Buddy Hield scored 22 points and hit 4 of Oklahoma's 13 3-pointers, tying a season-high in an 88-85 win over Texas on Saturday.
After knocking down 10 of 16 3-pointers in the first half, the Sooners (12-2, 1-0 Big 12) cooled off after halftime. They were still able to win their Big 12 opener despite the Longhorns (11-3, 0-1) starting the second half on a 10-2 run and losing Isaiah Cousins after he was ejected for committing his second technical foul with 2:20 remaining.
Oklahoma hit just 5 of 16 2-pointers in the first 20 minutes of the game, but held a 43-39 halftime lead. The Sooners trailed for most of the second half before erasing a seven-point deficit when Hield hit his fourth 3-pointer of the game.
Javan Felix, who scored a career-high 28 points for Texas, hit a pair of free throws after Isaiah Cousins was ejected to tie the game at 78. Jordan Woodward answered with four straight points - two from the free throw line with 1:53 left and two more on a layup with 1:08 remaining.
With Oklahoma leading 88-85, Woodward missed two free throws with 15 seconds left to give Texas a chance to tie the game. A potentially game-tying 3-pointer by Damarcus Croaker was off the mark.
Cameron Clark, who averaged a Big 12-best 18.5 points per game entering the contest was held to 8 points on 1 of 9 shooting from the floor but got plenty of help from his teammates - 13 points apiece from Cousins and Neal, along with 12 from Woodward and 11 from Ryan Spangler.
Felix connected on just 2 of his last 9 shots from the floor after starting 8 of 10 from the field. The Longhorns also got a career-high 15 points from Croaker, who hit 5 of 8 attempts from beyond the arc.
Oklahoma avoided losing consecutive games for the first time this year despite being outscored 42-20 in the paint and outrebounded 39-28. The Sooners face No. 16 Kansas in their Big 12 home opener Wednesday while Texas takes on No. 6 Oklahoma State in its Big 12 road opener.
