No. 6 Texas hangs on for overtime win over Oklahoma, keeps pace at top of Big 12

AUSTIN (KXAN) — Every night is a tough night in the Big 12 Conference.

Oklahoma gave No. 6 Texas everything it could handle on Saturday at Moody Center, but the Longhorns outlasted the Sooners 85-83 in overtime.

After Texas guard Tyrese Hunter hit the second of a double bonus foul shot to give them a 2-point lead with 6.8 seconds left, the Sooners raced down the floor and got a great look at the game-tying bucket. However, Sam Godwin's short jumper bounced off the back of the rim as the final horn blared and the Longhorns hung on for the win.

"We knew we were going to be in a dogfight, and our defensive pressure was the difference of the game," Longhorns interim head coach Rodney Terry said. " We forced 18 turnovers and had 19 assists."

Texas went on an 8-0 run that spanned about a minute of overtime to take an 81-75 lead, but the Sooners climbed back in the game with a 6-0 run, capped by a Milos Uzan layup with 7 seconds left to make it 84-83 Texas.

Sooners guard Grant Sherfield sent the game to the extra session with 7 seconds left in regulation, hitting an awkward-looking 3-pointer that rolled around the rim and through to make it 73-73. Carr had a look from about 15 feet falling away from the bucket, but his shot came up short at the second-half buzzer.

Jabari Rice keeps having huge games for the Longhorns, and he did it again against the Sooners. He led all scorers with 24 points on 8-for-13 shooting including 4-for-6 from 3-point range. Carr had 17 points with nine coming from the foul line while Timmy Allen scored 15 points and pulled down nine rebounds.

Oklahoma head coach Porter Moser said Rice is, "one of the most unheralded players in this league."

"He's so good, look at how efficient he was," Moser said, "and he made big shots. I think we were up 5 or 6 and he hit back-to-back 3s and I had to call a timeout."

Rice scored his points on just 13 shots and he didn't commit a turnover for a game-high efficiency rating of 23. He chipped in two rebounds, two assists and a steal.

"He's done a great job over the last month of the season with an incredible approach to practice that has carried over in games," Terry said. "Games like this will be the games we're going to play the rest of the year."

Carr didn't have his best game offensively, shooting 4-for-15 from the field but his fingerprints were all over the overtime period to get the Longhorns an early lead. Carr made a layup in the midst of the 8-0 run that lifted them to the win.

It was another one-possession game against the Sooners, and Brock Cunningham's 10 points in the first half were part of "winning basketball," Terry said.

Cunningham scored eight points in a row for the Longhorns, a pair of 3-pointers and a short jumper in the span of about a minute midway through the first half. His second 3-pointer came with 11:08 left in the first half and gave the Longhorns an early 16-14 lead.

It was Texas' first overtime game since the 87-81 win over Rice on Dec. 12, the first game Terry was the acting head coach.

Texas (21-6, 10-4 Big 12 Conference) takes on Iowa State at home Tuesday. Oklahoma (13-14, 3-11) faces Texas Tech at home Tuesday.