Tag: Sam Godwin

State of the Oklahoma Sooners Men’s basketball program

Can the Oklahoma Sooners continue to live in the transfer portal?

Another year and another offseason of roster turnover for [autotag]Porter Moser[/autotag] and the Oklahoma Sooners men’s basketball team. The Sooners are coming off a year of growth but not enough to make the NCAA Tournament.

This marks the third straight season the Sooners have not gone dancing in March, which is unacceptable for a program like Oklahoma. The Sooners also now have their work cut out for them because they have to replace five key pieces from this past year’s team.

[autotag]Le’Tre Darthard[/autotag] and [autotag]Rivaldo Soares[/autotag] are out of eligibility. Milos Uzan, John Hugley and Otega Oweh have all entered the transfer portal. The writing seemed to be on the wall as the season was coming to a close but they still create a big hole to fill this offseason.

The Sooners did add two players to this past year’s recruiting class meaning they have four spots to fill in the transfer portal.

Some of the names the Sooners have reportedly been linked to are [autotag]Brandon Garrison[/autotag] from Oklahoma State, [autotag]Sean Pedulla[/autotag] from Virginia Tech and [autotag]Kevin Overton[/autotag] from Drake. What do they all have in common? They all played high school basketball in Oklahoma.

But right now, the state of the program is not good.

Does that mean those guys aren’t buying into Moser’s message? Are they not buying into the vision he has for the program or for them as individual players? What is the disconnect so far?

In this day and age, you can build a great team in the portal. North Carolina State and Alabama both did it. They both have several key pieces that transferred in this year or the year before. It can be done, but Oklahoma and Moser have to start hitting on the big fish.

I get Oklahoma isn’t a “basketball school” and is much more of a “football school”. A lot of people say Purdue is a basketball school and not a football school. Did you know since the 1980-1981 season, Purdue has made one Final Four, whereas Oklahoma has made three? Purdue ended their final four drought this season.

It’s time for the university and the people who support the school to start showing more support to the basketball team. Start raising NIL so they can be competitive in that space in the portal. If the Sooners will start getting competitive, they’ll have no problem getting fans into seats.

But it starts with the school taking it a little more seriously than they have to this point.

Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow Jaron on Twitter @JaronSpor.

Sooners forward John Hugley to enter transfer portal after one season in Norman

Former Pitt transfer John Hugley is back in the portal after just one year in Norman. Hugley was a big member of OU’s bench this season.

Oklahoma is looking down the barrel at another offseason when they must fill multiple holes via the transfer portal.

[autotag]Otega Oweh[/autotag], a former four-star recruit, entered the transfer portal earlier this week after a sophomore season in Norman that saw him second in scoring, averaging 11.4 points per game.

Another member of Oklahoma’s 2023-2024 team is entering the transfer portal, center John Hugley. Hugley averaged 8.4 points and 3.4 rebounds on 54% shooting in 17.6 minutes per game. Hugley and Sam Godwin split duties as the top big men on Oklahoma’s roster this season.

Hugley was a staple of Oklahoma’s bench unit throughout the season and had some bright spots, especially during Big 12 play. However, foul trouble and a meniscus injury were direct reasons Hugley didn’t play more. He finished with three or more fouls in six of 11 contests.

Hugley transferred from Pittsburgh last spring and will now search for a new home.

For Oklahoma, this departure felt expected but still hurts. The Sooners should be a very active team in the transfer portal, with significant minutes needed to play on the wing vacated by Le’Tre Darthard (graduation), Otega Oweh (transfer), and Rivaldo Soares (graduation).

Now, with Hugley into the portal, the Sooners will be looking for another big man capable of usurping Godwin as a starter or providing at least 20 minutes off the bench.

Porter Moser speaks on turning down NIT invitation

Porter Moser talks about why the Oklahoma Sooners decided to not play in the NIT tournament.

On Sunday, the Oklahoma Sooners found out they would not be getting into the [autotag]NCAA Tournament[/autotag]. Shortly after that, it was announced they would not be playing in the [autotag]NIT[/autotag] either.

Porter Moser held a press conference on Tuesday where he talked about the devastation his team felt after being snubbed from the tournament. He also said they were given 10-15 minutes to decide if they wanted to participate in the NIT.

“It never was a thought,” Moser said. “It’s absolutely not to disparage the NIT. I think a storied tournament. That’s not to say some coaches wanted to start on the portal. That’s not where we were. It wasn’t even about those two things. I will coach until the last bounce that I can possibly coach and I told my guys that. I said I would coach; I would develop, I would compete for this school until the last bounce. So nobody can confer what it is. It was an incredible raw emotion that these kids had to make a decision in 15 minutes after heart-breaking news where some of the guys will never have a chance to play in the NCAA Tournament again.”

