Sooners Let Another One Slip Away, Fall to Arkansas in Seventh Straight SEC Loss
NORMAN - Oklahoma’s January slide continued Tuesday night, and this one stung just like the rest - maybe more. The Sooners had No. 15 Arkansas right where they wanted them late in the second half, but once again, closing time proved to be their undoing.
In front of the most electric crowd Lloyd Noble Center has seen all season, Oklahoma dropped its seventh straight SEC game, falling 83-79 to the Razorbacks. For a team that’s shown flashes of promise throughout this rough stretch, it was another case of being just good enough to lose - and that’s becoming a painful trend.
This marks the longest losing streak of Porter Moser’s five-year tenure in Norman, and it matches the program’s worst since the 2016-17 season, when the Sooners had two separate seven-game slides. The last time Oklahoma dropped seven straight in conference play? That was back in 2011, when they lost eight in a row during the Big 12 slate.
Tuesday night’s loss followed a familiar script. Oklahoma came out swinging, building a 12-point lead in the first half behind crisp ball movement and solid shot-making. Even as Arkansas chipped away, the Sooners still held a two-point lead with under 90 seconds to play after Nijel Pack buried a deep transition three to make it 79-77.
But from there, it was all Razorbacks.
Oklahoma didn’t score again. Arkansas closed the game on a 6-0 run, and the Sooners missed their final three shots - including a tough, downhill drive by Xzayvier Brown with 12 seconds left that could’ve tied it. It was the kind of high-leverage moment that separates teams that win from teams that wonder what went wrong.
“We’ve got to find ways to eliminate losing and win,” Moser said postgame. “We’ve got to get over the hump… just to get that mojo of confidence going.”
Pack led the Sooners with 22 points, continuing to be a steady offensive presence. Brown added 13 points, six boards, and three assists in a do-it-all effort.
Tae Davis chipped in 14, while Derrion Reid added 12. But despite the balanced scoring, Oklahoma simply couldn’t match Arkansas’ interior dominance - the Razorbacks racked up 56 points in the paint, many of them coming off dribble penetration and second-chance opportunities.
Darius Acuff Jr. was a problem all night for Oklahoma’s defense, finishing with 21 points and nine assists while dictating the pace and flow of the Razorbacks’ offense.
Now sitting at 11-10 overall and 1-7 in SEC play, the Sooners are searching for answers - and momentum - as they prepare for a rivalry showdown against Texas on Saturday. It’s not just about stopping the bleeding anymore; it’s about rediscovering the confidence and execution that got them to a promising start earlier in the season.
The effort is there. The talent is there. But until Oklahoma figures out how to finish games, the results will keep slipping away.