Soaring Sooners: A Deep Dive into University of Oklahoma Athletics

NORMAN – The No. 12/10 Oklahoma men’s basketball squad embarks on its first SEC interleague game as it travels to square off against No. 5/6 Alabama on Saturday, Jan. 4 at 5 p.m. CT at Coleman Coliseum in Tuscaloosa. The matchup will be broadcast on SEC Network, with John Schriffen (play-by-play) and Richard Hendrix (analyst) providing commentary. It will also be aired on the Sooner Sports Radio Network (KRXO 107.7 FM The Franchise in Oklahoma City; KTBZ 1430 AM in Tulsa; Varsity Radio App) featuring Toby Rowland (play-by-play) and Kevin Henry (analyst) on the call.

OPENING TIP

• The Sooners hold a 7-3 historical advantage over the Crimson Tide (having won the last two encounters and three of the previous four) but are 0-2 in Tuscaloosa.
 
• With a record of 13-0, the Sooners are among just three teams nationally yet to taste defeat. The other two teams, Florida and Tennessee, are also from the SEC and stand at 13-0 entering league play.
 
• OU’s 13-0 beginning is the fourth-best in the history of the program, trailing only the 1927-28 team (18-0, perfect season), the 1985-86 team (17-0), and the 1987-88 squad that progressed to the national championship game (14-0).
 
• Including Texas, another first-year Southeastern Conference member, Oklahoma has an all-time record of 238-192 against SEC institutions. OU has faced all 15 other SEC teams and maintains a winning record against nine. Since the 2018-19 season commenced, the Sooners are 13-2 against SEC opponents during the competition.
 
• Fifth-year senior Kobe Elvis is just seven points away from reaching 1,000 for his career. Elvis, who spent one season at DePaul prior to his three years at Dayton, has started all 13 games this season and is averaging 9.4 points, identical to the figure he achieved last year, which set a career-high. He is tied for the team lead with 25 3-pointers (shooting .357).
 
• Following a 31-6 season and a push to the NCAA Sweet 16 in 2023, Alabama concluded last season with a record of 25-12 and made it to the Final Four. In the last three seasons, the Crimson Tide boasts a record of 67-20 (.770) overall and a remarkable 35-2 (.946) at home.
 
• Oklahoma’s Porter Moser and Alabama’s Nate Oats are among the six SEC head coaches who have guided teams to at least one Final Four. The others include Tennessee’s Rick Barnes, Ole Miss’ Chris Beard, Arkansas’ John Calipari, and Auburn’s Bruce Pearl.
 
• This marks the second consecutive year the Sooners have achieved double-digit victories to begin a campaign (they claimed their first 10 wins in 2023-24). It represents the only time in the program’s history that OU has launched the season with a 10-0 record or better in successive years.
 
• Saturday’s contest will signify Oklahoma’s inaugural true road game this season. The Sooners hold an 8-0 home record and a perfect 5-0 in neutral-site encounters.

THE LAST TIME OU AND ALABAMA CLASHED

• The previous encounter between Oklahoma and Alabama showcased the Sooners’ most notable victory of the Porter Moser era, as OU delivered a 93-69 victory against the second-ranked Crimson Tide on Jan. 28, 2023, during an SEC-Big 12 Challenge game in Norman.
 
• This win marked OU’s first victory over an AP-ranked opponent in the top two since they triumphed over No. 1 Kansas in the 2002 Big 12 Tournament championship. The Sooners’ 24-point victory margin became their largest ever against an AP top-5 team.
 
• The defeat margin for Alabama, who concluded the season at 31-6 and made it to the NCAA Sweet 16, was significantly the largest of the year (the second largest was a 15-point loss to No. 20 Connecticut).
 
• OU led 50-33 at the break after shooting 68% from the field (6 of 8 from behind the arc) and scoring on 13 of their last 14 possessions. Alabama trimmed the gap to 11 points in the second half, but the Sooners quickly countered, spearheaded by a career-best 30 points from point guard Grant Sherfield and a career-best 26 from forward Jalen Hill. Center Tanner Groves contributed 14 points and grabbed 12 rebounds.
 
• The only current Sooners who participated in that game are forward Sam Godwin and guard Jake Moser. Godwin shot 4 of 8 from the field and ended with eight points and three rebounds in 11 minutes, while Moser was on the court for just one minute.
 
• Guard Mark Sears, this year’s preseason SEC player of the year, is the sole current Crimson Tide player who took part in that game, finishing with 11 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist, and 1 steal in 22 minutes.

SOONER HOMECOMING IN ALABAMA

• Seniors Jalon Moore and Duke Miles, who are OU’s second and third-leading scorers, respectively, return to their home state on Saturday for the match against Alabama.
 
• Moore, a second-year Sooner averaging 17.7 points and 5.9 rebounds per game, hails from Birmingham and attended Gardendale High School.
 
• In his inaugural year at OU, Miles is averaging 12.5 points per contest while shooting .528 from the field (the best among the team’s guards), a squad-high .463 from long range, and a team-leading .885 from the free-throw line. Originating from the capital city of Montgomery, Miles attended Robert E. Lee High School and contributed to his teams achieving a 112-17 record throughout his four years.
 
• OU graduate forward/center Mohamed Wague comes from Bronx, N.Y., but was part of Alabama’s Final Four squad last season. Wague participated in 33 games (eight starts) for the Crimson Tide, averaging 3.1 points and 2.5 rebounds in 8.3 minutes per game, shooting .627 from the field. He has featured in 12 of 13 games for the Sooners this season, averaging 2.7 points and 2.6 boards in 7.3 minutes per outing.

STACKED SEC

• The SEC leads the nation with an astounding 10 teams positioned in this week’s AP Top 25: No. 1 Tennessee, No. 2 Auburn, No. 5 Alabama, No. 6 Florida, No. 10 Kentucky, No. 12 Oklahoma, No. 13 Texas A&M, No. 17 Mississippi State, No. 23 Arkansas, and No. 24 Ole Miss.
 

• OU is set to compete in 10 encounters (four at home, six on the road) against the nine other ranked SEC teams, with Texas A&M as the only squad the Sooners will challenge twice.
 
• SEC teams have achieved an 88.9% success rate in their non-conference games this season (with a record of 185-23).

PICK YOUR POISON

• Five Sooners have recorded 20 or more points in at least one contest this season: Jalon Moore (seven times), Jeremiah Fears (four times), Kobe Elvis (twice), and Sam Godwin and Duke Miles (once each).

FEARS ON FIRE

• Freshman guard Jeremiah Fears leads OU, ranks fifth in the SEC, and holds the fourth spot nationally among freshmen with an impressive average of 18.1 points per game. He is the first OU freshman to achieve double figures in each of his first 13 games since point guard Trae Young recorded 10 or more in all 32 games during the 2017-18 season, earning first-team All-American honors and being named national freshman of the year.
 
• Fears, already distinguished as SEC Freshman of the Week twice this season, is also averaging 3.5 rebounds along with team-best figures of 4.5 assists and 2.2 steals per game. He ranks sixth in the SEC, shooting .864 from the free throw stripe.