OU MBB: Sooners break skid with 3-point barrage in dominant 91-79 win over Auburn
Almost everything went right for the Sooners , who got a big conference win at home with a dominant shooting night.
The Oklahoma men’s basketball team beat Auburn 91-79 Tuesday inside the Lloyd Noble Center to earn its fourth conference win in a season that’s had much turmoil.
The Sooners figured out a way to put a game away without fireworks and turnovers at the end. They were up for the entire game and handled the lead at the end like a successful team, which is something they didn’t do at home Saturday against Texas A&M.
The Saturday loss was a tough one for OU, leaving Sooners’ coach Porter Moser ‘pissed’ after, but Moser said the team learned a lot from that game and it helped them dominate the Tigers in a complete win.
“After (the Texas A&M game), we had a team meeting and I said that all year long, after heartbreaks we’ve been knocked down and we get back and we put a big rope around us and bring us back together,” Moser said. “I said, ‘Yes, I’m pissed.’ We didn’t play the right way, but it wasn’t because we were selfish. Just didn’t play the right way. They saw it, they owned it and then we almost overcorrected yesterday in practice, they were almost passing too much.
“The group has been resilient. It’s been rough because we’ve had some heartbreakers, but they keep getting back up and the effort they gave tonight is a credit to their pride.”
Oklahoma senior Mohamad Wague had his best game as a Sooner in the win. He finished with 18 points to go along with nine rebounds, four steals and four blocks. He also went a career-best 10-12 from the free-throw line.
Wague’s been the crux of this Oklahoma team all season — the team goes only as far as he goes. It’s been critical for Wague to, one, be on the floor and, two, play like he did against Auburn, where he owned the paint and contributed heavily in scoring.
“I’m pretty sure we’re close to even or we’re either up in points when Mo’s on the floor,” said OU guard Nijel Pack . “I notice that every game, honestly. The more we can keep Mo on the floor, the better the team is… Mo did a great job finding his feet today, whether that was scoring at the rim or kicking it out for some 3s or something, it was good for our offense.”
The Sooners (14-14 overall, 4-11 SEC) were finding offensive success in every phase of the game, but they were able to break away with the 3-point game.
OU went 13-19 from 3 and also shot 52.6% from the field, one of the Sooners’ best shooting games in conference play.
The Sooners had 16 points from Derrion Reid and 14 points from Xzayvier Brown in the win.
Though, they were led by Pack, who scored 22 points with six 3-pointers.
Pack made his 400th career 3-pointer and is the 31st player to do so in NCAA history. His 406 3-pointers put him at 25th all-time and could definitely find himself in the top 20 by the end of the season.
Pack, though, has four guaranteed games left in his college career — three left in the regular season and at least one conference tournament game — that has spanned six seasons and three teams.
As his college career is close to an end, Pack is thankful for the accomplishments he’s getting done and what’s next for the Sooners.
“It’s definitely a blessing, just to think back to my first year in college, you know, a long, long time ago,” Pack said. “I don’t want it to end, honestly. So I’m trying to enjoy every moment of it, enjoying every second with my guys. We’re just trying to have fun. We want to end this year out on a positive note. I still believe in us. The team still believes in us. Coaches believe in us and that’s all that matters.”
