OU basketball coach Porter Moser recaps signing day, previews Stetson game
OU basketball coach Porter Moser recaps signing day, previews Stetson game
OU men’s basketball is headed to the Battle 4 Atlantis finals.
The Sooners defeated No. 24 Arizona 82-77 Thursday in the semifinals of the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament in the Bahamas. OU faces Louisville in the tournament championship game on Friday.
With the win, the Sooners improved to 6-0 for the second time in as many seasons. OU is now 12-3 against non-conference foes at neutral site contests and 9-1 in multi-team event games under head coach Porter Moser.
The Wildcats (3-3) were ranked No. 20 in KenPom entering the contest.
The Sooners (6-0) made 20 of their 21 free throws. OU out rebounded Arizona 38-34. The Wildcats entered Thursday ranked fifth nationally in rebounds per game.
Here are three takeaways from the Sooners’ win:
No Fears freshman
A star is being born in the Bahamas.
Jeremiah Fears dribbled behind his back, drove the lane and finished a tough layup with contact from Wildcats 7-foot-2 big Motieju Krivas.
Fears had words for Arizona players after the bucket and backed up his talk, scoring 11 consecutive points across three minutes and 16 seconds in the second half. He finished with 26 points on 7 for 17 shooting, including 4 for 7 from deep.
“Jeremiah is beyond his years,” Moser said. “I always said he came in humble, he came in not entitled and came in trying to learn. I think it bothered him a lot that he had eight turnovers yesterday.”
Fears, who shows off extreme talent not without freshman mistakes, challenged Krivas and the Wildcats throughout the game at the rim and from beyond the arc. The true freshman guard, who reclassified from the 2024 class to 2025, turned the ball over eight times against Providence on Wednesday but surrendered just three turnovers on Thursday.
Fears helped close out the win with two clutch free throws late in the second half. Fears played for Arizona coach Tommy Lloyd on the USA U18 national team.
“I played for him, so I had a feel of their game style and what they like to do,” Fears said, “which was ducking in early offense. So we slowed that down as well, we tried our best. That’s really what I learned from him, and just the way they move the ball.”
The Joliet, Illinois, native is averaging 18 points per game and is showing why he’s one of the most dynamic offensive freshmen in the country.
Jalon Moore, Luke Northweather shine
Jalon Moore bounced back on Thursday.
After being held to a season-low six points Wednesday against Providence, Moore finished with 24 points on 7 for 15 shooting. He also grabbed seven rebounds.
“You have a choice in life,” Moser said. “You have a choice with your attitude and he didn’t get into the flow yesterday. He’s such a big part, he had a choice. He could’ve either gotten in his feelings, or he can be the energy guy that he is. Be great at what he’s good at. He has a choice, and he chose, I’m going to be the leader I am, and that’s a credit to him.”
Luke Northweather entered this week’s tournament having not scored a point this season. Through two games in the Bahamas, Northweather has been the Sooners’ secret weapon and has combined to score 18.
“They played a pick and pop five, it’s crazy this kid hasn’t played much and in the last couple days he’s made some big shots,” Arizona coach Tommy Lloyd said postgame. “His stroke looks legit and he puts you in some tough situations.”
Northweather finished with 10 points and seven rebounds in 21 minutes off the bench with starter Sam Godwin again in foul trouble for most of the contest. Northweather also recorded a clutch block late in the second half.
“It’s incredible how much the guys pull for Luke because he knows he brings something totally different,” Moser said. “He’s a pick and pop five, but he’s also so skilled, and the thing we love, we’re always trying to get him out of his shell.
“I was born and raised Catholic, and I didn’t mind that I heard Luke use some profanity, fighting in there for some rebounds.”
Sooners force Arizona into slugfest
OU entered Thursday’s contest with two clear objectives: limit Arizona star Caleb Love and paint touches.
The Sooners excelled in the first half, holding Love to five points on eight shot attempts. Moser’s squad forced the Wildcats to take ill-advised shots from the perimeter in the first half, shooting 2 for 11 from 3.
“First of all, it’s a credit to our guys,” Moser said. “We talked to him about the toughness in a tournament, toughness coming back on a back to back day, we control that. We really talked about how good Arizona’s transition game was. We really wanted to get back and set a wall.”
Love couldn’t be stopped for long as he finished with 17 points and three 3s.
Entering Thursday, Arizona averaged 88.4 points per game, which ranked 16th nationally.
OU and Louisville (5-1) tips at 4:30 p.m. Friday in the Bahamas on ESPN. The Cardinals defeated Indiana and West Virginia to advance to the finals.
“I’m going to give credit to the coaches,” Moore said. “They stayed up all last night, man, and created an incredible game plan for us. I know the transition was a big part of their offense, so just us being able to get back and build that wall, man, it was important for this game.”
