Oklahoma coach Porter Moser is in an unusual position heading into Thursday night’s game against Oral Roberts in Norman, Okla.
Usually, Moser’s teams are defensive-minded, with their offense serving as an entity that needs refining throughout the season.
But coming off a wild 105-99 loss to Nebraska on Saturday, it’s the Sooners’ defense that needs an overhaul.
“A coached team that I put out there usually has a better defense, but that’s being addressed,” Moser said. “We’re going to put it together, and it starts with an awareness — possession by possession, 30-second-shot-clock awareness. And if you’re tired, you’ve got to go until you hear the horn and then have trust the next guy’s going to come and do it and not pace yourself.”
Moser said his biggest area of concern defensively for Oklahoma (2-2) is off-the-ball defense and rebounding. Those issues have shown themselves in both of the Sooners’ losses this season — a 15-point setback at then-No. 21 Gonzaga on Nov. 8, and Saturday’s defeat to Nebraska.
Moser said he’s confident his team can turn the corner defensively.
“I can fix getting the defense playing together faster than I can say, ‘Hey, go get me 27 (points) in that atmosphere,'” Moser said.
Transfers Xzayvier Brown and Nijel Pack lead the Sooners in scoring, averaging 19.0 points per game. And Oklahoma’s primary guards — Brown, Pack and Dayton Forsythe — are shooting a combined 53.7%, production Moser called “elite.”
But with so many new faces, both Moser and Brown said developing cohesiveness and chemistry is a work in progress.
“Everybody here is, for the most part, new,” Brown said. “It’s not like we’re not connected, it’s just that we’re getting game experience together now.”
The Golden Eagles (2-3), meanwhile, are coming off an 84-64 home win over Haskell on Tuesday.
While Oral Roberts’ top two scoring options are forwards — Ty Harper (16.6 ppg) and Ofri Naveh (12.2) — the Golden Eagles are averaging more than 32 shots a game from 3-point range under first-year coach Kory Barnett.
“More than anything else, it’s about respecting your opponent but going out and being who we are every single possession,” Barnett said on the ORU Basketball Coaches Show.
