Oklahoma has already been tested in this young college basketball season as the Sooners made the trek up to Spokane, Washington, for a "neutral" site game against Gonzaga. The term "neutral" is almost laughable, though, as the Sooners played the Bulldogs a few miles down the road from the Gonzaga campus. Oklahoma got exposed in the paint, especially, as it fell 83-68.
In the loss, Gonzaga outscored Oklahoma 58-20 in points in the paint and also limited the Sooners offensively, holding them to an astounding five team assists. Now, if there's any consolation, seeing the defensive performance and beatdown that Gonzaga put on Creighton on Tuesday night, Sooner fans can calm down and realize that this team is still learning to play together and is just three games into the season.
Most teams have struggled over the past couple of seasons to defend the frontcourt duo of Graham Ike and Braden Huff, and despite the Sooners not having much depth at the center or power forward position, Porter Moser has assembled a squad of players who have been around the block for some time.
Sooners rebound with win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff
Oklahoma bounced back on Tuesday night with a 95-69 victory over SWAC opponent Arkansas-Pine Bluff. With a step down in the competition level, the Sooners were allowed to take a second and regroup as a team, working on their offensive and defensive strategies, and almost reached the century mark for a second time this season already.
Oklahoma gained contributions from multiple guys and had five players in double-figures, including Xzayvier Brown, who led all scorers with 19 points on 54% shooting. Tae Davis also stepped up for the Sooners, collecting his first double-double in an Oklahoma uniform with 13 points 15 rebounds. The Notre Dame transfer showed off his athleticism and grit on the glass, something that will be needed later on when Oklahoma heads into SEC play.
As a team, Oklahoma shot much better from the outside, going almost 37% from deep. Nigel Pack and Dayton Forsythe, who each finished with 15 points, were big reasons for that 3-point success, hitting a combined eight of the 11 made 3-pointers.
Oklahoma will look to keep that same fight and balanced scoring when it goes to a neutral site venue in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, at the Sanford Pentagon on Saturday. There, the Sooners will play Nebraska at 6 p.m. CT.