Oklahoma, as well as coach Porter Moser, seemingly sealed their collective fates in a shocking 82-79 home loss to an undermanned and bottom-feeding LSU team on Saturday.
The Sooners led by 13 points four minutes into the second half, but were unable to put LSU away in a loss that will likely end any hope of Oklahoma making this year's NCAA Tournament field for what would be a fourth straight season under Moser.
LSU, which had won just once in 11 conference games and was 0-6 away from home coming into Saturday's road test at Oklahoma, shot nearly 60% and outscored the Sooners 50-35 in the final 16 minutes of the game.
Even more inexplicable, however, was how Oklahoma managed to squander a five-point lead in the final 20 seconds and improbably hand the game to the visiting Tigers.
Cam Carter, who finished with a game-high 29 points, seven of which came in that final 20-second sequence, completed a four-point play to draw LSU within one with 20 seconds remaining. An LSU steal on OU's ensuing possession led to a breakaway layup by Carter that gave the Tigers an 80-79 lead.
The Sooners had a final chance to tie or win the game in the final eight seconds, but Jeremiah Fears' driving layup attempt rolled off the rim and likely with it Oklahoma's postseason hopes.
It was a devastating loss for Moser and the Sooners, who fall to 3-9 in conference play and are now 16-9 after going 13-0 to begin the 2024-25 campaign.
With six regular-season games remaining, five of which are against teams currently ranked in the Associated Press Top 25, the loss to LSU, a game in which Oklahoma was favored by nearly nine points, is likely the nail in the coffin for Moser's time as Sooner head coach.
The schedule is not OU's friend the rest of the way. Next week, Oklahoma goes on the road to play No. 3 Florida on Tuesday before returning home to host No. 22 Mississippi State on Saturday. Those two teams have a combined record of 40-10 this season.
Three takeaways that tell the story of the game:
1. Failure to close out game again dooms Sooners
I'm sorry, but there is no reason on this green earth that Oklahoma should have lost this game.
The Sooners literally defied all odds, seizing defeat from the jaws of victory in this one. Porter Moser even said as much in his postgame comments: "We played the last 24 seconds like, hoping not to lose."
Over a 7 1/2 minute stretch midway through the second half, LSU made 10 of 11 shots as part of a 29-13 run, while Oklahoma went on a scoring drought in which the Sooners made just two of 10 field goals. Over that ill-timed Sooner melt down, LSU fought back from a 46-33 deficit to take a 62-59 advantage, giving the Tigers their first lead since the opening minutes of the game.
2. Two LSU starters score 40 of the team's second-half points
LSU's 6-foot-9 junior forward Daimion Collins was unstoppable in the paint and even unloaded a 3-ball on his way to a career-high 22 points before fouling out. Sixteen of his points came in the second half.
The Tigers' leading scorer on the season, senior Cam Carter, literally took over the game in the second half, scoring 24 of his 29 points in the final 20 minutes and willing his team to victory. Carter entered the game averaging 16.8 points per game.
3. What does this say for the rest of the season?
Unfortunately for OU men's basketball, the season could get much worse before its over.
It's entirely feasible that the Sooners could lose all six of their remaining regular-season games. The remaining schedule includes games this coming week at No. 3 Florida and back home to face No. 22 Mississippi State. Following that, OU has remaining home games against No. 15 Kentucky and No. 21 Missouri, and away games at No. 19 Ole Miss and unranked, but always dangerous, Texas.
I don't honestly see how the Sooners, in their current state of disarray, will win any of their remaining games. That means Oklahoma could easily finish with a 3-15 record in its first season in the SEC and 16-15 overall. And just think, this is the same team that began the season going 13-0 and ranked No. 12 in the country before the calendar changed from 2024 to 2025.