Duke Miles scored 29 points on 11 of 17 shooting from the field to lead the host Oklahoma Sooners to an 89-66 victory over Central Arkansas on Sunday afternoon in Norman, Okla.
The 14th-ranked Sooners (12-0) matched their best start to a season since the 2015-16 season when they last advanced to the Final Four. The Bears (3-9) lost for the fifth time in their past six games and have gone 0-5 against Power Four conference opponents so far this season.
Oklahoma never trailed in the game and pulled away in the second half, leading by as many as 28 points.
Central Arkansas kept itself in striking distance until early in the second half. Layne Taylor led the Bears with 16 points and buried a 3-pointer with 16:30 left in the second half to cut Oklahoma’s lead to 54-47.
But Miles, who also had three rebounds and three assists, scored seven of the 10 points on Oklahoma’s ensuing 10-0 run to put the Sooners ahead 64-47 with 12:13 left in the second half and effectively break the game open.
Taylor also had five assists for the Bears, who had three players score in double figures. Elias Cato finished with 13 points and Ben Fox had 12 points.
Sooners star freshman Jeremiah Fears conducted their offense with 19 points and had a team-high five assists as he continued his breakout season. Jalon Moore also had 17 points and five rebounds.
Fears led Oklahoma’s up-tempo attack and executed well in transition as the Sooners finished with 33 fast-break points. Miles was sharp from long distance as well, connecting on 4 of 8 triples as Oklahoma made 10 3-pointers overall. Kobe Elvis also went 3-for-6 from 3-point range for all nine of his points. The Sooners shot 48.5 percent overall and 34.5 percent from deep.
The Sooners will conclude their nonconference schedule next Sunday at home against Prairie View A&M before opening Southeastern Conference play at Alabama on Jan. 4.
Central Arkansas will host Southwestern Christian next Sunday before hosting Eastern Kentucky on Jan. 2 to open Atlantic Sun Conference play.
–Field Level Media