That was particularly the case for [autotag]Rivaldo Soares[/autotag]. It was well documented how he had never made an NCAA Tournament and was using that as motivation. He was arguably playing like the Sooners’ best player at the end of the year but continued to battle an ankle injury.

Moser said he ultimately didn’t feel they’d have enough guys to field a team. Now the Sooners are back to where they were a year ago, trying to figure out how to build a team to make the NCAA Tournament while also going to a new conference.

How they respond to this will determine how good of a year they will have next season.

Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow Jaron on Twitter @JaronSpor.

‘We’re in good shape’: Porter Moser on the Oklahoma Sooners’ NCAA Tournament chances

The Sooners had been struggling lately but with their win vs. Cincinnati, Porter Moser believes they belong in the tournament.

After a hard-fought game, the Oklahoma Sooners were able to win their 20th game of the season. That’s big in several different ways.

One of those is it’s the first 20-win season at Oklahoma since the 2018-2019 season when they lost in the second round of the [autotag]NCAA Tournament[/autotag]. But it’s the first 20-win regular season since [autotag]Buddy Hield[/autotag]’s Final Four team in 2015-2016. It’s also big because it almost guarantees a berth in the NCAA Tournament, which would be their first time back since the 2020-2021 season.

Porter Moser discussed whether he has talked to his players about their NCAA Tournament chances. “They know how important each game was,” Moser said. “They know where we were at. We had to get another big win against a really good team. That’s probably a Quad 2 win. We’re going to Texas now and they were talking about that more than the other. But they know. We’re just trying to stack some wins now, but I think we’re in good shape.”

It remains to be seen if Oklahoma will get an NCAA Tournament berth. The latest Bracketology had them as a 10 seed, so a loss could have been detrimental.

They have a chance to add to it as Oklahoma takes on the Texas Longhorns this weekend who could be without one of their best players. Then, in the [autotag]Big 12[/autotag] Tournament, it looks like Oklahoma will face the [autotag]TCU Horned Frogs[/autotag] or Texas again as things stand right now. But that won’t be official until games are played later on in the week.

Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow Jaron on Twitter @JaronSpor.

Oklahoma Sooners outlast Cincinnati 74-71 in overtime, secure win No. 20

Oklahoma Sooners outlast Cincinnati Bearcats 74-71.

Tuesday night was a messy affair in the Lloyd Noble Center, but the Oklahoma Sooners came out on top when the dust cleared. After a rough start, they clawed their way to a hard-earned 20th win.

Oklahoma hosted Cincinnati for what will go down as Oklahoma’s final Big 12 home game. While the game ended with a 74-71 win in overtime, it was not without its own challenges.

Before the game, it was announced that starter [autotag]Javian McCollum[/autotag] would not be playing after injuring his shoulder during practice.

So before the game started, Oklahoma was down a starter as they got set to face a desperate Cincinnati team. The Bearcats, coached by Wes Miller, came out like the more hungry team as they played with more energy than the Sooners in the opening 20 minutes.

After falling behind 14-3 early, Oklahoma methodically worked its way back into the game. As he’s done many times this year, Rivaldo Soares paced the Sooners early with 10 points and was the only Sooner in double figures as OU put up a paltry 27 points at halftime.

The Sooners shot 40 percent from the field in the half, but the big story was the performance of sophomore Milos Uzan.

On a day when the Sooners needed him to up his contributions without McCollum in the lineup, Uzan was held scoreless in the first half. He also had two turnovers and sat a significant amount thanks to two fouls.

The Sooners entered the break down 28-27 and were fortunate to remain in the game after their poor start.

The second half was even worse offensively for the Sooners, as they shot 32% from the field. However, they shot a surprising 50% from long distance, and they cashed in on 21 of 23 free throws in the final 20 minutes.

A back-and-forth affair came down to the waning moments of the game.

While down two with 17.4 seconds remaining in regulation, Porter Moser drew up a crispy inbounds play to free Le’Tre Darthard in the corner for an open 3-pointer to give OU a one-point lead. Oklahoma fouled Darthard’s former Utah Valley teammate Aziz Bandaogo with mere seconds left, and Bandaogo hit one of two free throws to send the game to overtime.

Oklahoma found its defense in the extra period. Sam Godwin and Otega Oweh came through with clutch buckets, while Darthard went 3 of 4 from the free throw line to close things out. The Bearcats’ last attempt to tie the game clanged off the rim and Darthard secured teh rebound to seal the win for the Sooners on Senior Night.

Soares, Darthard, Godwin, and Maks Klanjscek were honored Tuesday night before the game.

Oklahoma found a way despite being without Javian McCollum and arguably the worst performance of his young career from Milos Uzan. Uzan shot 1 of 10 for 2 points and fouled out in the second half.

