NORMAN — It isn’t lost on Oklahoma head coach Brent Venables that the Maine Black Bears are looking for their fifth win against an FBS opponent in the Sooners this Saturday.

“I could brag on Maine,” said Venables, the Sooners’ third-year man, during Tuesday’s press conference. “They’ve got 17 graduate [seniors]. What does that mean? They’ve got a lot of experience.”

The Black Bears, who play in the FCS Colonial Athletic Association, will bring their 4-4 record over 1,900 miles to Memorial Stadium. Two weeks ago, they scored a 35-7 win over FCS No. 5 Villanova and beat No. 21 Albany 34-20 on Sept. 28. If ever there was a game featuring a vulnerable Sooners team hosting a scary FCS team that could be too close for comfort, this Saturday is ripe for that opportunity.

“There are schemes that we’ve got to get ready for, and we need to get them down quickly, and otherwise they get sloppy and it don’t look good,” Venables said. “That’ll show up, too, and if I said, ‘Hey fellas, we’re playing this opponent this week, we’ll see you on Thursday. Give you the first three days of the week off and we’ll start up on Thursday.’ How do you think that’s going to look? No matter who you play, that’s going to look like crap.”

Maine defeated Mississippi State 9-7 in 2004, its only SEC win in program history. That year’s Bulldogs went 2-6 in conference play with wins against No. 20 Florida and Kentucky on consecutive weeks. After this week, the Sooners will have three chances to win their second conference game in their inaugural SEC season: Nov. 9 at No. 25 Mizzou; Nov. 23 vs. No. 14 Alabama; and Nov. 30 at No. 16 LSU. 

“They’re a good FCS team,” freshman cornerback Eli Bowen said Monday night during player media availability. “They’ve beaten a lot of top teams in that division, so we can’t take them lightly and that’s shown by our record also.”

“That’s the last thing you want to do is kind of fall asleep on an opponent,” senior corner Dez Malone concurred. “This still is the game of football, and you’ve got to go out and compete and play your 1/11 and I think we’re treating them like we would treat anyone else on the schedule. And that’s the best thing we can do at this point.”

It also isn’t lost on this team — though it might be hard to imagine them winning another game after Saturday — that Maine is a must-win, fifth win to have a prayer of reaching the six-game bowl eligibility threshold and a must-dominate for further consideration. The Sooners hold the second longest active bowl streak in college football and have not missed bowl season since 1998.

“It’s actually pretty important to win this because we’re one more closer to getting to a bowl game,” junior defensive lineman R Mason Thomas said. “I know that’s huge because we have a bowl streak going back a long time. We’re not trying to look forward, but we know we have to win to make a bowl.”

Oklahoma City (4-0), clamping down on a Spurs squad with its top-ranked defense, used an 18-2 run in the first quarter to stake itself to a comfortable lead that was not threatened in a 105-93 victory. The Thunder started white hot from three (14 first half makes), while many San Antonio forays stalled out deep in the paint with 2-3 defenders lurking nearby. Chet Holmgren got the better of his more heralded counterpart throughout much of the first half with 15 points and two blocks, while Victor Wembanyama had his worst output of the young season.

San Antonio (1-3) was led again by Jeremy Sochan (17 points and 9 rebounds) accompanied by grizzled veterans Harrison Barnes (18 points and 4 rebounds) and Chris Paul (14 points and 9 assists). The team let Wembanyama (6 points, 8 rebounds, and 3 blocks) down by not being able to find him in advantageous spots in the halfcourt, which was not helped by him getting bogged down by his own frustrations. Malaki Branham chipped in 15 points off the bench.

The Thunder were led by Holmgren (19 points and 5 rebounds) who paced four starters in double figures – Luguentz Dort (20 points and 6 rebounds), Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (18 points and 5 assists), and Jalen Williams (12 points and 8 assists) — a group that thoroughly outplayed their counterparts.

The visitors had considerable difficulty getting through the lane amidst a sea of Thunder arms, and settled for jumpers with many of them clanging off the rim. Oklahoma City’s success from three allowed them to settle into the catbird seat. While the Spurs steadied themselves and kept OKC off the boards over the last two minutes of the first, they still ended a difficult opening frame down seven.

The Thunder (editor’s note: like a bad case of dysentery – JRW) made life difficult for San Antonio at one both ends, while shooting confidently and brazenly from distance in their halfcourt offense. The Spurs’ deficit ballooned to 19 before they found a veteran line-up that could somewhat deter the hopeful contenders. Chris Paul’s timely shooting staved off OKC running away with things, but the Thunder still went to the half up 59-44.

The Thunder started the second half by attacking the basket at-will. Holmgren tagged Wembanyama with an elbow to the face on a drive, and Harrison Barnes’ fadeaway brought San Antonio within 11. Behind Barnes and Paul, the Spurs managed to impressively win the quarter 26-23 despite Oklahoma City’s astounding success from distance.

