For the second consecutive season, Oklahoma is 10-0 heading into the Jumpman Invitational.
Last season, the Sooners lost in the event to begin a slide that ultimately left them out of the NCAA Tournament.
But heading into this season’s event, where 14th-ranked Oklahoma will take on No. 24 Michigan on Wednesday in Charlotte, N.C., Porter Moser’s team is hoping to keep its momentum rather than squandering it.
Freshman Jeremiah Fears is a big reason why this season’s Sooners have a chance to take a step forward.
Fears is averaging 16.7 points, 4.7 assists, 3.5 rebounds and 2.4 steals.
“He has that gear to him,” Moser said of Fears. “It’s very hard to switch with Fears because he’s got that gear.”
After turning the ball over an average of 4.4 times per game over the first five games, Fears has averaged just 3.2 turnovers per game over the last five.
Wednesday’s game will be just the second for the Sooners against a ranked opponent.
Oklahoma beat then-No. 24 Arizona 82-77 on Nov. 28 behind a season-high 26 points from Fears.
The Sooners are coming off an 80-65 win over Oklahoma State on Saturday.
“You talk about getting to the ball, being aggressive to the basketball, deflecting basketball, I mean, they’re tough,” Michigan coach Dusty May said of Oklahoma. “They have a very good system on both sides of the ball. They play aggressive. They play with physicality. They have great self-awareness or team awareness where they play to their strengths.”
The Sooners’ leading scorer is Jalon Moore, who is averaging 17.5 points per game.
Oklahoma is among the top-tier teams when it comes to steals, averaging 10.2 per game, led by Fears.
Michigan (8-2), meanwhile, ranks near the bottom of Division I with 15.3 turnovers per game.
“Obviously the turnovers are glaring, and the defensive rebounding are the two most important things we need to fix, but we’re doing a lot of things really, really well,” May said.
The Sooners have won their 10 games by an average of more than 15 points per game, with just three games decided by single digits and just one — their 79-77 win over Providence on Nov. 27 — decided by one possession.
Michigan has had four games decided by one possession, going 2-2 in those games.
Those tight games include their last game, an 89-87 loss to Arkansas on Dec. 10. The Wolverines let a 15-point lead get away.
May said he was hopeful the close-game experience would help his team later in the season.
“It’s not ideal, but we are learning to play in those high-pressure, one-possession games, and we’re going to be in them whether we want to be in them or not,” May said. “So it’s part of this group learning to win together.”
The Wolverines have been a much more balanced scoring team than the Sooners, with four players averaging in double figures: Vladislav Goldin (12.5 points per game), Danny Wolf (12.3), Roddy Gayle Jr. (12.3) and Tre Donaldson (11.8).
Wednesday’s matchup will be the first between the programs since the second round of the 2009 NCAA Tournament, won 73-63 by Oklahoma.
The only other meeting between the two teams was a Michigan win in 2004.
–Field Level Media
