Editor's note: The headline was updated at 9:26 a.m. Dec. 9 to reflect the correct final score of OU's game against Alcorn State.
No. 21 Oklahoma (9-0) defeated Alcorn State (0-10) 94-78 in the annual McCasland Field House student appreciation game Saturday night in Norman.
The Sooners scored a season-high 94 points, surpassing their previous high of 93 in the season opener against Lindenwood. Five Sooners scored double-digits, helping OU extend its nine-game win streak.
Here are three takeaways from the Sooners’ win:
Offensive exhibition in the first half
Both the Sooners and the Braves lit up the scoreboard in the first half.
OU put up 49 points, a first-half season-high on 60% shooting from the floor and 47.4% from the three-point line. Alcorn State scored 41 points on 59.3% shooting, going 7 of 11 from beyond the arc. The Braves made their first seven 3s and didn’t miss from outside until the 7:07 mark in the first half.
The Sooners were led by freshman guard Jeremiah Fears with 10 points. Senior guard Brycen Goodine and freshman guard Dayton Forsythe both added 9 points. Alcorn State was led by freshman guard Davian Williams who had 10. Junior forward Omari Hamilton added 9 points.
“Shots were falling both ways in the first half,” head coach Porter Moser said after the game on Saturday. “I thought our defense could have been better, and in the second half we got after it a bit more and put some separation on the scoreboard.”
Despite Moser’s wishes, both teams shot better than 50%, with the Sooners shooting 55% and Alcorn State shooting 53%.
Balanced Sooner scoring leads the way
Five different OU players finished with double-digit points on Saturday.
Senior forward Jalon Moore led the way with 20 points on 8 of 9 shooting. Fears and Forsythe finished with 14 points each. Fears shot 6 of 11 from the field and Forsythe shot 4 of 10.
Moore also brought energy with a rim-rocking windmill dunk.
Jalon Jammin' 💪📺 » SECN+ | @jalonmoore3 pic.twitter.com/Pf3NNZ8e5G
— Oklahoma Basketball (@OU_MBBall) December 8, 2024
Goodine and graduate center Mohamed Wague brought home 12 points. Wague shot 6 of 7 from the floor and Goodine shot 4 of 7. Senior guard Duke Miles added 9 points and senior forward Sam Godwin brought in 8.
Sooners’ bench brings spark early in first half
Three minutes and 19 seconds into the game, OU found itself in an early 14-5 hole, which prompted a Moser timeout and a mass substitution.
“The first group was just a step behind,” Moser said. “That second unit came in and gave us some urgency defensively and provided the spark that we needed.”
Moser subbed each of his starters out and brought in a group that included Forsythe, Goodine, Wague, senior forward Glenn Taylor Jr. and sophomore forward Luke Northweather. The new five came in and went on a 10-2 run in the next three minutes to tie the game at 16.
The run began with a Goodine 3-pointer, shortly after he checked in. Forsythe then followed suit with a 3-pointer of his own. Northweather also added a 3-pointer and the run was punctuated by a Wague tip-in to tie things at 16.
“It just comes down to staying ready when your number is called,” Forsythe said after the game. “Myself and the other guys just want to be ready to contribute in any way that we can.”
Next, the Sooners head to Oklahoma City for a neutral-site Bedlam matchup against Oklahoma State (5-2) at 7 p.m. on Dec. 14 at Paycom Center.
This story was edited by Gracie Rawlings.Â
