Grant Sherfield scored 15 of his 22 points in the second half as the men’s Oklahoma basketball team took over the game in the final 15 minutes and defeated Florida 62-53 on Tuesday in the inaugural Jumpman Invitational in Charlotte, North Carolina.
It was another game of two halves for the Sooners, who improved their nonconference record to 9-3 heading into Big 12 play. Oklahoma never led in the opening half, and at one point trailed by 11 points.
Florida took advantage of eight Oklahoma first-half turnovers, and in the early going of the game it appeared the Gators’ energy and defensive pressure was bothering the. Sooners as they struggled to get shots to fall
Over the final five minutes of the opening half, Oklahoma went on a 9-2 run while Florida missed eight of nine shots, and the Sooners closed to within two points, 31-29, at halftime.
Sherfield, a transfer from Nevada, has scored 20 or more points in four of his last five games. He hit a three-point shot with 4:09 to go in the game to extend OU’s lead to 52-47, and the Gators would get no closer than three points the rest of the way.
Four of Sherfield’s 22 points came on three-balls. Tanner Groves added 13 points and 10 rebounds for the Sooners.
The win was Oklahoma’s second in as many seasons over the Gators. The Sooners defeated Florida 74-67 last season in Norman.
The Sooners are now off until Dec. 31 when they will host archrival Texas in the Big 12 season opener for both teams.
Three points that help tell the story of OU’s win over Florida.
- The Oklahoma defense held Florida to 32.8 percent shooting (20 of 61) for the game.
- The Sooners committed eight turnovers in the first half but just four in the second half when they took control of the game.
- OU won the battle of the boards 42 to 37, with Jalen Hill grabbing 12, Tanner Groves 10 and freshman Milos Uzan nine.