All five Oklahoma basketball starters scored in double figures as the Sooners pulled away early and late on the way to an impressive 88-66 victory over 12th-ranked Arkansas.
Billed as the Cardinal and Crimson Classic because of the primary school colors of each team, the game was played on a neutral court at the BOK Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Senior Elijah Harkless led Oklahoma with 21 points and 11 rebounds, and Tanner Groves, the Big 12 Newcomer of the Week, added 16 points.
The Sooners, who had suffered a heartbreaking loss at home to Butler on Tuesday night in a game they had led most of the way, came out highly motivated on Saturday. They were on fire in the early going, racing out to a 13-0 advantage before Arkansas scored its first basket.
The Razorbacks chipped away at the deficit, which was double digits a good part of the opening half, and closed to within six points by halftime, with Oklahoma leading 39-33 at the break.
The Sooners got off to a fast start in the second half, as well. scoring 11 of the first 13 points. Arkansas fought back behind the sharpshooting of sophomore guard Davontae Davis, who led the Razorbacks with a game-high 26 points, including four of Arkansas’ seven made three-pointers.
Arkansas mounted a 19-7 run and was within three points, at 57-54, with just 10 minutes remaining in the game.
That’s when the Sooners went back to work on the offensive end. Oklahoma outscored the Razorbacks 29-6 over the next nine minutes to put the game out of reach and hand Arkansas its first loss of the season after a 9-0 start.
Biggest cheer so far in the BOK Center today: the OU Football Hype Video. Bob Stoops' "This is YOUR home" and the quick cuts to Venables brought the crowd to life.#Sooners
— John E. Hoover 🌮 (@johnehoover) December 11, 2021
Oklahoma shot 55 percent for the game, including 59 percent from three-point range. The Sooners made a season-high 13 three-pointers on 22 attempts. Tanner Groves was three of five from behind the three-point line, and Umoja Gibson lit up the basket from long range, hitting four of seven three-balls.
The win was Oklahoma’s second over a top-25 team in the month of December. OU defeated then-No. 14 Florida 74-67 on Dec. 1.
The Sooners, now 8-2 on the season, are off until Dec. 19, when they will host the University of Texas-Arlington at Lloyd Noble Center.