Observations

• With the stirring Celtics / Pacers tilt spilling into overtime, the Spurs / Thunder telecast started with San Antonio up 10-7.
• OKC is forcing a turnover on one of every five possessions, per Zach Kram of The Ringer. They thusly generated countless deflections and steals in triumph tonight.
• Those SATX uniforms are pretty meh.
• With the Spurs being on the national airwaves again, we (well, mainly I) need to get used to the longer television timeouts.
• It’s these type of tough road games where Barnes needs to more forcefully assert himself on the offensive end – and he ended up doing that!
• I lost count of the times that Tim Legler and Dave Pasch commented on San Antonio’s suboptimal offense.
• This might have been the first game this season that felt a little too big for Stephon Castle.
• Victor Ease: Not sure how to feel about Wembanyama stationed on the free throw line (like Dirk Nowitzki used to). While he is able to see the floor well from that perch, he can’t punish the defense with that mid-range jumper yet.
• Sequence of the Game: After Zach Collins emphatically turned away Aaron Wiggin’s dunk attempt at the start of the second period, Malaki Branham’s connected from the wing.
• In a fast-paced opening handful of minutes, the Spurs briefly held a small lead. Jalen William’s steal of Paul’s crosscourt pass and breakaway dunk drew Pop’s ire. San Antonio had trouble converting its looks from the perimeter, while Holmgren hit two early ones of his own. As the Spurs’ field goal drought spanned nine attempts, OKC extended out to a 20-10 advantage. Zach Collins’ three and a spinning lay-up by Blake Wesley fended off an early blowout. The Thunder had the Spurs down 26-19 after one.
• San Antonio managed to get a pair of shot-clock violations on OKC late in the first and at the start of the second. Wembanyama tumbled to the floor with his defender, and Jalen Williams found a streaking Holmgren for a transition dunk. A visibly frustrated and possibly injured Wembanyama went straight to the locker room. Holmgren’s three after an inbounds turnover and Ajay Mitchell’s three put the Spurs down 19. After Holmgren inexplicably tried throwing himself a lob off the backboard, Paul hit a pair of threes to bring San Antonio within ten. Paul’s third three was answered very quickly by Jalen Williams and Luguentz Dort, and the Spurs were fortunate to be down only 15 at the break.
• OKC held a lay-up parade to start the second half to match their biggest lead at 19. Julian Champagnie encouragingly hit a corner three, and Barnes’ driving dunk brought San Antonio within two touchdowns. Dort’s second uncontested three of the frame put the Thunder up 19 again. Paul hit a patented mid-range jumper and found Sochan for an acrobatic lay-up. Barnes’ wing three brought the Spurs within eight as they mounted their first serious push. After San Antonio’s finest defensive stand of the game, Keldon Johnson’s three trimmed their deficit to seven.
• Malaki Branham’s bankshot three again brought San Antonio within seven to start the fourth, which ended up being the closest that they would get. No other Spurs could help Branham mount a comeback attempt in the stanza.

San Antonio heads west for a road SEGABABA against Lauri Markkanen and the Utah Jazz tomorrow night at 8:00 PM CDT.

Happy Halloween Pounders!

On Wednesday night, the San Antonio Spurs face off against the undefeated Oklahoma City Thunder in what promises to be an exciting early-season matchup of young, elite talent.

With both teams spotlighting budding stars, all eyes will be on the showdown between San Antonio’s Victor Wembanyama and OKC’s Chet Holmgren.

The Spurs, at 1-2, have leaned on Wembanyama’s defensive versatility and shot-making, while the 3-0 Thunder are showcasing premier offense and solid perimeter play led by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

Expect a game that highlights speed, shooting, and high-level schematics as these teams push their way up the Western Conference standings.

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Live Updates:

(most recent at the top)

HALFTIME: Thunder 59, Spurs 44.

Second Quarter:

• 2:05, 2Q: Chris Paul makes a 25-footer. Spurs have cut the lead to 13. Thunder 50, Spurs 37,

• 6:21, 2Q: Thunder stringing together a run here. They’ve pushed their lead to 19. Holmgren is up to 15 points. Thunder 45, Spurs 26.

• 8:26, 2Q: Four buckets in the span of a minute for these teams from the 10:00-9:00 mark. Branham makes a jumper, Isaiah Joe nails a 23-footer, Johnson makes a layup, Holmgren makes a mid-range shot. Thunder 35, Spurs 26.

• 10:43, 2Q: Thunder 28, Spurs 19. San Antonio take a timeout.

• First points of the quarter go to Holmgren and the Thunder.

First Quarter:

• END OF THE 1Q: Thunder 26, Spurs 19. Sochan, Barnes and Wembanyama lead the way at the break with four points a piece. Holmgren leads all scorers with six points. Spurs are shooting a putrid 1-for-10 from downtown. 7-for-24 overall, 29% from the floor.

• 3:52, 1Q: Thunder have extended their lead to 10. They’re 5-for-10 from three early on.

• 5:35, 1Q: Thunder 15, Spurs 10.

• Holmgren fouls Wembanyama. Wembanyama makes both at the line, and the Spurs are on the board.

• First points of the game belong to the Thunder’s Lu Dortz on an assist from Holmgren.

• Chet Holmgren blocks Sochan’s layup after Wembanyama wins the tipoff and we’re underway.

Pregame:

• Starting Lineup for San Antonio: Chris Paul, Julian Champagnie, Harrison Barnes, Jeremy Sochan, Victor Wembanyama.

• Tipoff from Oklahoma City is set for 8:30 p.m. CT.

Notebook: Spurs Torched by 3-Point Shooting, But Find Silver Linings

It Takes A Castle: Stephon Castle’s On-Court Impact Begins Off It

Julian Champagnie’s Approach to Begin New Season? ‘Just Keep Shooting’