By the time Oklahoma left Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum on Tuesday night, the scoreboard told one story.
The floor told another.
Yes, the Sooners walked away with an 86–68 road win. Yes, they shot lights-out in the second half. Yes, six players reached double figures.
But the reason Wake Forest never truly threatened late had less to do with Oklahoma catching fire — and everything to do with how thoroughly the Sooners wore the Demon Deacons down.
This wasn’t a shooting win.
This was a force win.
From the moment the second half began, Wake Forest looked smaller, slower, and more overwhelmed on its home floor. Oklahoma rebounded harder, moved bodies in the paint, finished through contact, and imposed a pace that Wake simply could not sustain.
The collapse did not come suddenly.
It came inevitably.
The first half was ugly and equal.
Both teams shot in the mid-30s.
Both teams committed turnovers.
Both teams hacked at each other.
Both teams looked uncomfortable.
Wake Forest limped into the locker room down two points at halftime and still had a game.
Then Oklahoma came out and buried them with something Wake had no answer for:
Strength.
The Sooners scored on their first four possessions of the second half. They stopped settling for jumpers. They attacked the rim. They punished Wake for every late rotation and every lost assignment.
What had been a two-point game became a double-digit lead in a matter of minutes.
And from there, Wake was done.
Oklahoma outscored the Demon Deacons 49–33 after halftime. The final margin felt even larger than that. Wake never landed a run that mattered. Every push was answered immediately. Every surge was swallowed by Oklahoma’s physicality.
This didn’t feel like a comeback.
This felt like an eviction.
If you want to pinpoint the exact reason the balance of power shifted, start inside.
Mohamed Wague delivered the most influential performance of the night — not because of his points, but because of his presence.
Fourteen rebounds.
Eleven points.
Infinite disruption.
Wake Forest never established control in the paint. Wague erased second-chance opportunities, finished through traffic, and owned the glass on both ends. His career-high rebounding performance didn’t just win possessions.
It broke Wake’s will.
Tae Davis did his damage from everywhere.
Eighteen points.
Repeated attacks in the lane.
Relentless movement without the ball.
When Wake tried to collapse inside, Davis punished them on cuts, slips, and quick finishes. When they stayed home, he muscled through defenders for finishes that set the tone for the entire half.
Oklahoma’s two bigs didn’t just outplay Wake Forest’s interior.
They intimidated it.
Statistically, the headline difference was shooting.
Oklahoma: 61.5% in the second half.
Wake Forest: 33%.
But that gap didn’t come from hot hands.
It came from better shots.
Oklahoma carved Wake open with clean structure:
- Early paint touches
- Offensive rebounds
- Kickouts into rhythm shots
- Cuts behind defenders
- Second chances turned into demoralizing baskets
Wake Forest, on the other hand, settled.
Contested jumpers.
Rushed threes.
Late-clock prayers.
Oklahoma didn’t just shoot better — they generated better offense.
And the difference between those two things decides games like this.
If you want one unsung hero from this win, pick Jadon Jones.
The box score says 11 points.
The game film says far more.
Jones scored nine of his points in the second half. More importantly, he was a defensive menace. He denied space, fought through screens, and forced Wake’s guards into uncomfortable possessions that repeatedly collapsed into desperation shots.
Wake Forest did not find a rhythm because Jones refused to allow one.
That matters.
Jones also played with control and balance offensively. He didn’t force his role. He took what the defense gave him. And when the moment was there, he finished.
For a player making his impactful debut season with Oklahoma after missing last year with injury, this was a breakthrough performance.
It won’t be remembered in headlines.
But it will be remembered by coaches.
Nijel Pack scored 13 points.
But more importantly, he didn’t hijack the game.
In a contest where the offense surged late, Pack played within it. He made shots when they were there. He passed when they weren’t. He moved defenders instead of daring them.
That mattered.
When Oklahoma struggled earlier this season, they searched for answers through speed and scoring bursts. Against Wake Forest, they trusted the system.
Pack didn’t try to be a one-man rescue.
He let the team breathe.
And the team ran away.
Yes, Oklahoma improved to 6–2.
Yes, this is another power-conference win.
Yes, this matters in March.
But the more important takeaway isn’t the resume.
It’s the statement.
Oklahoma didn’t survive this game.
They seized it.
They beat Wake Forest on its home floor by:
- Winning the rebound battle 42–24
- Owning the interior
- Wearing down defenders
- Dictating pacing
- Finishing through contact
- Playing through six double-digit scorers
This wasn’t an upset.
It was a takeover.
Wake Forest didn’t fall because Oklahoma got lucky.
They fell because Oklahoma got physical.
This team is discovering something about itself — not just that it can score, but that it can impose itself.
Shooting wins games.
Force ends them.
And on Tuesday night, Oklahoma did exactly that.
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