The unexpected problem that doomed the Sooners' winning streak

With a chance to win three or more consecutive games for the third time this season, the Oklahoma men's basketball team couldn't get out of its own way in Wednesday night's 89-66 loss to Tennessee in Knoxville.

It was a rather uncharacteristic night for the Sooners, who ranked eighth in SEC play entering the game with a 0.7 turnover margin. That was far from the case against Tennessee, as OU had 15 turnovers to Tennessee's seven. But the knife in the proverbial heart was the 31 points off those turnovers for Tennessee. By contrast, the Sooners had just seven points off turnovers. The complete difference in the game. 

OU men's basketball implodes with costly turnovers in brutal loss to Tennessee

"Probably the biggest storyline -- 31 points off turnovers," OU head coach Porter Moser said during his postgame press conference. "I thought they do an excellent job of just coming and grabbing the ball if you over dribble. And we over dribbled. We went too deep without making a simple pass, and they make you pay."

Moser hit the nail on the head. While the Sooners' turnover deficit was out of character, Tennessee's ballhawk mentality was not. The Vols ranked fifth coming into the game in SEC play with 7.4 steals per game. They exceeded their average on Wednesday, recording 10 steals and really setting the tone of the game.

Despite the large turnover margin, the Sooners managed to stay in the game deep into the second half. ESPN2 analyst Richard Hendrix went as far as to mention it was surprising that Tennessee wasn't winning by more. It wasn't until the 5:25 mark in the second half when Tennessee went up by double digits for good at 72-62.

Nijel Pack was the driving force in keeping Oklahoma in the game, scoring 20 points while shooting a scorching 4-for-5 from downtown.

At the end of the day, Oklahoma faced a tough task in a Quad 1 matchup. Turnovers, plus struggles in the paint and on the glass, made it even harder in a season full of "what if" games.

Now 13-13 and 3-10 in SEC play, the Sooners shift to a celebratory mood as Buddy Hield's No. 24 will be retired Saturday against Texas A&M.