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Published Nov 29, 2024
Sooners beat Louisville, win Battle 4 Atlantis behind Jalon Moore's 24
Jesse Crittenden  •  OUInsider
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Jalon Moore had his best performance as a Sooner in Thursday's win over No. 24 Arizona.

He decided to one-up himself on Friday. The senior finished with 24 points, matching his Thursday output, to go with seven rebounds as he carried the Sooners to a 69-64 win over Louisville to secure the Battle 4 Atlantis championship.

Moore was the unquestioned engine for the Sooners, and he did it with efficient shooting as Louisville refused to go away. Moore shot 7 of 13 from the floor and made two 3-pointers, and he made eight of nine free throw attempts. He scored the Sooners' first nine points of the second half, which was crucial as Louisville opened the half on an 8-2 run.

Moore also added a team-best seven rebounds, He finished the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament averaging 18 points and 5.3 rebounds per game.

Here's a few other notes from the game:

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NOTES

— The Sooners held the lead for nearly 32 minutes but never had total control. They led 39-32 at halftime, but Louisville cut the lead to one point at two different points in the second half and tied the game at 58-58 with 5:06 left in the game.

The Cardinals had possession with eight seconds to go and only trailing three points, but Sam Godwin tipped the inbounds pass and it ended up with Duke Miles.

Miles made both free throws to seal the win.

Jeremiah Fears had his first tough game in his young collegiate career. He spent most of the first half on the bench in foul trouble, and Louisville committed to slowing him down in the second half. They routinely blitzed him in the pick and roll coverage and made it difficult for Fears to get to the rim.

It's a learning moment for Fears, who finished with 10 points (3/8 shooting), four assists and four turnovers. He did have a huge layup late in the game that helped seal the win.

Still, it was a very impressive tournament for the true freshman, who averaged 22 points, 3.3 rebounds and 5.3 assist per game.

Luke Northweather made another 3-pointer against Louisville, finishing his tournament run with five made 3s on 10 attempts.

Fears wasn't the only one who struggled. Kobe Elvis finished with just four points on 2/7 shooting, but led the team with seven assists.

Glenn Taylor Jr. provided some huge supplemental scoring to compliment Moore. He finished with 12 points on 4/6 shooting shooting, and eight of those points came in the second half.

Outside of Moore and Taylor, the Sooners shot 9 of 24 from the floor.

Brycen Goodine continues to showcase his outside shooting. He contributed seven points and two 3s off the bench against Louisville.

— The Sooners' win was particularly impressive considering they were beat 21-4 on the offensive glass. The Cardinals held a 25-7 advantage in second-chance points. The Sooners lost the rebounding battle 44-23.

However, as they have this season, the Sooners have combat their rebounding issues with forcing turnovers and steals. The Sooners had 10 turnovers to Louisville's 13 and won the points-off-turnovers battle 13-9.

— Fears wasn't the only one in foul trouble. Duke Miles played just xx minutes and had four fouls, including a technical early in the game, and Sam Godwin — who continues to struggle with picking up fouls — had three.

— All of a sudden, the Sooners are 7-0 and champions of the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament. One of their wins includes No. 24 Arizona on Thursday.

There's now real momentum with this program.

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