NORMAN, Okla. — With the game in his hands, senior forward Kristian Doolittle had a chance to leave the Lloyd Noble Center with a lasting memory.
It was his senior night, and with six seconds remaining and a two-point lead, Doolittle went to the charity stripe in the double bonus to put the game out of Texas’ reach.
He missed both free throws.
Texas’ Matt Coleman then had a prayer answered with a bank-in 3-pointer to down Oklahoma 52-51 and ruin Doolittle’s last moment inside the place he called home for four years.
“It’s really tough,” head coach Lon Kruger said following the game, regarding Doolittle. “He’ll have that memory for a long time but he’s gonna bounce right back. He’ll work through it, teammates will help him and we’ll be better on Saturday.”
Just 130 minutes before Doolittle missed his final shots inside the Lloyd Noble Center he was recognized as the lone senior on the Sooners’ squad. Over his career at Oklahoma, Doolittle personified grit, toughness, and perseverance.
In his sophomore year, Doolittle was suspended for the first half of the season due to academic issues. He rebounded by winning the Big 12 Most Improved Player in his junior season. Follow that up with the fact that Doolittle played two and a half games with a broken nose while nearly averaging a double-double and you have an ideal college basketball player. A kid that has battled through adversity, fought for not only himself but for his teammates and program and has earned the right to wear the jersey he puts on every day.
Yes—Doolittle had an opportunity to ice the game with six seconds to go, but he was not the only one who buckled against the Longhorns.
The Sooners missed eight of their 29 free throws and shot an abysmal 2-of-20 from behind the arc. As life goes, the Sooners needed to go 3-of-20 to come away with a win.
Despite the loss, Doolittle led the Sooners with 20 points, 10 rebounds, and tallied one assist, block, and steal in his final game inside the LNC.
Oklahoma limps into Ft. Worth, Texas, for the final game of the regular season as they will take on TCU on Saturday. Tip-off is set for 3p.m. CT and can be found on ESPN2.
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