Sooners wait until later to upset Zags

OKLAHOMA CITY – Gonzaga is getting healthier, but the second half of Thursday night’s game against Oklahoma made Bulldogs men’s basketball coach Mark Few feel a bit queasy.

The Sooners erupted for 48 second-half points in posting a 72-68 victory over No. 18-ranked Gonzaga in the 72nd All-College Classic despite a career-high 28 points from Jeremy Pargo.

The teams played to a 24-24 draw in the first half, but the Sooners doubled their output after intermission and hung on for the victory.

“It was definitely a tale of two halves,” Few said. “It was a defensive battle in the first half and we couldn’t find a way to stop anybody in the second half.

“We’ve been putting together a really strong year on the defensive end, and that second half was just not how we’ve been playing. In fact, I think we’ve had our best defensive field-goal percentage in 10 years.”

OU sizzled at 65 percent (13 for 20) from the field in the second half, including 62.5 percent (5 for 8) from 3-point range.

The Sooners also outrebounded the Bulldogs 38-29 for the game.

“I don’t want to take anything away from them, but when they’re getting point-blank lay-ins …” Few said. “We weren’t guarding ball screens right. We weren’t making the right shift in our zone. We weren’t communicating. And you know what, they stepped up and hit some shots. They deserve a lot of credit for it. Those kids got hot from 3(-point range). They got stops in the end and we didn’t.”

A crowd of 13,135 inside the Ford Center watched the first meeting between the two schools. OU now owes Gonzaga a return game in Washington.

Pargo nearly was able to single-handedly upend the Sooners, finishing with a career-high 28 points and handing out six assists.

“I never worry about him in a big game like this,” Few said of Pargo, who was playing in the same arena where older brother Jannero played for the relocated New Orleans Hornets last season. “He’s got a big heart, a lot of confidence and he’s fearless. Usually, the bigger the game, the better he is. It would have been nice if he had some company tonight, and I think that’s the most disappointing thing.”

Pargo was the only GU player to score in double figures.

Junior guard Micah Downs, who had seven staples inserted into the back of his head after getting cut in the first half, was next with eight points.

Pargo played the full 40 minutes despite coming off a recently hyperextended knee.

“My knee’s perfectly fine,” said Pargo, who was named to the all-tournament team.

During a 2 1/2-minute stretch late in the second half. Pargo scored all 12 of his team’s points.

“It’s just one of those moments when you feel like you can’t miss a shot,” Pargo said. “In those moments, you even push it to see how far you can get it.”

Pargo wound end up missing his final three field-goal attempts, however, including a potential game-tying 3-pointer that was blocked by OU guard Austin Johnson with 4.5 seconds left.

“The guy made a great play, you know,” Pargo said. “I should have done something else.”

Few said of the sequence, “I think he should have probably brought it a little bit faster, tried to shake the guy. He said he was comfortable all night and tried to shoot a comfortable shot. The kid made a nice block.”

GU junior forward Josh Heytvelt, who had foot surgery Nov. 12, played for the first time this season. He had five points and a rebound in 15 minutes.

“I had high hopes and didn’t come out and play very good,” Heytvelt said. “I didn’t feel like I came out and played the way I could play. I missed a couple of bunny layins and didn’t get many rebounds.”

Gonzaga will not return to practice until Wednesday, when it will begin to prepare for the Battle in Seattle against Tennessee on Dec. 29.

Both teams are now 9-3.

With the victory, the Sooners improved to 51-12 in the tournament staged roughly 25 miles from campus.

“They’re physical. Really, really physical. Really tough,” Few said of OU.

The Sooners were led by senior center Longar Longar with 16 points. Freshman forward Blake Griffin had 15 points and 14 rebounds. Guard Tony Crocker added 15 points.