Oklahoma Men Lose Close Contest to Texas A&M

Originally Published: Jan 19, 2010 9:49 PM CDT

Corey DeMoss
Oklahoma Sports Staff Writer

COLLEGE STATION, Texas -- Down three points with 3.5 seconds remaining, the Oklahoma Sooners tried to run a scripted play to force overtime, but the Texas A&M defense intercepted a pass to hold on to a 65-62 win Tuesday.

After two clutch free throws by David Sloan to extend the A&M (13-5, 2-2) lead to three, Cade Davis threw a half-court pass to Tiny Gallon. Gallon then spun and tried to pass to Tommy Mason-Griffin for a game-tying shot, but the pass never got there. The clock ran out, sealing OU’s fate.

Moments earlier, Mason-Griffin had a chance to give the Sooners (11-7, 2-2) the lead but slipped as he went for a shot. Sloan grabbed the rebound and was immediately fouled, sending him to the free-throw line. He made both, setting up OU’s effort to force overtime.

The Sooners used a strong second half to overcome dismal production in the first half. OU shot just 8-of-23 from the field in the opening half and went into halftime down 39-29. Two of Oklahoma’s main scoring threats – Gallon and Willie Warren – combined to score just three points in the half.

The Sooners’ offense turned things around almost immediately as the second half began. They began scoring points in bunches and went on a 20-6 run to take their first lead since starting the game up 2-0. Texas A&M fought back to tie the game at 56, and the two teams traded punches for the rest of the night.

Warren and Gallon recovered and combined to score 21 second-half points, but Mason-Griffin led the way for the Sooners all night. He finished with a game-high 21 points and shot 3-of-4 from behind the 3-point line.

Donald Sloan also got off to a slow start, but finished with a team-high 16 points – including 14 in the second half – for the Aggies, and B.J. Holmes added 13 points off the bench.

Tuesday’s game ended streaks for both teams. Oklahoma entered the game with two consecutive wins, while Texas A&M came in with two straight losses, including one in overtime to No. 1 Texas.

The Sooners have now lost both of their conference road games, but will look to break that trend when they travel to Lubbock to face Texas Tech on Saturday.