Less than 24 hours after Trae Young dropped 26 points and 16 rebounds against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City, he watched his alma mater and some former teammates squeak one out against Mississippi State, 63-62.
With less than 15 seconds left, Oklahoma had to lock down the Bulldogs one last time to preserve their one-point lead and secure their thirteenth win of the season. Yet again, the Sooners defense came through big time with Jamal Bieniemy pressuring up the court and Kristian Doolittle defending Nick Witherspoon’s game-winning attempt just enough to force a miss, giving Oklahoma the win.
However, it was Alondes Williams who stole the show. Williams set a new career-high in points with 13 points, 10 of which came in the second half. Sparking the Sooners in the second half, Williams scored five points in 19 seconds, capped off with an emphatic fast-break two-handed slam.
“It was amazing,” Williams told reporters through a smile, reminiscing about the dunk that brought the ‘Peake to their feet.
Brady Manek said post-game that the outburst “…was a game-changer,”
The burst of effort from a bench player was exactly what Oklahoma needed to get them through a grinder of a game against an evenly matched Mississippi State team.
However, just as much as the Sooners stopped them, the Bulldogs got in their own way early and often. Easily Mississippi State’s best player and biggest advantage size-wise Reggie Perry picked up three fouls before 10 minutes could tick off the first-half clock. The 6-foot-10, 250-pound center being benched for much of the first half allowed the Sooners to take advantage before the half, building a 15-point lead before taking an 8-point lead into the locker room. Perry did not foul out but was very much missed by the Bulldogs due to a lack of minutes played to keep him from picking up five fouls.
The win gives Oklahoma a 5-2 record in the Big12/SEC Challenge and the school’s fifth straight win in NBA arenas.
Oklahoma gets back to Big 12 Conference play on Wednesday when they head up to Kansas State (8-5, 5-4). The Broadcast can be watched via Big 12 NOW on ESPN+.
[lawrence-auto-related count=3]