Jamal Shead plays hero as OU falls short in thriller vs. No. 1

OU basketball did so many good things. Executed early, fought back, came through in the clutch. One loose ball turned out to be the difference.

Just one. One loose ball picked up by Houston’s Jamal Shead who hit the game-winning jumper with .4 remaining. One loose ball, one heartbreak for OU in an 87-85 defeat against the No. 1 team in the country Saturday at the Lloyd Noble Center.

Down 85-83, OU had the ball with 15 seconds left. Instead of holding, Javian McCollum saw an opening. He took it and scored at the rim to tie it up.

Shead drove downhill, missed his initial shot, scramble for the ball. Shead picked it up, and, well, there ya go for OU.

“Tough. It was a tough vibe in there,” head coach Porter Moser said. “The guys weren’t just happy to be close. They fought their tails off. Believed with their energy level. They made plays. Obviously, Houston made big plays as well. They’re hurting. And that’s a good sign.”

OU trailed by as many as 15 points in the second half and never had a bigger lead than two points all night.

The Sooners made 12 3-pointers after making just three at Iowa State. OU outrebounded Houston 27-22 and only committed eight turnovers.

A recipe for a victory. Just not on this night.

A thrilling Bedlam win last Saturday. Now a Houston gut-punch Saturday. Life in the Big 12.

Game 29 Takeaways

*This was the game where OU got contributions across the board. It was actually Sam Godwin as the leading scorer with 17 points and adding seven rebounds. Godwin didn’t miss a shot from the field.

“I thought he was really locked in,” Moser said. “He took that Iowa State game hard. He played 13 minutes, got a couple of fouls and we talked about that. I felt… I thought same just had… played really physical, really good. Made a couple big baskets down the stretch as well. We went to him on a couple actions out of timeouts and he came through.”

Le’Tre Darthard, after not scoring a point in the last two games, made five 3-pointers for his 15 points. Jalon Moore was clutch again with 14 points and 10 rebounds. Rivaldo Soares pitched in with 16 points. And Javian McCollum was locked in with 12 points and eight assists.

But on this night, it just wasn’t enough.

“Man, I feel like that just shows our growth,” said Moore about fighting back. “I remember during the game, I’m just thinking when we tied the game up after going down double-digits, in my mind I’m like, ‘We just grew,’ because I remember Kansas or—I forgot what game it was here that we were down double digits and we just fell apart. I mean, bro, that just shows our resiliency and our growth. We just—didn’t come out with the dub.”

*Get back on the horse. It’s the only way you can do this. A ridiculously brutal five-game stretch sees OU go 1-4. But nobody is feeling sorry for you. The biggest one is the next one. And Cincinnati at home for senior night can get things going again.

“I want to play again right now,” Moser said. “The guys do, too. They’re crushed. As much as they’re crushed, that’s a good sign. It wasn’t a, ‘Oh we came close.’ These guys believed they were gonna win. When we were in the huddles down double figures, they believed we were gonna win. That’s a credit to their resiliency.”

Final word

“We played the best team in the country, but we fell short. The margin for error when you play a team that good is so small,” – Moser

Up next

Cincinnati comes to town. OU (19-10, 7-9) needs this one. Get win No. 20, and you start feeling very comfortable about your NCAA hopes. Very comfortable. OU won at UC earlier this season. The Bearcats are fighting for their bubble lives right now. It’ll be senior night 7 p.m. Tuesday.