OU Basketball: Texas Dominates Oklahoma, Sweeps Season Series
Oklahoma's rivalry struggles continued on Saturday as Oklahoma got smoked by Texas in Austin, losing 94-80. The Sooners have now lost seven straight games to the Longhorns.
Porter Moser's offense got going at points throughout the game, but the defense simply couldn't come up with enough stops. Texas finished the game shooting 63.5% from the floor and 50% from 3-point range.
Rivaldo Soares did his best to keep OU in the game, but it just wasn't enough. He had a season-high 21 points on 7-of-9 from the floor and 3-of-4 from the outside. He re-injured his ankle late in the game, which could be an even bigger loss for the Sooners than the outcome of the game. Jalon Moore had a big second half to total 16 points and nine rebounds.
Tyrese Hunter set his career-high on Saturday afternoon with 30 points. He cooked the Sooners on the offensive end shooting 9-of-13 from the floor.
Texas dominated Oklahoma in the first matchup between the two teams, sticking it to the Sooners 75-60 in Norman. OU wanted to set the tone early to pull of the upset in Austin, especially after a few games in a row that came down to the very last second.
Oklahoma came into this contest after a late miracle against Cincinnati. The Sooners trailed the entire game and found a way to take the lead deep into the second half. The Bearcats missed a free throw at the end of regulation and OU found a way in overtime.
The Sooners started slow, which has been a problem in a handful of games this season. The offense stalled and the defense held the fort down. With 15:43 remaining in the first half, Oklahoma went into the first TV timeout down 7-4.
The cold stretch continued and a flurry of points from the Longhorns extended Texas’ lead 18-10 with 9:18 left in the half.
Oklahoma’s offense started to click late in the first half. The Sooners went on a quick 10-2 run thanks to a pair of triples by Soares and Luke Northweather. Moser’s offense scored on four straight trips down the floor. OU tied it up at 20-20 with 6:29 left and the Longhorns took a timeout.
Texas answered by taking advantage of Oklahoma’s foul trouble by getting to the rim and finding a way to the free throw line. The Sooners were nearly down by double digits, but a few defensive stops and a huge Javian McCollum pull up 3-pointer kept OU within striking distance. At halftime, Texas led 40-35.
The most detrimental stretch of the game for Oklahoma came out of halftime. Once again, the Sooners’ offense was stagnant as could be and Texas took advantage. The Longhorns went on a quick 8-0 run and took a 48-35 advantage with 17:59 left in the game.
Oklahoma never came back from that second half hole, and Texas started to run away with it. Hunter drilled two straight triples for the Longhorns extending the lead to 58-42 with 14:11 left to play.
OU tried to make a few different runs late in the second half, but could never get it down to single digits. The defense couldn't string together back-to-back stops and Texas' offense rolled to victory. It was an uninspiring performance to end an otherwise successful season
Next up, the Sooners will await its Big 12 tournament fate, as the TCU-UCF game on Saturday afternoon has major implications. There's a good chance OU gets pitted in a rematch with Texas next week, though.
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