Oklahoma head coach Lon Kruger simply was never worried. Even though transfer guard Umoja Gibson had gotten off to a slow start in the first couple of games, it never altered the way Kruger utilized Gibson.

Give it a week, and the narrative is quite different. Gibson had another stellar outing with four three-pointers in the first half to set the tone early in OU’s 79-65 win against visiting Oral Roberts on Wednesday evening.

You combine the second half from Saturday (three 3s) and the first half from Wednesday, and Gibson connected on seven three-pointers, after having not scored in the previous three halves.

“I mean like I’m coming in and learning a whole new terminology and where to be at on the floor,” said Gibson, who finished with 14 points and four rebounds. “Just picking my spots where to be on the floor and getting more comfortable. Coming in, I was like a chicken with his head cut off. Now I’m starting to feel the flow, rhythm and where I need to be. Now everything is flowing the right way.”

And that’s the thing for Lon Kruger’s club right now. The Sooners don’t need Mo Gibson to be the star every night because the balance and depth is there from game-to-game. Wednesday showed it can be from half-to-half.

Austin Reaves had just two points at halftime but end up as the team’s leading scorer with 18 points and almost messed around and had a triple double. He finished with the 18 points to go with 10 rebounds and seven assists. He did not attempt a 3-pointer.

“Austin's got great security as a player,” Kruger said. “He's not worried about scoring, he's worried about getting a good shot every time down, moving the ball. He had, what seven assists tonight. ... He's concerned about getting a good shot each time down and very secure as a player, and yet, when he needs to go score, he's obviously capable of doing that.”

The Sooners asserted themselves early and took a 40-22 lead into halftime and never let ORU sniff making a comeback in the second half. OU limited ORU to less than 33 percent shooting from the field and a woeful 9-32 (28 percent) from 3-point territory.

Notes

*Senior Brady Manek had an efficient night, scoring 17 points and also grabbing nine rebounds.

“He stretches that defense,” Kruger said. “He makes the people aware of where he is. That opens up driving lanes for some other guys. Brady's consistently shot the ball well, rebounded the ball well tonight, which is great to see. Made a lot of good plays.”

*It was the season debut for transfer guard Elijah Harkless. Declared eligible by the NCAA in the afternoon, Harkless didn’t score but did grab four rebounds.

*Sooners, not known for their size, had a distinct advantage and outrebounded ORU 48-37.

*OU (4-1) closes out a three-game non-conference home stand with Houston Baptist on Saturday afternoon.