Oklahoma Hosts Georgia Tech in ACC-SEC Challenge Looking to Improve to 8-0

After beating Providence, Arizona and Louisville in the Battle 4 Atlantis, the Sooners will host an ACC foe on Tuesday.

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NORMAN — Oklahoma has beaten a handful of formidable opponents to begin the 2024-25 season, and the Sooners will battle another on Tuesday.

The No. 21-ranked Sooners — 7-0 after beating Providence, Arizona and Louisville in the Battle 4 Atlantis midseason tournament in the Bahamas — will host Georgia Tech in the ACC-SEC Challenge on Tuesday.

The contest against the Yellow Jackets is one of six remaining for the Sooners before they begin their first season of league play in the Southeastern Conference against Alabama on Jan. 4. 

“I learned a lot about them,” OU coach Porter Moser said of his team’s performance in the Bahamas. “One of the things I've liked about how this team's evolving is the togetherness, the lack of entitlement with the guys.”

Georgia Tech is 4-3 entering Tuesday’s game. 

The Yellow Jackets are on a two-game winning streak following back-to-back losses against Georgia and No. 18 Cincinnati. They also fell to North Florida in the first week of the season.

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The Yellow Jackets are familiar to the Sooners in multiple ways.

For one, Oklahoma guard Jalon Moore previously played at Georgia Tech. Moore, the Sooners’ leading scorer averaging 18.4 points per game, played in 45 games for the Yellow Jackets before transferring to Oklahoma ahead of the 2023-24 season.

Even with Moore playing against his former squad, Moser isn’t worried about his guard letting his emotions get the best of him.

“His energy he brings, man — I love coaching his energy,” Moser said. “I love that he’s hyped to play. I love that the guys love him and that he’s bringing them along to play.”

One of Georgia Tech’s key players is a former Sooner.

Guard Javian McCollum played one season (2023-24) in Norman before transferring to GT. He has been one of the Yellow Jackets’ most prominent players early in the 2024-25 season, averaging 12.8 points and 3.4 assists per contest.

McCollum, though, is battling a head injury that forced him to miss the Yellow Jackets’ wins against Charleston Southern and Central Arkansas. His status for Tuesday’s game is uncertain.

Moser noted McCollum’s early success for Georgia Tech but also said that there isn’t any added significance when it comes to battling his former player.

“We had a lot of guys come back and he didn’t so we moved on,” Moser said. “We went and got us some other really good guys. I couldn’t be more excited about the guys in our locker room. That’s all really our focus is.”

The Sooners’ game against Georgia Tech is one of three games remaining for them against opponents from power conferences outside the SEC.

OU will battle former Big 12 foe Oklahoma State at the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City on Dec. 14 before taking on Michigan at a neutral site (Charlotte, NC) in the Jumpman Invitational. The Sooners will also play against Alcorn State, Central Arkansas and Prairie View A&M at Lloyd Noble Center.

As the Sooners prepare for the back half of non-conference play and the ensuing SEC season, they feel confident after a successful trip to the Bahamas.

“We came there for a business trip,” forward Glenn Taylor Jr. said. “You want to come in there and win every game you can. We have a bunch of wins. We just got more trust in each other. That trip made us more close.”