NORMAN, Okla. – Kevin Bookout scored 19 points and Taj Gray added 18, but No. 8 Oklahoma struggled to put away winless Coppin State in a 57-47 victory on Saturday.
The Sooners (5-1) extended their 19-point halftime lead with an 8-0 run early in the second half. Bookout started the string by putting back Nate Carter’s missed 3-pointer and Carter finished it with a fast-break layup to give Oklahoma a 40-16 edge. In between, Gray hit a pair of free throws and slammed home a two-handed jam.
But the Eagles (0-7), who have yet to play a home game this season, were able to cut into the gap with a 13-2 run featuring nine points from Tywain McKee. Augustine Woodlin’s 3-pointer from the right side pulled Coppin State within 44-30.
Woodlin added another 3-pointer from the same spot and his two free throws trimmed Oklahoma’s lead to 50-38. The Eagles had chances to make it closer, but Woodlin missed a pair of 3-pointers and McKee was called for an offensive foul after stealing an Oklahoma inbounds pass with 2:32 left.
Coppin State got within 55-47 on Michael Norwood’s layup in the final minute.
McKee finished with 19 points to lead Coppin State, Darryl Roberts added 11 and Woodlin scored 10.
Terrell Everett, Oklahoma’s leading scorer with 14 points per game, was held scoreless for the first time in 39 games with the Sooners. He finished 0-for-2 and didn’t attempt a shot in the second half.
Oklahoma moved way ahead with a 23-3 run to close the first half. Michael Neal had two 3-pointers during a stretch of 14 straight points for Oklahoma, and his steal and assist set up Taylor Griffin’s fast-break layup to give the Sooners a 19-6 lead.
Antwan Harrison scored in the lane for Coppin State’s only basket of the first half’s final 15 minutes, and Gray and Bookout then scored Oklahoma’s final nine points of the first half for a 28-9 halftime lead.
The Eagles, who were 3-for-16 in the first half, set a school record for fewest points in the first half of a game. It also was the fewest points Oklahoma had allowed in a half since Arkansas-Pine Bluff scored nine points in the first half of a 94-24 Oklahoma win on Dec. 2, 2003.
The Eagles, who begin their season with 14 straight games away from home, won’t play their first home game until Jan. 14. It’s their first 0-7 start since opening the 1986-87 season with nine straight losses.
AP-ES-12-10-05 1843EST
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