Oklahoma Men's Basketball Pushes Record to 2–1 With Win Over North Alabama

NORMAN, Okla. — If there was any lingering hangover from that disastrous opening-night stumble against East Texas A&M, Porter Moser’s squad is officially putting it in the rearview mirror.

Following a comfortable bounce-back win over Mississippi Valley State at McCasland Field House, the Oklahoma Sooners returned to the Lloyd Noble Center on Monday night and took care of business against North Alabama, grinding out an 81–72 victory to push their record to 2–1.

While a late-game push by the Lions trimmed what was once a comfortable 19-point lead down to single digits before the final buzzer, the story of this night wasn't the nervy finish—it was an explosive offensive barrage and a staggering display of modern shot volume.

If you like the three-point shot, Monday night in Norman was absolute theater.

The Sooners came out gunning from the jump, shattering a brand-new school record by launching 43 three-point attempts on the night. Just a few days prior against Mississippi Valley State, OU matched what was then a school record with 40 attempts from deep. Porter Moser’s offense has officially leaned completely into the pace-and-space era, knocking down 13 triples against North Alabama to average a blistering 10.3 makes per game early in the young season.

It wasn't always smooth sailing, though. Oklahoma fired off 27 of those threes in a clunky opening half alone, going just 7-of-27 (.259) from beyond the arc as North Alabama hung tough. The Lions clawed their way back from an early 9-2 deficit, eventually tying the game at 25-25 on a corner triple by Mike Evbagharu—who gave the Sooners fits all night with a game-high 27 points on a blistering 10-of-11 shooting performance.

A late surge helped send Oklahoma into the locker room with a razor-thin 37–36 advantage.

Whatever Moser said in the locker room at halftime clearly worked, because the Sooners came out of the break and completely blew the game wide open.

North Alabama briefly grabbed a short-lived lead early in the second half before Oklahoma dropped the hammer with a ruthless 17-0 run over a span of 4:40. Sophomore forward Derrion Reid sparked the rally, scoring the first five points of the sequence, while Xzayvier Brown and Pop Isaacs poured in transition daggers and deep threes to swell the lead to 54–38 by the 14:24 mark.

The Sooners kept their foot on the gas from there. Oklahoma eventually stretched its advantage to a game-high 19 points at 75–56 following an Isaacs triple and a gritty three-point play from fifth-year transfer Duke Brennan with 4:17 left on the clock. Though North Alabama put together a late 12–5 flurry against the deeper reserves to make the final score look a bit closer than the game actually felt, the outcome was never truly in doubt.

The engine of this Oklahoma team is its stellar guard trio, and they put on a masterclass against North Alabama’s pressure defense.

Xzayvier Brown led the way with a team-high 19 points, grabbing 6 rebounds and dishing out 3 assists. B.J. Edwards continued his scorching hot shooting week, knocking down four 3-pointers for the second consecutive game to finish with 17 points. Meanwhile, Pop Isaacs stuffed the stat sheet with 13 points, 6 boards, 4 assists, 2 steals, and a block. Combined, the trio accounted for 49 points, 15 rebounds, 10 assists, and 11 triples.

Perhaps the most encouraging takeaway for Moser wasn't just the shot-making—it was the ball security. After struggling with careless turnovers in each of the first two games of the year, Oklahoma committed a season-low six turnovers against North Alabama’s pressure, posting 8 assists with just one giveaway in the opening half alone while outscoring the Lions 19–5 in fast-break points.

UP NEXT: The five-game season-opening homestand rolls on this Friday, Nov. 13, when the Sooners welcome FDU to the Lloyd Noble Center for the first-ever meeting between the two programs.