OU Basketball: Oklahoma Adds Former State Champion Reid Lovelace to the Roster

The Sooners are filling out the roster with walk-on spots, adding a former Oklahoma state champion in walk-on Reid Lovelace.
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Oklahoma basketball has added Reid Lovelace to the roster as a walk-on.

Porter Moser has had a busy offseason restructuring the Sooners’ basketball roster after multiple key departures. With the talent in order and the roster nearly set, he’s now adding extra depth in the backcourt via the walk-on route in a local hometown hero.

“It means everything to me,” Lovelace said. "As a kid attending the OU basketball camps, all I ever dreamed about was being one of those guys. I remember how nice the players were to me as an 8-year old kid. I always wanted to be like them. Growing up training at OU, going to the games, and bleeding crimson there’s no place I’d rather be.”

The 5-foot-11 point guard started every game he played during four seasons at Crossings Christian, leading the team in scoring from freshman year on. Over the course of his illustrious high school career, Lovelace averaged 16.1 points, 4.2 assists, 2.7 steals and 2.4 rebounds per game while only tallying 1.3 turnovers a night. 

His offensive efficiency can certainly help the Sooners on the practice court, as he shot 54% from the floor and 38% from 3-point range on 665 total attempts. He holds countless school records including points, assists and steals.

Lovelace was a four-time All Conference First-Team member, a three-time All State First-Team member, the 2021 State Championship MVP and the 2022 Oklahoma Coaches Association Player of the Year in 4A. In addition, he made the Tulsa World’s All State ballot, the Oklahoman Super 5, and was named the conference’s Offensive Player of the Year in 2021.

Above the personal accolades, the floor general proved his worth at the highest level by leading his team to wins. Overall, he won 88-of-109 total high school games including a state title.

The pinnacle of his Crossings career came in 2021, when Lovelace drilled a buzzer-beater with the game tied to win the school’s first state championship in history. He carried the Knights through a loaded 3A schedule and took his game to new heights when playoff time rolled around.

Against a Kendal Daniels-led Beggs team, Lovelace drove to his right, quickly spun and lifted a floater above the rim and in for the shot everyone dreams of making.

The 2021 season was special for Lovelace, as he averaged 18.1 points, 6.0 assists and 3.4 steals per game, leading Crossings Christian to a 26-2 record.

Lovelace played AAU basketball with the Tulsa Hawks, teaming up with multiple marquee players on the summer circuit including Wake Forest’s four-star signee Parker Friedrichsen. His ability to distribute the ball was evident throughout the entire live session, and eventually, he picked up scholarship offers from Randall University and UCO to close the book on his high school chapter.

The Sooners ended up benefitting in a big way from last year's walk-on addition, as Sam Godwin carved out a role and found plenty of minutes on the floor. Moser has done a great job finding impactful players to add to his bench, even if it means simply ramping up the competition in practice.

Lovelace has won and produced at every level during his basketball career, and will bring the same mentality to Norman.

“From the moment I touched a ball, I knew that I had a knack for the game,” Lovelace said. “I’m a hard worker who has to make up for size with effort and an edge. Going into the season I’m looking forward to competing and working as hard as possible to push the players around me.

"Whether it’s giving our guys a good look during scout team or coming early and staying late to help rebound for my teammates, I’m stoked to get to work and have a positive impact on this team entering the season.”



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Ross Lovelace
ROSS LOVELACE

Ross has covered the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Oklahoma Sooners since 2018. He's made guest appearances on various radio stations and the Sooners On SI podcast. Ross enjoys public speaking and has done so at multiple churches and high schools across the OKC metro area. In addition to writing, Ross has been the Play-by-Play announcer for Crossings’ basketball and football programs since 2020. In high school, Ross started with Thunder Digest, where he discovered his passion for writing. From there, he worked for the OU Daily as a women's basketball reporter and worked for Sooners On SI and Thunder On SI. Ross holds a bachelor's degree in Public Relations and a minor in Communication from the University of Oklahoma. Born and raised in Oklahoma City, Ross played basketball and wrote for his own Thunder blog at Crossings High School in OKC. He enjoys reading, New York Jets football and a week at the beach. Ross and his wife live in New Orleans, where he is a Marketing and Volunteer Coordinator at the Greater New Orleans Sports Foundation and the New Orleans Super Bowl Host Committee. His Twitter handle is @Rosslovelace.