Oklahoma Tops SMS in Norman, 61-53

NORMAN, Okla. -- Taj Gray scored 11 points and grabbed 13 rebounds for his third straight double-double and Oklahoma beat Southwest Missouri State 61-53 Thursday night.

All of Gray's rebounds came in the second half after the junior college transfer played only 5 minutes in the first half with foul trouble.

Gray had eight offensive rebounds, including three that he put back for crucial baskets as Oklahoma maintained its lead in a game that was close throughout.

Drew Lavender had 12 points to lead the Sooners (7-2), Terrell Everett added 11 and Lawrence McKenzie scored 10.

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Oklahoma, which led 26-20 at halftime, never trailed but was also unable to pull away. The Sooners' lead was never more than eight points but never less than three points for the first 17 minutes after halftime.

Everett drilled a 3-pointer from the left wing with 2 minutes to play that gave Oklahoma a 55-45 lead, its largest of the night.

Tyler Chaney scored 17 points to lead Southwest Missouri State (6-2), which had its six-game winning streak snapped.

The Sooners held Tamarr Maclin, the Bears' leading scorer, to four points, less than half his average of 11.7. Maclin had to sit out the final 8 minutes of the first half while trainers attended to a cut over his right eye.

In the first half, Oklahoma went eight minutes without a field goal and five minutes without scoring, but maintained a 10-8 lead as the Bears were equally cold from the field. Oklahoma hit only two of its first 15 shots and Southwest Missouri State was 2-for-10 to start the game.

McKenzie was the first to find his range, hitting two 3-pointers in a quick 8-0 run that extended the Sooners' lead to 18-8 with 6 minutes to play before halftime.

Southwest Missouri State responded with a 12-2 run, including seven points from Chaney, to tie the game at 20 with 3 minutes left in the first half.

Jaison Williams hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer to give Oklahoma a 26-20 lead at the half.