, which currently rank in the top 50 in ERA and hits allowed per nine innings. Projected starters Finbar O'Brien (0-0, 5.40 ERA, right-handed), Erik Hoffberg (1-1, 2.25 ERA) and Karsten Sweum (0-1, 5.59 ERA, left-handed) have combined for a .211 batting average against.

Zags pitchers will be backed up by reigning WCC Player of the Year Mikey Bell. In his breakout first year at Gonzaga last season, Bell hit .436 with a 1.291 OPS in WCC conference games.

As the season begins to take shape, the Sooners look to take advantage of a 17-game homestand to start off 2026. With numerous tough conference series in the coming months, wins are valuable.