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Published Nov 23, 2023
Player grades from Oklahoma's impressive win over Iowa
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Brody Lusk  •  OUInsider
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Oklahoma won game one of the Rady Children’s Invitational, beating Iowa 79-67. Oklahoma, as a whole, played really well in game one. Jalon Moore, in particular, had a career day. Let’s look at how Moore and other Sooners graded out in the Thanksgiving day victory.

STARTERS

Milos Uzan: B-

Uzan posted 4 points, nine assists, and five rebounds in 32 minutes. He shot 2-7 from the field and 0-3 from behind the arc. Uzan still can’t break out of his shooting slump. He’s shooting just 16% from the field this season. Scoring-wise, he didn’t play great. He still made an impact offensively with nine assists. Uzan was a great facilitator. His assist-to-turnover ratio was 9 to 0. Aside from his inability to score, he performed up to expectations. Oklahoma is going to need him to be able to score more and knock down the open threes. He’s just been in a slump and he’s still finding ways to make winning plays. It’d be nice to see him be more aggressive.

Javian McCollum: A-

In 34 minutes, McCollum totaled 14 points and three assists. He shot 6-11 from the field and 2-5 from behind the arc. McCollum went on a heater and scored nine points in the second half. He made some difficult shots and showcased his scoring ability. The only negative to his game today was the three turnovers. It wouldn’t be the worst thing if McCollum elected to be more aggressive. When the Sooners needed a bucket, they went to him, and he delivered. He played really well while missing a few open looks. Tomorrow’s game against USC will be a big test for McCollum especially.

Otega Oweh: A

Oweh continued his solid play as he scored 13 points, stole the ball four times, and grabbed four rebounds in 31 minutes. He shot 6-10 from the field. Oweh did a great job at getting to the basket. He was also very active defensively and created a lot of offense through his defense. So far, he’s been unstoppable when driving to the basket. He came through on both sides of the floor. Oweh has done an exceptional job of knowing his role and excelling at that role.

Jalon Moore: A+ 

Moore had, by far, his best game of the season. Maybe even his best game of his collegiate career. Moore had a career-high 18 points. He also totaled five rebounds, two blocks, and a steal while playing 25 minutes. He shot 6-7 from the field and 1-1 from behind the arc. His athleticism was on full display. Moore had multiple nice dunks and even had one where he made the dunk while getting hit in the face. His ability to knock down the open three will go a long way for this team, should he continue to make them. Moore was the most athletic player in this game and used that to his advantage. He played great on both sides of the floor.

Sam Godwin: B

Godwin posted 11 points and six rebounds while playing 20 minutes. He shot 5-7 from the field. Godwin currently leads the country in offensive rebounds percentage. He continued his exceptional play on the offensive glass as he had three offensive rebounds. He made the necessary plays and had many impressive finishes at the rim. It was another solid performance from Godwin.

Bench

John Hugley: B+

In 17 minutes played, Hugley had 8 points, four rebounds, two assists, and a steal. He shot 3-6 from the field, 0-1 from three-point range, and 2-2 from the free-throw line. Hugley bullied Iowa’s Ben Krikke on multiple occasions. So far, he’s been nearly impossible to stop in the paint. Hugley has been a physical force. There were some bad shot attempts sprinkled in his performance today. His paint defense was solid. Hugley had a steal that you typically don’t see players his size make. It was impressive. Overall, Hugley played really well.

Le'Tre Darthard: C

Darthard struggled offensively in today’s game. He had just 4 points and a steal in 19 minutes played. He shot 1-8 from the field and 0-5 from behind the arc. It wasn’t pretty, especially on the offensive end. He had multiple open looks but just failed to knock them down. He did get beat backdoor on a play, but overall, his defensive play was still solid. Darthard simply just could not hit open shots.

Rivaldo Soares: B-

Soares posted 5 points, four rebounds, an assist, and a block. He shot 2-7 from the field and 1-4 from behind the arc. He didn’t make any flashy plays, but he did make some solid plays defensively. He took a few bad shots, but his misses mostly occurred off of open shots. He didn’t make any plays to hurt the Sooners. His performance as a whole was solid.

KenPom MVP: Jalon Moore

Highest-graded player: Jalon Moore (A+)

Lowest-graded player: Le'Tre Darthard (C) 

Team average: B

Oklahoma will next take on #23 USC on Friday at 2:30 p.m.

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