Sooners' Season Comes To A Disappointing Finish

The talk all week centered on Michigan State's experience in March; a program and a coach in Tom Izzo accustomed to the big stage. It all seemed to shortchange a very good Oklahoma team making its first Sweet 16 appearance since 2009.

But Friday night, the Spartans showed that experience matters in March, as Michigan State sent the Sooners home with a 62-58 win.

Oklahoma finishes the season 24-11 and could return all but two players next season. D.J. Bennett and TaShawn Thomas will be gone, but unless Buddy Hield or anyone else on the roster decides to leave for the NBA or transfer, the Sooners will be back next season and poised to make another run.

Winning on the biggest stage doesn't just happen overnight. It's a process and a Sweet 16 loss to a tough Michigan State team is just another part of that process. With a coach like Lon Kruger, the Sooners will no doubt learn from their shortcomings this season and come back hungrier and more prepared to win on the sport's biggest stage.

Friday night, it was the Sooners' offense that dried up at the wrong time. After a sensational start that saw OU race to an 18-8 lead, the shots simply stopped falling. OU started the game 8-of-11 from the field, but went just 12-of-44 the rest of the way. A 14-of-16 showing at the free throw line kept the points coming, but simply put, the Sooners didn't put the ball in the basket enough.

On the other end, the Sooners couldn't stop Travis Trice when it mattered most. The senior led all scorers with 24 points and was also 6-of-6 from the free throw line, a strong showing considering his teammates combined to miss seven freebies. Denzel Valentine had 18 points and knocked down four 3-pointers, the biggest of which gave MSU a 51-47 lead with 6:15 to play.

Despite the Sooners' struggles on offense, the Spartans didn't grab a lead until there was 9:26 left in the game. The teams traded baskets, but a Matt Costello dunk gave MSU a 48-47 lead, one they wouldn't relinquish.

Hield led the Sooners with 21 points and Thomas added 16 points, 12 in the second half. Jordan Woodard had nine points, but all of those came in the first half. The support the Sooners received a week ago in Columbus vanished in Syracuse. The bench scored just three points and Ryan Spangler and Isaiah Cousins combined for just nine points.

The Sooners looked like the better team in the first half, grabbing 10-point leads on three occasions and answering every challenge MSU threw at them. But OU went over eight minutes in two stretches without scoring in the first 20 minutes, including the final 3:28, during which the Spartans cut the halftime deficit to 31-27.

In the second half, OU went five minutes without scoring early in the half, but it was a crucial three-minute stretch late in the game that really did the Sooners in. Down 54-51 after two Thomas free throws with 4:43 to play, the Sooners got the stops they needed, but once again just couldn't get the shots to fall.

A disappointing finish can easily overshadow all the success OU experienced this year. Another second place finish in a very good Big 12 and the most wins in a season since Blake Griffin roamed the court. And don't forget about Hield winning Big 12 Player of the Year.

The future is bright in Norman. The Sooners have improved every year under Kruger and have recruited well, building a great talent base to build on the successes of the past three years. How good OU will be next year depends on if everyone who can return to Norman does.

Oklahoma is moving through the process of becoming a national player every year. Losses like Friday's are part of that process, even though there's pain and disappointment involved. But pain and disappointment in the past three years brought about the success of this season. So it only makes sense future success would come about as a result of Friday's loss.