Grill scores 20 as No. 25 Iowa State tops Oklahoma 63-60
AP
Jan 04, 2023
NORMAN, Okla. (AP) Caleb Grill scored 20 points and No. 25 Iowa State Cyclones held on to beat Oklahoma Sooners 63-60 on Wednesday night.
Osun Osunniyi added 12 points and eight rebounds for the Cyclones (11-2, 2-0 Big 12).
Grill shot 5 of 9 on 3-pointers, hitting a big one that put the Cyclones up 61-58 with 33 seconds remaining.
''I thought we lost Grill,'' Oklahoma coach Porter Moser said. ''It was part of the game plan and he hunts 3s and he did it. ... He got five 3s and he got fouled on a 3. He was a key to the game and we didn't get that done.''
Iowa State coach T.J. Otzelberger thought Grill impacted the game from the beginning.
''He starts out the game and he's got it going, it really spaces out the floor and gives our guys confidence,'' Otzelberger said. ''It's a huge weapon for us because you've got to pay so much attention to him, it's hard to switch things and do things because you don't want to let him have any space.''
Jalen Hill scored 16 and Tanner Groves had 15 points and eight rebounds for the Sooners (9-5, 0-2). Oklahoma was coming off a 70-69 home loss to No. 6 Texas.
Moser wants to keep his team more motivated than frustrated.
''It's got to start with me,'' he said. ''If I look frustrated, they're going to be. So it starts with me. The only thing I know how to do is to stay up all night watching Texas Tech, try to figure out how to beat Texas Tech, come in tomorrow with a great game plan, with an energy level.''
Oklahoma's Grant Sherfield, who was averaging 18.3 points per game, finished with four on 1-for-7 shooting.
''They were denying Grant the ball,'' Moser said. ''And he's earned that. That's what happens. You know, we were trying to deny Grill. I mean, you've got to work.''
Iowa State led 61-60 late but turned the ball over on an inbounds pass with 7.5 seconds remaining. Oklahoma turned it right back over with 6.5 seconds to play. Osunniyi hit two free throws with 5.4 seconds left to make it 63-60, and Groves missed an off-balance 3-pointer at the buzzer.
Iowa State made nine of its first 14 field goal attempts and jumped out to a 22-5 advantage in the first 7 1/2 minutes.
Oklahoma rallied, and a 3-pointer by Bijan Cortes tied the game at 25. Hill's baseline jumper gave the Sooners a 27-25 lead with about three minutes remaining in the first half. It was the final basket of a 20-0 run that lasted more than nine minutes.
Oklahoma went the entire stretch with Sherfield on the bench.
''I thought the first half was a tale of two stories,'' Moser said. ''It was the story of one group that defended as poor as a team that I've seen defend. And then we made some subs and we had some energy. And then we flipped it.''
The score was tied 29-all at the break, and the game was close throughout the second half.
Otzelberger expected the Sooners to make it a game, even after Iowa State's fast start.
''They are a team with a really good spirit and they're going to fight back and they're going to continue to,'' Otzelberger said. ''Every time we threw a punch, they counterpunched, and we were fortunate just to throw enough and to get enough stops there down the stretch to find a way to come out with the W.''
BIG PICTURE
Iowa State: The Cyclones refocused after squandering their big first-half lead. They made nine of 11 free throws in the second half to help seal the win.
Oklahoma: The Sooners hung tough despite Sherfield's off night. He had scored in double figures the first 13 games this season.
UP NEXT
Iowa State: A visit to No. 17 TCU on Saturday.
Oklahoma: Plays at Texas Tech on Saturday.
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1st Half
IAST
Cyclones
29
OKLA
Sooners
29
Time
Team
Play
Score
20:00
Osun Osunniyi vs. Tanner Groves (Jaren Holmes gains possession)
19:43
+2
Osun Osunniyi makes two point layup
2-0
19:25
Tanner Groves turnover (back court violation)
19:06
+2
Osun Osunniyi makes two point layup
4-0
19:06
Tanner Groves shooting foul (Osun Osunniyi draws the foul)
19:06
Osun Osunniyi misses regular free throw 1 of 1
19:06
Milos Uzan defensive rebound
18:57
Jalen Hill turnover (traveling)
18:36
Tamin Lipsey misses two point layup
18:34
Tamin Lipsey offensive rebound
18:26
+2
Tamin Lipsey makes two point layup (Jaren Holmes assists)
6-0
18:11
+2
Jacob Groves makes two point layup (Tanner Groves assists)
6-2
18:11
Tamin Lipsey shooting foul (Jacob Groves draws the foul)
18:11
+1
Jacob Groves makes regular free throw 1 of 1
6-3
17:57
+3
Osun Osunniyi makes three point jump shot (Jaren Holmes assists)
9-3
17:43
Jacob Groves misses three point jump shot
17:41
Gabe Kalscheur defensive rebound
17:25
Osun Osunniyi misses two point jump shot
17:23
Milos Uzan defensive rebound
17:08
Osun Osunniyi blocks Grant Sherfield's two point jump shot
17:06
Jaren Holmes defensive rebound
16:54
Gabe Kalscheur misses three point jump shot
16:50
Cyclones offensive rebound
16:43
Jaren Holmes misses two point layup
16:41
Jalen Hill defensive rebound
16:28
Jacob Groves misses three point jump shot
16:26
Cyclones defensive rebound
16:15
+2
Jaren Holmes makes two point layup
11-3
15:52
Milos Uzan misses three point jump shot
15:50
Robert Jones defensive rebound
15:26
+2
Gabe Kalscheur makes two point jump shot
13-3
15:10
+2
Grant Sherfield makes two point jump shot (Sam Godwin assists)
13-5
14:45
+3
Caleb Grill makes three point jump shot (Jaren Holmes assists)
16-5
14:34
Jaren Holmes personal foul (Milos Uzan draws the foul)