The Oklahoma Sooners improved to 11-0 on the 2024-2025 college basketball season with an incredible come-from-behind win over the Michigan Wolverines in the Jumpman Invitational.

Jeremiah Fears dazzled with a career-high 30 points, including the game-tying three with 11 seconds remaining, and after being fouled on the three, put the Sooners ahead for good at the foul line.

The Oklahoma Sooners are 11-0 for just the second time in the last 10 years and are now 2-0 against top-25 opponents this season.

Sooners Battled

Porter Moser’s squad showed incredible toughness in the win over the Wolverines. Michigan boasts two of the better big men in the nation in Vladisl Goldin and Danny Wolf. The two combined for 41 points, including 27 first half points.

But Moser made adjustments, and the Sooners defense battled back in the second half to limit the two to just 14 points. Despite being undersized on the inside, Jalon Moore, Sam Godwin, Luke Northweather, and Glenn Taylor Jr. took the fight to the Wolverines impressive big men.

The Sooners overcame 11-point deficits on two different occasions in the second half to take a four-point lead late in the half. And even after they allowed Michigan to take over and go up three with just over a minute to play, Moser drew up a great play to get Fears just enough space to hit the game-tying three with just 11 seconds to play.

It was a resilient win for the Sooners. Through 11 games, Oklahoma looks like a team ready to make a tournament run.

Phenomenal Freshman

Jeremiah Fears has been impressive throughout the season, but he took his game to another level in the win over Michigan. He was 8 of 12 from the field, 3 of 4 from three, and 11 of 13 from the free throw line to lead the Sooners.

His previous career high came in Oklahoma’s other top 25 win of the season against the Arizona Wildcats. Fears has put together his best performances for Oklahoma’s toughest tests.

In the final five minutes of the Sooners’ comeback win, Fears accounted for seven of Oklahoma’s final nine points to earn the win.

He’s been sensational this season and looks every bit the part of a future NBA Draft Lottery Pick.

Three’s the Difference

The Oklahoma Sooners were outrebounded by six on the offensive glass, but they overcame Michigan’s edge on the boards with a really good night shooting from a distance.

Oklahoma was 12 of 25 from three, while Michigan was just 4 of 28 from downtown. Moore, Fears, and Duke Miles each hit three triples and Taylor added a pair off the bench.

If the Sooners can continue to shoot with consistency from three, they’ll be really tough to beat this season. Especially as Fears and Moore continue to finish in the paint.

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Oklahoma transfer DB Makari Vickers committed to Colorado, he told On3’s Hayes Fawcett. He will have three years of eligibility remaining.

Vickers spent two seasons in Norman, but took a redshirt this past year. He played in four games, totaling one tackle in that time. That came after eight appearances in 2023 when he had eight tackles and a pass defended as a true freshman.

Vickers played high school football at Tallahassee (FL) Robert F Munroe Day School, where he was a four-star prospect. He was the No. 83 overall recruit in the 2023 cycle, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.

To keep up with the latest players on the move, check out On3’s Transfer Portal wire. 

The On3 Transfer Portal Instagram account and X account are excellent resources to stay up to date with the latest moves.

Deion Sanders and the Buffaloes have once again been active in the transfer portal so far this cycle. Makari Vickers marks the seventh commitment for Colorado and is the latest splash on Wednesday.

Colorado picked up a notable commitment from former Liberty quarterback Kaidon Salter on Wednesday. He will join elite signee Julian Lewis in the Buffs’ quarterback room and arrives as the No. 11-ranked quarterback to hit the portal so far, according to the On3 Industry Transfer Rankings.

This past season, Salter threw for 1,886 yards and 15 touchdowns while adding 579 rushing yards and seven scores on the ground. That came after a breakout 2023 campaign when he had 2,876 passing yards and 32 touchdowns in the air to go with 1,089 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns in the running game.

Over the course of four seasons, Salter had 5,889 yards, 56 touchdowns, 17 interceptions, a 58.7% completion percentage, 2,006 rushing yards and 21 rushing touchdowns. He will have one year of eligibility remaining as he makes his way to Boulder.

With just two losses on the season — by a combined four points — the No. 24 Michigan Wolverines are in a good place. Dusty May’s squad is on track for an NCAA Tournament berth but would like more, which means the Wolverines could use another solid non-conference win on the resume. The last opportunity for that is Wednesday in Charlotte, with the No. 14 Oklahoma Sooners the final Power Five opponent left on the schedule.

Like the entire SEC, the undefeated Sooners are making headlines this season. On its way to winning the Battle 4 Atlantis, Oklahoma has four wins over top-100 KenPom teams, the same total as Michigan. The Wolverines (23rd) sit higher in the analytics than the Sooners (37th), but the polls have the teams flipped. This should be a good one at the Jumpman Invitational.

No. 24 Michigan Wolverines (8-2) vs. No. 14 Oklahoma Sooners (10-0)

Date & Time: Wednesday, Dec. 18, 9 p.m. ET
Location: Spectrum Center, Charlotte, NC
TV/Streaming: ESPN2

Oklahoma has been solid on both ends of the floor, with not many deficiencies in its profile. Freshman Jeremiah Fears, the No. 44 player in the 247Sports Composite, has been as advertised, averaging 16.7 PPG while leading the team with 4.7 APG. Fears and friends play with some pace, move the ball well, and like to take threes; this will be a test for the Wolverines after a couple rougher defensive performances.

The last time these teams met was in the Second Round of the 2008-09 NCAA Tournament as Blake Griffin’s squad took down the No. 10 Wolverines, who rejoined the Big Dance after an 11-year absence. Present day, this is the third edition of the Jumpman Invitational, completing one rotation. Michigan lost to North Carolina in 2022 and Florida last season, with both games coming down to the wire.

One Big Question: Where is the discipline?

I am not going to talk about turnovers every single game because unfortunately they do not seem to be going away. What I do think is worth mentioning is the general concept of discipline and patience, specifically against athletic teams that like to run. Against the Razorbacks, Michigan played right into their hand by rushing passes, leading to easy looks in transition off sloppy mistakes.

The Wolverines will need to lock down Fears on Wednesday, which becomes much more doable in the half court. Oklahoma has a top-50 eFG rate, so playing disciplined defense, but also smart offense, is essential to avoid yet another subpar defensive performance. The Sooners are not a great offensive rebounding team, but cleaning up the glass also remains an area where the defense must show more attention. Michigan has a solid defense (No. 15) already, and cleaning up its wild play will only make it even stronger.

One Thing to Watch: Play the percentages

Michigan ranks 39th in adjusted offense, but has the 15th-best eFG rate — and sixth-highest two-point shooting percentage in the country. The biggest reason for this gap is obviously turnovers, but even with this frustrating Achilles heel, the Wolverines have posted over 1.20 PPP in the last two games, mostly due to an insane 68.4-percent shooting mark inside the arc. Basically when the Wolverines get a shot off, good things are going to happen; it is those shotless, turnover-filled possessions that have been limiting this team.

The Sooners rank in the 200s in two-point defense, though many of those struggles were to begin the season. Still, the Danny Wolf-Vlad Goldin combo should feast again. Wolf has seen his turnover rate slowly drop, while Goldin is hitting 80 percent of his shots at the rim over the past four games after missing some bunnies earlier this year. Eventually teams will figure out how to stop this duo (or at least sell out to prevent it), but until that comes the Wolverines should continue hammering this advantage.