University of Oklahoma Athletics
University of Oklahoma
16-5,3-5SEC
Vanderbilt
16-5,4-4SEC
Oklahoma Routs No. 24 Vanderbilt 97-67 for Third Win in Four Games
February 01, 2025 | Men's Basketball
NORMAN, Okla. (AP) — Freshman guard Jeremiah Fears scored 21 points to help Oklahoma dominate No. 24 Vanderbilt in a 97-67 win on Saturday.
Oklahoma's Jalon Moore added 19 points and surpassed 1,000 career points. Dayton Forsythe scored 14 points for the Sooners (16-5, 3-5 Southeastern Conference), who have won three of four after losing their first four league games.
Oklahoma took control with a 23-0 run in the second half. The Sooners shot 63.2% from the field overall, including 72.7% after the break.
Devin McGlockton led Vanderbilt (16-5, 4-4) with 22 points. Jason Edwards scored 21 points for the Commodores, but he needed 20 shots to get them.
Vanderbilt led 38-27 late in the first half before Oklahoma closed on a 9-2 run to cut the deficit to 40-36 at the break.
Oklahoma controlled the second half. Back-to-back 3-pointers by Brycen Goodine and Moore put the Sooners up 52-42 with 16:31 remaining, and a timeout by Vanderbilt didn't help. By the end of Oklahoma's 23-0 run, the Commodores had missed eight consecutive shots.
Vanderbilt's Tyler Tanner sliced through the lane for a one-handed jam that cut Oklahoma's lead to 60-52 with about 10 minutes to go, but Oklahoma regrouped and expanded its lead.
Postgame Notes
• After a 0-4 start to SEC play, Oklahoma (16-5, 3-5) won its third league game in the last four outings with a 97-67 home victory over No. 24 Vanderbilt (16-5, 4-4). The Commodores had won three of their previous four contests.
• Oklahoma sandwiched a 35-6 run around halftime to go from down 12 (36-24) to up 17 (59-42). As part of that run, the Sooners scored 23 straight points from the 19:37 to 13:24 marks of the second half. Vanderbilt scored the first points of the second half at the 19:50 mark and didn't score again until the 13:06 mark.
• The win was OU's third against an AP Top 25 opponent this season, all of them against squads ranked No. 24. The Sooners beat then-No. 24 Arizona 82-77 in the Battle 4 Atlantis semifinals on Nov. 28 and then-No. 24 Michigan 87-86 in the Jumpman Invitational on Dec. 18.
• Today marked just the second time in school history that OU beat an AP Top 25 team by at least 30 points. The Sooners also beat No. 19 Arkansas by 30 (87-57) in the 1998-99 season in Norman. Today's 30-point victory margin was OU's largest since beating Lindenwood by 33 (93-60) in the season opener.
• The Sooners shot .632 from the field on the afternoon, their best figure against a conference opponent since the 2004-05 season when they shot .661 in a 103-60 home win over Baylor.
• Ten of the 11 Sooners who attempted at least one field goal today, including all five starters, shot 50% or better from the field.
• Trailing 40-36 at halftime, OU outscored Vanderbilt 61-27 in the second half. Today marked the first time since at least the 1996-97 season that OU scored 61 points in a half against a conference opponent. Today was just the fourth time overall the Sooners scored 61 in a half during that time span (also vs. Tulsa in 2013-14 [second half], vs. Northwestern in 2017-18 [first half] and vs. UTSA in 2021-22 [second half]).
• Freshman guard Jeremiah Fears, who was held scoreless at Texas A&M on Tuesday, scored a team-high 21 points on 8-for-12 field goal and 4-for-4 free throw shooting, his sixth game of at least 20 points this season. He added six rebounds, four assists and three steals.
• Senior forward Jalen Moore scored four points in his 10 minutes in the first half but erupted for 15 in the second half on 5-of-7 shooting, en route to a 19-point game. It was his 16th straight game in double figures.
• Freshman guard Dayton Forsythe came off the bench to score a career-high-tying 14 points in 22 minutes of action. He was 5 for 8 from the field and 2 for 4 from 3-point range while also contributing three rebounds, two assists and a career-high three steals.
• Redshirt freshman forward Jacolb Fredson-Cole, who played the final 1:34 today, made his first career field goal and finished with two points.
• OU has shot over 50% from the field in all four of its SEC home games (.543 vs. Texas A&M, .510 vs. Texas, .560 vs. South Carolina and .632 vs. Vanderbilt), combining for a .564 figure. It is also shooting .494 from 3-point range in those contests (9.5 makes per game).
• The Sooners entered the game ranked last in the SEC in rebounding margin in league play (-7.6) but posted a 39-24 advantage today, good for a season-high +15 margin.
• Oklahoma was outscored 10-2 off turnovers in the first half, but outscored Vanderbilt 16-6 off turnovers in the second half.
• OU outscored Vanderbilt 21-6 in fastbreak points and has been outscored in transition just once this season (8-7 vs. Oklahoma State).
