Men's Hoops Hosts Central Arkansas on Sunday

NORMAN – No. 14/15 Oklahoma hosts Central Arkansas on Sunday, Dec. 22 at noon inside Lloyd Noble Center. The contest will air on the Sooner Sports Radio Network (KRXO 107.7 FM The Franchise in Oklahoma City; KTBZ 1430 AM in Tulsa; Varsity Radio App) with Toby Rowland and Kevin Henry announcing and be streamed on SEC Network+ with Chad McKee (PxP) and Bryndon Manzer (analyst) on the call.

No. 14/15 Oklahoma vs. Central Arkansas
Date: Sunday, Dec. 22
Tip Time: 12 p.m. CT
Location: Norman
Arena: Lloyd Noble Center

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OPENING TIP

•  No. 14/15 Oklahoma hosts Central Arkansas on Sunday, Dec. 22 at noon inside Lloyd Noble Center. The Sooners have won the previous four meetings, including an 88-72 victory against UCA on Dec. 28, 2023.

•  The Sooners are one of four undefeated teams in 2024-25. Oklahoma is joined by Florida, Tennessee and Drake.

•  OU improved to 2-0 against members of the ACC with its 76-61 victory over Georgia Tech in the SEC/ACC Challenge on Tuesday, Dec. 3. The Sooners won back-to-back games against ACC foes, besting Louisville in the Battle 4 Atlantis championship game.

•  With its victory over Oklahoma State on Saturday, Dec. 14, the Sooners improved to 2-0 against Big 12 foes. OU beat Arizona in the Battle 4 Atlantis semifinal game.

•  The Sooners are 2-0 against teams ranked in the AP Top 25 at the time of competition, besting then-No. 24 Arizona in the Bahamas and No. 24 Michigan in Charlotte, N.C.

•  Oklahoma won the 2024 Battle 4 Atlantis, beating Providence, Arizona and Louisville in three consecutive days. The Sooners claimed their third straight MTE championship, winning the 2022 ESPN Events Invitational, 2023 Rady Children's Invitational and 2024 Battle 4 Atlantis. Senior Jalon Moore was named tournament MVP and averaged 18.0 points and 5.3 rebounds. Moore scored 24 points in back-to-back games against Arizona and Louisville. Freshman Jeremiah Fears joined Moore on the all-tournament team and averaged 18.7 points, 5.3 assists, 3.3 rebounds and 2.7 steals per outing. Fears was named SEC Freshman of the Week on Dec. 2.

•  Oklahoma head men's basketball coach Porter Moser is in his fourth season leading the program. Moser guided Oklahoma to a 20-12 record and an 8-10 mark in OU's final season in the Big 12. The 2023-24 squad was the first team to reach 20 regular season wins since the 2016 Final Four team. Moser led the Sooners to back-to-back 10-0 starts for the first time in program history.

•  Junior Jalon Moore and super senior Sam Godwin return as starters from last season's 20-win team. Moore earned All-Big 12 Honorable Mention accolades, averaging 11.2 points, 6.7 rebounds, 0.6 steals and 0.5 assists per outing in 31 starts. Godwin started 31 games in 2023-24 and shot 59.8% from the field (75-126), ranking seventh in program history for single-season field goal percentage. Godwin scored a career-high 20 points against Oklahoma State on Saturday, Dec. 14.

•  OU embarks on its inaugural season in the Southeastern Conference (SEC) in 2024-25 after 28 years in the Big 12, finishing with a 258-214 (.548) mark in conference competition.

JUMPMAN, JUMPMAN, JUMPMAN

• OU won a thriller in the third annual Jumpman Invitational on Wednesday, Dec. 18 at Spectrum Center, beating No. 24/21 Michigan on a 4-point play by freshman Jeremiah Fears with 11.5 seconds left. Fears finished with a season-high 30 points. OU is 2-1 in Jumpman games.

RANKING SUMMARY (2024-25)

• OU is in the top 60 in 11 NCAA DI categories, ranking 10th in three-point percentage defense (27.1), 14th in free throw percentage (79.8), 19th in steals per game (10.0), 38th in 3-pointers per game (9.8), 38th in turnover margin (3.5), 42nd in scoring margin (14.3), 46th in effective field goal percentage (56.3), 50th in turnovers forced per game (15.0), 53rd in scoring offense (82.0), 55th in free throws made per game (16.9) and 55th in three-point percentage (37.4),

• Freshman Jeremiah Fears is 21st in free throws made (61), 36th in steals per game (2.3), 37th in steals (25), 45th in free throw attempts (71), 75th in points per game (17.9), 84th in assists per game (4.6) and 87th in assists (51). Senior Jalon Moore is 46th in free throws made (54), 88th in free throw attempts (64) and 91st in points per game (17.4). Redshirt senior Duke Miles is 96th in steals per game (1.9) and 100th in steals (21). Graduate Kobe Elvis is 100th in assist/turnover ratio (2.4). Super senior Sam Godwin is 70th in offensive rebounds per game (2.9).

BACK-TO-BACK 10-0 STARTS

• With its win over Louisville in the Battle 4 Atlantis Championship game on Nov. 29, 2024, Oklahoma improved to 7-0, marking the first time in program history the Sooners were undefeated through their first seven games in back-to-back season. On 11 occasions, Oklahoma has started 10-0 or greater, including 10-0 starts in 2023-24 and 2024-25..

NON-CONFERENCE JOURNEY

• After Oklahoma's four home games to open the 2024-25 slate, the Sooners will be on a journey to close out non-conference play. OU played three games in three days at the Battle 4 Atlantis before coming home to host Georgia Tech in the SEC/ACC Challenge, playing four games against power conference foes in six days. The Sooners hosted Alcorn in McCasland Field House on Saturday, Dec. 7 before traveling to Oklahoma City for Bedlam on Saturday, Dec. 14. OU then traveled to Charlotte, N.C., for the Jumpman Invitational at Spectrum Center. The Sooner host Central Arkansas on Sunday, Dec. 22 at noon and close out non-conference play on Sunday, Dec. 29 against Prairie View A&M.

FRESHMAN ON FIRE

•  Freshman Jeremiah Fears scored 16 points in 26-plus minutes in the season opener and 15 points in 29-plus minutes against Northwestern State, becoming the first OU true freshman to score 15-plus points and play 25-plus minutes in their first two games since Trae Young in 2017. Young scored 15 points in his debut against Omaha on Nov. 12 and tallied 22 against Ball State on Nov. 15, playing 26 minutes in both contests.

•  Against East Texas A&M on Nov. 21, 2024, Fears made his first career start, finishing with 20 points, five assists, four rebounds and three steals. He is the first Sooner since Young against Iowa State (22 points, 11 assists, five rebounds and four steals) to reach those totals, and the only one to hit those marks and attempt 10 or fewer field goals since the 1996-97 campaign.

•  Against Michigan at the Jumpman Invitational, Fears finished with a season-high 30 points on 8-for-12 shooting with four 3-pointers. He is the first OU true freshman since Young against West Virginia on Feb. 5, 2018 to score 30-plus points in a game. Young scored 32 points on 10-for-20 shooting against WVU and had nine games of 30-plus points.

UP NEXT

Oklahoma hosts Prairie View A&M on Sunday, Dec. 29 at 1 p.m. CT inside Lloyd Noble Center.