Sooners Lose Tough Contest To No. 1 Michigan State

The Oklahoma men's basketball team suffered its first loss of the season as it fell to No. 1 Michigan State 87-76 Saturday night in the title game of the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic played in the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y.

Behind a career-high 32 points from Cameron Clark, the Sooners held their own against the Spartans as they put together a comeback late in the ball game.

OU led by as many as 11 points midway through the first half but trailed the Spartans 45-31 at the break. In the second half, the Sooners were down by 18 at 51-33 but used a 12-0 run to cut the deficit to four, the closest they would be in the rest of the game.

The Sooners (4-1) shot 43.1 percent (25-of-58) from the floor, 23.5 percent (4-of-17) from 3-point range and 73.3 percent (22-of-30) from the free throw line.

Mount Vernon, N.Y., native Isaiah Cousins added 15 points for OU, while Buddy Hield scored 13 points on 6-of-12 shooting. Clark led the Sooners in rebounds with seven, and Hield grabbed six. Freshman Jordan Woodard recorded seven assists, tying his career high.

Keith Appling was the leading scorer for Michigan State (6-0) with 27 points on 8-of-12 from the floor. Gary Harris made 21 points, and Branden Dawson recorded a double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds.