OU men’s basketball (17-14, 7-11 SEC) closed out the regular season on Saturday in an 88-85 win against Texas (18-13, 9-9 SEC) in overtime at the Moody Center.
The Sooners split the season series against the Longhorns 1-1 and improved their lead in the all-time series 59-50 despite winning only two of the last 10 meetings. OU’s last win over Texas came at the end of the 2024-25 regular season, where it defeated the Longhorns 76-72 in Austin.
OU entered Austin riding a three-game winning streak, looking to steal a win and move up in the SEC standings. With Auburn (16-15, 7-11 SEC) falling to No. 16 Alabama (23-8, 13-5 SEC), OU seized an opportunity to slide into the No. 11 seed in the SEC Tournament with its win Saturday, as it holds the tiebreaker over the Tigers after its head-to-head win Feb. 24.
OU was picked to finish 12th during the preseason SEC predictions. The win marked a turnaround for the Sooners, who have now won six of their last eight games and built momentum heading into an SEC Tournament first-round matchup against South Carolina (13-18, 4-14 SEC), the 14th seed.
The overtime thriller saw senior guard Nijel Pack deliver one of his more memorable performances of the season with 23 points and five rebounds. Last time the two teams met earlier in the season, Pack also dropped 23 in the Sooners’ loss. Since that game, he has been on a scoring tear, averaging 16.4 points over the last 10 games and closed out the regular season as OU’s leading scorer.
Pack’s backcourt partner, junior guard Xzayvier Brown, also had a productive night, finishing with 21 points and four assists, with three points coming from the free-throw line. Other notable contributions during Saturday’s contest came from senior forward Tae Davis, who battled inside to pick up 14 points and nine rebounds, and sophomore forward Derrion Reid, who hit the go-ahead 3-pointer in overtime to put OU up 86-82 as a part of his 11-point night.
Looking ahead, OU’s first round matchup gives the Sooners a chance to avenge a nine-point loss to South Carolina on Jan. 20. Last time out, the Sooners struggled to convert from beyond the arc, shooting 19% from deep compared to South Carolina’s 45%, which ended up being a difference maker.
This time, OU enters the matchup shooting around 47% from 3-point range over its last five contests, and will look to continue its recent success from deep and add to its four-game winning streak.
Next, the Sooners travel to Nashville to take on the Gamecocks in the first round of the SEC Tournament Wednesday on the SEC Network. The game time is still to be determined.
This story was edited by Laurie Jones.