Le’Tre Darthard finished as the team leader in points with 18, while Soares and Jalon Moore dropped 16 a piece. Jizzle James, the son of NFL Hall of Famer Edgerrin James, had 16 to lead the Bearcats.

It wasn’t pretty and deserved zero style points, but Oklahoma found a way.

The Sooners were a 10 seed in Joe Lunardi’s bracketology update before the game, and this win should solidify their case as an NCAA tournament team.

If Tuesday’s win wasn’t enough, Oklahoma will have another chance to pad their resume as they travel to Austin to take on the Texas Longhorns on Saturday. They’ll have a chance for revenge in the final regular season iteration of the Red River Rivalry in the BIg 12 before both schools depart for the SEC.

Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow Bryant on Twitter @thatmanbryant.

‘They’re hurting’: Porter Moser on the mood in the locker room after tough loss to Houston

While there are no moral victories, Oklahoma can take a few positives away from their game vs. the Houston Cougars.

The Oklahoma Sooners followed up one of their worst performances of the season with one of their best performances in their two-point loss to the Houston Cougars.

The Sooners took the nation’s top team to the wire but ultimately lost to the Houston Cougars on a last-second shot. Still, there were a lot of positives to take away from the game. The Cougars have one of the best defenses in the country, and Oklahoma put up 85 points while shooting 52.7% from the field and hitting 12 threes.

Porter Moser spoke after the game about the mood in the locker room after a hard-fought loss. “It was a tough vibe in there,” Moser said. “It wasn’t like they were just happy to be close. I mean they fought their tales off. I thought they believed, their energy level, they made big plays obviously Houston made big plays as well. They’re hurting and that’s a good sign.”

There are no moral victories in sports but there are a lot of positives you can take away from this performance. This was the first time since probably the Iowa State game in Norman to start [autotag]Big 12[/autotag] play where the Sooners looked like the top 25 team they had been for most of the year. They also played great offense after really struggling in that aspect in conference play.

The question now is, did they play that well because they got up for a big game against the No. 1 team in the nation, or did they play that way because they are starting to turn a corner?

It won’t take long to find out. They play the Cincinnati Bearcats in Norman on Tuesday, and that’s absolutely a game they should win.

Even though the loss was heartbreaking, good teams find ways to take the positives out of it and build upon those. We’ll see what kind of team this year’s Oklahoma team is shortly.

Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow Jaron on Twitter @JaronSpor.

Best photos from the Oklahoma Sooners 87-85 loss to the No. 1 Houston Cougars

Best photos from the Oklahoma Sooners 87-85 buzzer-beater loss to the Houston Cougars on Saturday night.

Close losses all count the same, but after the Sooners’ disappointing effort in Ames earlier this week, going toe to toe with the No. 1 team in the nation was an encouraging site.

When the Oklahoma Sooners are hitting their shots, they’ve proven this season that they can hang with just about anyone. And in this contest, the Sooners shot very well. Oklahoma had a chance to send the game to overtime, getting an initial stop on Jamal Shead’s game-tying attempt on Houston’s final possession.

However, the Sooners couldn’t collect the rebound, and the ball found Shead again, who did what good players do when given a second chance and buried the game-winner and Oklahoma’s upset bid.

Still, it was an encouraging performance for the Sooners as they head into the final week of the regular season. Sure, you hate to lose any game but the 2023-2024 season has shown improvement. Oklahoma sits 7-9 in Big 12 play after they won just five games a year ago. Overall, the Sooners are one win away from a 20-win season.

Despite how the rest of the season goes, this team looks like they’re heading for the NCAA tournament. Now it’s about earning the best seed they can in March Madness.

Check out the best photos from the Oklahoma Sooners loss to the Houston Cougars.

 

Oklahoma falls to No. 1 Houston 87-85 on last second jump shot by Jamal Shead

Oklahoma comes up short 87-85 in upset bid of No.1 Houston.

Oklahoma emptied the tank on Saturday evening before a packed-out Lloyd Noble Center as they took on the nation’s number one team, the Houston Cougars.

Though the Sooners failed to knock off yet another highly-ranked Big 12 foe on Saturday evening, there’s certainly no shame in the effort they put on the court.

Jamal Shead, one of the nation’s best players, sent the Sooner faithful home in disappointed after hitting a mid-range jump shot as the seconds ticked down to give the Cougars and former Oklahoma head coach [autotag]Kelvin Sampson[/autotag] the 87-85 win.

In what many figured would be a defensive, grind-it-out affair, the Sooners and Cougars exploded offensively from the opening tip throughout the contest.

