OU (1-1) fell to Gonzaga (2-0) 83-68 Saturday night at Spokane Arena in Spokane, Washington.
The Sooners' first road game of the season came against a ranked opponent, as Gonzaga entered the matchup at No. 21 in the AP Top 25. Coming off a 102-66 win over Saint Francis in their season opener, the Sooners looked to prove their dominant home performance could translate to a hostile environment.
Here are three takeaways from Saturday's game:
Foul trouble leads to early problems
Senior forward/center Mohamed Wague was sidelined after picking up two fouls early in the first half.
Foul trouble forced the Sooners to use smaller lineups and get freshman forward/center Kai Rogers involved sooner than expected, which Gonzaga took full advantage of with Wague watching from the bench.
In the first half, Wague logged just five minutes, putting up no points, one rebound, one assist, one turnover and three personal fouls. Rebounds were hard to come by with the lack of size on the floor, as the Sooners were out-rebounded 26-14, allowing Gonzaga to have their way on the glass at both ends of the floor.
Gonzaga also outscored OU 49-30 in the first half, and dominated in the paint, putting up 38 points from in close. Offensive problems for the Sooners accrued at a costly rate, as they turned the ball over 10 times and shot just 30.8% from the field.
Heading into halftime, Gonzaga had taken full control, leaving OU with a mountain of problems to sort out in the second half.
Xzayvier Brown stays consistent
Junior guard Xzayvier Brown led the Sooners in scoring with 21 points against a Gonzaga defense that locked down OU, forcing 16 turnovers.
Following up on his 16-point outing against Saint Francis, Brown showed scoring consistency across different environments and levels of competition in Saturday night's game.
Outside of his five turnovers, Brown was a bright spot alongside fellow guard, senior guard Nijel Pack, who had 18 points, in a lackluster Sooners offense. Along with his 21 points, Brown logged an assist and a steal in a game where both were hard to come by for the Sooners.
Brown made two of four three-point attempts and going 8-of-14 from the field, and his scoring helped the Sooners put together a more competitive second half.
Second-half improvements
The Sooners looked like a different team after the break, as they came out looking much more confident in a second half in which they outscored the Bulldogs 38-34.
Block » Dime » Dunk2nd half is underway 📺 ESPN2 pic.twitter.com/czGh3foogs
— Oklahoma Basketball (@OU_MBBall) November 9, 2025
While the second-half deficit proved too large to overcome, the Sooners tightened up defensively, allowing them to shoot just 36.8% from the field and get to the line only six times, compared to the Sooners' 46.9% and seven free throw attempts.
The second half offered OU something positive to build on heading into next week's matchups against Arkansas-Pine Bluff (0-3) and Nebraska (2-0).
Dropping a game this early in the season, even against a formidable opponent on the road, can negatively alter the team’s mindset for the season, and they will have to find a way to adapt and respond before heading into another year of challenging Southeastern Conference play.
The Sooners' next game is against Arkansas-Pine Bluff at McCasland Field House in Norman 7 p.m on Nov 11.
This story was edited by Laurie Jones.
