It could be a long season for Porter Moser in Norman. East Texas A&M stunned Oklahoma on Monday night to kick off the 2026-27 campaign. The Lions, who controlled most of the game, held on for a surprising 68-64 victory over the Sooners. It marked their first win over a power conference program in history. The Sooners also closed as 28.5-point favorites. The upset, according to ESPN, is the second biggest in Division I in the last three decades. Eastern Illinois holds the record there after beating Iowa as a 30.5-point underdog in 2022. “The only thing I know what to do is apologize to the fan base and get better,” Moser said, via Colton Sulley of The Oklahoman. “I apologize to every person who came. The things you do in a game like this in basketball that make you win, we did… It wasn’t good enough, and that’s on me.” Oklahoma managed just 25 points in the first half, and made just one field goal in the final four minutes of the first quarter. Meanwhile, the Lions went up 16 points after Mohamed Diakite and Alonzo Dodd hit consecutive 3-pointers as the half ended. Although the Sooners came back down the stretch and Pop Isaacs cut the game to two possessions with 25 seconds left after an and-one layup, that was the closest they got. Tyler Hendricks missed a 3-point attempt that would have put them ahead, and then Bo Aldrich sealed the victory with a pair of free throws in the final seconds for the Lions. Aldrich led the way with 22 points after hitting 8 of 12 field goals. The Lions also shot 11 of 27 from 3-point range, compared to just 5 of 20 for Oklahoma from deep. Isaacs led the Sooners with 15 points and Derrion Reid added 14 points. They were the only two Oklahoma players to reach double figures. The Lions are only in their sixth season of existence this fall. They have never had a winning record and were just 13-20 in each of the last two seasons. They were also picked to finish last in the Southland pre-season poll. Moser, on the other hand, could be in trouble in Norman. He is in his sixth season leading the Sooners this fall. While he has had some impressive moments in his career, including leading Loyola Chicago to the Final Four in 2018, he entered this season with just a 95-75 record at Oklahoma. They have never won an NCAA tournament game under his direction, have been to the tournament just once and finished at the bottom of the SEC standings in both of his seasons in that league. Moser only has one year left on his contract with the Sooners after the 2026-27 season. Oklahoma has a new athletic director, Roger Denny, who now also leads the program. If Moser can’t turn things around quickly and lead the Sooners to the tournament after Monday’s opening loss, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Denny making a change this spring.
