Oklahoma Basketball: 3 Concerns From Their Stunning Season-Opening Loss
· Yahoo Sports
Oklahoma’s 68-64 shocking loss at home to East Texas A&M was not the start that the Sooners desired to have. This loss snapped their program record of a 30-game nonconference home winning streak. This unexpected loss came with a massive storyline. Oklahoma’s star player, Xzayvier Brown, is the Sooners’ leading scorer. Brown couldn’t play in the season opener due to a lower-body injury. His absence left Oklahoma searching for other answers offensively. Brown’s early-season injury provided an early test of Oklahoma’s offensive depth, and the Sooners’ struggles raised questions about who else can provide offense.
Oklahoma Struggled to Establish Offense
Oklahoma basketball coach Porter Moser during the NCAA college basketball game against Tennessee on Feb. 18, 2026, in Knoxville, Tennessee.Oklahoma’s offense was marked by inefficient shooting and a lack of continuity. The Sooners finished the night shooting a dreary 40.4% from the field and 25% on 5-for-20 attempts from three.
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The rock bottom of this Oklahoma performance was during their first-half scoring drought. The Sooners were only able to connect on one of their final 12 shots in the first half.
East Texas A&M took full advantage of this opportunity and put their foot on the gas to create a 34-25 lead at the half. Going into the half, Oklahoma had dug themselves a steep hole that would be hard to climb out of.
The main focus goes beyond the lackluster shooting numbers. Possible Sooners MVP Brown was absent, highlighting how heavily his team relies on him for offensive production and organization.
Last season, Brown averaged 15.4 ppg. Without him, their offensive discrepancy was clear: missing open shots and not valuing possessions enough. Rather than running fluid offensive sets with consistent ball movement, the offense mainly ran isolation plays. The other guards struggled to create paint touches and draw the second defender from the perimeter. This created a lack of drive-and-kick chances.
This stagnant offense forced shooters to take contested, out-of-rhythm shots late into the shot clock. The lack of playmaking caused the Sooners to play more iso ball rather than playing as a team.
The Supporting Guards Could Not Fill the Gap
Dayton Forsythe was thrown into the Sooner starting lineup in this opening matchup. This caused many players to take on unfamiliar roles.
Texas Tech transfer Pop Isaacs tried to provide scoring, finishing the game with a team high of 15 points. 14 out of his 15 points came in the second half of the game. This continues to highlight the lack of offensive depth the Sooners have.
Despite this outing from Isaacs, he has shown he can lead an offense against elite defenses. Creigton transfer Isaacs dropped 27 points for his old team in their upset victory over No.1 Kansas back in 2024. Oklahoma will need that scoring consistency when Brown is healthy.
The replacement guards did not look comfortable in this matchup. Instead, they looked sped up as they were unable to find their desired tempo of play on offense. Oklahoma committed 15 turnovers, creating a major area of vulnerability in terms of ball handlers in the second unit.
Even though it is unfair to put the burden on Brown’s injury, this game still exposed the second unit. When called upon to organize offensive sets under pressure, the other guards had a lack of urgency of putting pressure on the rim.
Oklahoma’s offseason pursuit of BJ Edwards as an experienced guard reflected their efforts to strengthen the backcourt. This then raises an urgent action for Oklahoma Head Coach Porter Moser to address.
Moser needs to find a player capable of running the offense when Brown is hurt or on the bench for a shorter period of time. Without their floor general, the Sooners lack a reliable piece who can hit the post for entry passes and take care of the ball.
Brown’s Return Won’t Solve Every Problem
Being without their best player presented several challenges for the Sooners, but Brown’s return will not make their areas of need disappear. In this past matchup, Oklahoma had a self-inflicted issue at the free-throw line, shooting 53% on a whopping 32 attempts, leaving 15 points on the table.
The Sooners also had another sort of problem at the three-point line. There, defensively, they let East Texas A&M knock down eleven threes.
Even though Oklahoma stayed resilient throughout the game, they were unable to get stops or execute any offense in the final minutes of the contest. These structural issues prove that a stronger foundation of fundamentals and perimeter defense still remains at the top of the list for Moser to fix. One player cannot come back and automatically fix rotations or shooting.
East Texas A&M deserves a lot of credit for their performance. They were not intimidated by Oklahoma or the hostile environment. They were able to find the holes in Oklahoma’s defense, move the ball quickly, and make sure to capitalize on the Sooners’ mistakes to help them secure the win in this historic upset.
The Last Word
While one game does not define Oklahoma’s season, this game raised questions that go beyond Brown’s injury. His return will provide the Sooners with a reliable offensive weapon.
However, Moser still needs other players to step up and create offensive opportunities when Brown is out. Oklahoma needs to respond with better free-throw shooting and defense. Getting Brown healthy is vital, but an offense that can function without him is just as crucial.
Featured Image: Butch Dill-Imagn Images
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