Making money in Vegas is nice. Keeping Sooners out of the transfer portal? Priceless.
Now it gets real.
On Sunday, coach Porter Moser’s Oklahoma men’s basketball program finally said goodbye to its Rorschach test of a season, falling 89-82, in overtime, to old Big 12 rival West Virginia in the championship game of the College Basketball Crown, the money tree of postseason hoops tournaments.
For reaching the title game, the Sooners earned $100,000 in NIL money, and let’s hope it only became available upon leaving Las Vegas, site of the CBC and no place to be carrying heaps of cash you hope to keep.
And, for losing, rather than winning … well, not much.
Given OU’s failure to reach the NCAA tournament, the season went as far as it possibly could, along with quality victories over Colorado and Baylor it wouldn’t have gained otherwise, wins that included large-ish doses of Kuol Atak and Kai Rogers, a pair of freshmen lost on Moser’s bench most of the season and a pair he’s counting on remaining in the program for their sophomore seasons.
The fact the Sooners came up short to the Mountaineers, aside from the additional $200,000 they would have chopped up had they won, is almost meaningless.
Instead of closing the season winning 9 of 10 games, they closed winning 8 of 10.
Big deal.
The fact the Sooners allowed a 13-0 run after taking a six-point overtime edge on Sunday, well, it seems like a coach might find a way to not let that happen and Moser couldn’t, but it’s not like that’s new.
First-year athletic director Roger Denny chose to keep him despite such limitations, so there’s no use complaining about them now.
Best to save it for next season, when they’re near certain to happen again.
Instead, remember the good times. Remember OU was dead in the water and played itself back to the NCAA bubble. Remember how far the Sooners went in the SEC tournament. Remember the fun it was watching Nijel Pack complete a fine collegiate career.
Remember it, but move on.
Because now it gets real.
Now’s the main event.
