Texas pulls away from No. 11 Oklahoma

Field Level Media|published: Tue 23rd January, 21:50 2024

Texas Longhorns head coach Rodney Terry yells instructions to his team during the game against University of Central Florida at the Moody center in Austin, Texas Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2023. credits: Mikala Compton/American-Statesman / USA TODAY NETWORK

Max Abmas scored 22 points and Dylan Disu added 19 points and 10 rebounds as Texas turned it on over the final 12 minutes in a 75-60 win over No. 11 Oklahoma on Tuesday in a key Big 12 Conference game in Norman, Okla.

The score was tied at 52 with a little over 12 minutes left before Texas slowly pulled away, using a 13-2 spurt capped by a 3-pointer from Disu to build a 65-54 lead. Oklahoma missed all three of its shots from the floor and had a pair of turnovers in that pivotal stretch.

The Longhorns eventually built their advantage to 16 points when Chendall Weaver hit a free throw with three minutes to play. Texas cruised to the wire, recording its second straight win over a team ranked in the top 11 in the AP poll and beating the Sooners for the sixth consecutive time.

Weaver added a season-high 11 points for the Longhorns (14-5, 3-3 Big 12) and Dillon Mitchell grabbed 13 rebounds for Texas.

Oklahoma (15-4, 3-3 Big 12) was led by Jalon Moore's 15 points and 10 from Otega Oweh. The Sooners shot just 39.3 percent from the floor in the loss, their first at home this season.

Texas used a 9-2 surge to go up 18-9 with 9:27 to play in the first half by taking the Sooners out of their offense and forcing them into tough shots.

Moore's baseline drive and ringing dunk at the 8:50 mark of the first half jumpstarted Oklahoma and he added a dunk as part of three-point play on the Sooners' ensuing possession. Oklahoma took the lead on a dunk by John Hugley IV with 5:33 to play in the half and ran its advantage to 26-20 when Oweh hit a layup that capped a 15-2 surge.

Texas tied it at 28 on Brock Cunningham's 3-pointer with 2:57 remaining in the half. After a pair of free throws by Oweh put the Sooners back on top by three, Mitchell's dunk trimmed the Longhorns' deficit to 33-32 at the break.

Moore led all scorers in the half with nine points while Abmas and Weaver paced Texas with eight points each.

Texas used a 10-0 run beginning at the 17:55 mark of the second half to turn a two-point deficit into a 47-39 lead after a 3-pointer by Ithiel Horton. The Sooners responded and tied the score at 52 on a layup by Moore with 1208 remaining but the Longhorns dominated from there to the finish.

—Field Level Media

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