The first half was a back-and-forth affair with threes raining from each side in a free-flowing game. OU was 7 of 13 from beyond the arc and 10 of 10 from the free throw line in the game’s first 20 minutes. Overall in the first half, they shot 14 of 28 from the field, while Houston shot 67% percent in the first half.

Rivaldo Soares led the way with 10 points on 3 of 3 shooting and 3 of 3 from the charity stripe. Sam Godwin added eight of his team-leading 17 points.

Houston adjusted at the break before racing out to a 56-47 lead before pushing it out to 63-51with over 13 minutes left.

The Sooners responded to fight back into the game with clutch shooting and timely stops. With the Sooners down 85-82, Sam Godwin was fouled. He made the first of two free throws, but the rebound was saved by point guard Milos Uzan. After a timeout, the Sooners scored off the ensuing inbound pass on a nifty drive to the cup by [autotag]Javian McCollum[/autotag].

On the Cougars’ final possession, Oklahoma got the initial stop, but Shead collected his own rebound from the scrum and hit the buzzer beater to end the Sooners’ upset bit.

The Sooners had five players finish in double figures while shooting over 50% from the field and 40% from three.

Houston will head to Orlando to take on UCF Wednesday evening.

The Sooners will host Cincinnati on Tuesday at 7 p.m. for their final Big 12 home game before heading on the road to face Texas in Austin on the final day of the regular season.

Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow Bryant on Twitter @thatmanbryant.

Rivaldo Soares returns from injury, comes up big for the Oklahoma Sooners

Rivaldo Soares once again steps up big for the Sooners after a week of uncertainty.

You could argue since the game against the Texas Tech Red Raiders, no one is playing better for the Oklahoma Sooners than [autotag]Rivaldo Soares[/autotag].

Off the bench, Soares is averaging 13.9 points per game, 68.1% from the field, 61.1% from three and five rebounds in that seven-game stretch. It just shows how big it was to not have him in their last game against the Kansas Jayhawks after he suffered an injury late in the Baylor game. There were even some questions if he would even be able to go against Oklahoma State.

Soares talked about what the week was like for him to get ready. “I got with my trainers, strength coach and just did a whole lot of treatment,” Soares said. “Some days I did more treatment sessions than I had meals. I think that was the first collegiate game I missed in my career. I didn’t want to miss it so I definitely didn’t want to miss another one. It was just grinding to get back. I just tweaked it (in the first half) real quick. I felt some discomfort. I subbed out, kept it moving and I was good to go back in.”

Sooners are thankful he did. He finished with 20 points on 7 of 9 shooting and 3 of 3 from three. 14 of those points came in the second half as the Sooners were working back from ann eight-point halftime deficit and in overtime. If he can keep this up, he’ll play a huge role to keep the Sooners dancing in March.

Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow Jaron on Twitter @JaronSpor.

Javian McCollum’s shot might have saved Oklahoma’s season

Javian McCollum might have hit the biggest shot in recent Oklahoma Sooners memory.

No matter what [autotag]Javian McCollum[/autotag] does the rest of his career at Oklahoma, he will forever be engrained in Oklahoma basketball lore.

In Saturday’s game against the Oklahoma State Cowboys, the final [autotag]Bedlam [/autotag]game at Gallagher-Iba Arena, McCollum ripped the hearts out of the Oklahoma State faithful in cold-blooded fashion.

Oklahoma struggled early in the game and were down eight at halftime. But they put together a big second half. [autotag]Javon Small[/autotag] who is one of the best free throw shooters in the conference missed the front end of a one-and-one with about four seconds left which sent it to overtime.

That’s when the McCollum show started. After a timeout with nearly 13 seconds left, McCollum got the inbounds. It looked like the Sooners were a little confused about what the play was so McCollum made some magic happen. After a couple of hesitation dribbles, he tried to go to the basket but was cut off, dribbled it back out past the three-point line near the corner, sidestepped and buried the three to win Bedlam, silencing the crowd.

McCollum broke down the feeling of hitting that shot after the game.

“The feeling was great,” McCollum said. “To know that my teammates and coaches trust me in that moment. But as I said, we had a couple of big plays before that. Waldo (Rivaldo Soares) hit a big three, Otega had an and one and Los (Milos Uzan) came down and hit an and one. It was a whole bunch adding up to it, I just hit the shot.”

That win helped the Sooners sweep the Cowboys in their final year in the Big 12 conference. It’s the first time they’ve done that since the 2018-2019 season.

That also gets Oklahoma to 19 wins and puts them in prime position to make the [autotag]NCAA Tournament[/autotag]. A loss could have greatly affected their chances of making the tournament. So, McCollum’s shot could have saved the season and that’s why he’ll live in the lure of not only Oklahoma basketball but in the history of the Bedlam rivalry.

Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow Jaron on Twitter @JaronSpor.