Porter Moser's Finally Getting Through to Oklahoma Players About Having Patience

The Sooners pulled away from Arkansas for good after their coach got on them again about two hasty possessions.

COLUMN

TULSA — Porter Moser’s frustration bubbled over. Tripped him up. Maybe even made him slip and fall.  

“I might have hit a wet spot on the floor,” Moser said.

Moser’s Oklahoma Sooners were minutes away from pounding Arkansas 88-66 on Saturday at the BOK Center when he saw the exact same thing — impatient, hurried possessions with a lead — that he’d railed against after both of OU’s two losses this season.

On back-to-back plays.

Porter Moser / Brett Rojo-USA TODAY Sports

After the second one, Moser literally flopped to the floor, thudding against the hardwood as the Razorbacks sprinted away on a fast break.

But that was no wet spot.

It was Moser expressing himself after two straight incomprehensible offensive trips resulted in wasted possessions and gave the ball back to the opposition.

Tanner Groves, who had just buried a 3-pointer from the top of the circle, pulled up for another quick 3 that rimmed off. Then, after yet another defensive stop, Elijah Harkless sprinted out on a fast break and tried to thread a pass into traffic, but the ball was stolen.

The Sooners enjoyed a 12-point lead at the moment. There was only 5 1/2 minutes left to play. Another OU victory still looked imminent.

But Moser has seen impatient possessions before, and he’s seen his team blow leads because of them. He didn’t want it to happen again, and he couldn’t believe it was unfolding in front of him.

During a Razorbacks timeout, he gathered his troops close and gave them his opinion — and maybe a stern reminder — about the value of lengthy possessions with a lead.

“That's what we talked about that whole (timeout),” Moser said. “You don't need daggers five seconds into it. You know, spacing, strong with the ball, you know, get the dominoes started. That’s all we talked about, was what we were running and good possessions.

“We also talked about still being aggressive, you know, pushing it, but then circle out. If you have a layup, great. If not, circle it out, circle out. Let's get some long possessions. And I thought we really had some, after that, those two in a row.”

Jordan Goldwire / Brett Rojo-USA TODAY Sports

Ultimately, Oklahoma’s defensive effort and rebounding down the stretched turned what might have been a tenuous 12-point lead into 26. The Razorbacks went six minutes without a point in what became a blowout.

OU improved to 9-2 on the season and probably will be ranked in the polls next week. For the Razorbacks, now 9-1, it was their first loss of the season.

But the Sooners’ strong finish was punctuated by Moser’s thud to the BOK Center floor and his message during the timeout. It was, he said, a teaching moment.

The players certainly learned from it — and that’s what a new coach with so many new players need to do as they evolve through a season, learn. This Oklahoma team has talent and should have postseason aspirations, but they’ll have to continue growing through the occasion rough spots like they did Saturday.

But there for just a second, recurring bad habits were enough to sent their coach into a spasm.

“You know, I think it's gonna be an ongoing thing,” Moser said.

“The Tanner one was kind of tough because he’d just hit one. But just you don't need a back-to-back one. But that the play after that, that was the one that I might have hit a wet spot on the floor.”