Oklahoma unveils sneak peek into basketball locker room after joining SEC

Oklahoma is officially part of the SEC, which means the entire campus is going to get a bit of a makeover. That includes the locker rooms.

On July 1, the Sooners men’s basketball team unveiled a first look at their locker room featuring their new conference logo in Oklahoma red and cream alongside the classic OU and Jordan brand logos.

As the SEC slogan goes, it simply means more. Oklahoma says they’re made for more.

Sooners join SEC alongside archives Texasmeaning the hardwood version of the Red River Shootout will continue.

Oklahoma’s first SEC opponents have also already been announced. The Sooners will host the The Kentucky Wildcats, LSU Tigers, Mississippi State Bulldogs, Missouri Tigers, South Carolina Fighting Cocks, Tennessee VolunteersTexas, Texas A&M Aggies And Vanderbilt CommodoresThey will travel to play the Alabama Red Tide, The Arkansas Razorbacks, Auburn Tigers, Florida Gators, Georgia Bulldogs, Ole Miss RebelsMissouri, Texas and Texas A&M.

It’s worth noting that the Sooners are 13-2 since the 2018-19 season against SEC opponents and a combined 421-194 record against the current SEC field.

Conference play will run from Jan. 4-March 8 before Oklahoma plays in its first-ever SEC Tournament from March 12-16 in Nashville.

During the Sooners’ final season in the Big 12, Oklahoma finished 8-10 in conference play and finished 20-12 overall. Many considered the Big 12 to be one of the toughest conferences in the country, as eight different teams finished with a .500 conference record or better. The Sooners ultimately earned a 9th seed in the Big 12 Tournament, where they subsequently lost to University of Toronto 77-70 in the first round to end the Big 12 era in Norman.

Oklahoma hasn’t made the NCAA Tournament since 2020-21, entering the fourth year of the Porter Moser era. Overall, the Sooners are 54-45 under their current head coach. Former OU coach Lon Kruger sent Oklahoma to the postseason in seven of his 10 seasons at the helm. That included six appearances in seven years that saw the Sooners reach the national semifinals in the 2015-16 season, the fifth in program history.

Given that OU’s 20-win season a year ago was the best under Moser, the Sooners will look to return to a similar path once they enter the SEC this season. With new opponents, new venues and new rivalries, Oklahoma fans will have no shortage of excitement in 2024.