Associated Press

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Surprisingly, red-hot Jeremiah Fears wasn’t the first playmaking option with the game on the line for Oklahoma Wednesday night.

But the 6-foot-2 freshman made sure he was the best option.

Fears knocked down an off-balance 30-foot jumper and drew a foul to complete an improbable four-point play with 11.5 seconds left to give the No. 14 Sooners an 87-86 victory over the 24th . place to give Michigan.

Fears finished with 30 points as the Sooners topped Charlotte with a win and remained undefeated, leaving Wolverines fans in disbelief.

“It was a great experience and I’m excited,” Fears said.

Trailing 86-83 with 30 seconds left, the Sooners brought the ball up the floor and tried to set up a play for Brycen Goodine – who had just two points in the game – but was double-teamed in the corner.

Goodine was handed off from the trap to his teammate Sam Godwin. At that point, as part of the game plan, Fears charged around the top of the key, received a shovel pass from Godwin, picked up a dribble and knocked down a difficult shot for a right-hander as it flew left.

A big achievement for a big player who came into the game with an average of 16.7 points.

As he lay on his back on the hardwood after the foul, Fears clenched both clenched fists near his chest as teammates ran over to help him get up and celebrate. Fears, who was 8 of 12 from the field and 11 of 13 from the foul line, then calmly sank the free throw.

“Just to be clear, it was a bullet play and we had Jeremiah coming back on top for the second time (look at that),” Sooners coach Porter Moser said. “Brycen did a good job because we do that a lot in training. They kind of threw two guys at him, and then Jeremiah came back.”

Michigan (8-3) missed a 3-point attempt on its final possession and the Sooners, who trailed by 11 points in the second half, were able to secure the win despite trailing by three points and losing the ball with 30 seconds left no longer had.

“This team can take a hit and bounce back,” Moser said. “That is the sign of a resilient team. There are so many good teams in college basketball that you’re in a better position to take a hit.”

Fouling a 3-point shot is one of the biggest mistakes in basketball, and it’s even worse when the player makes the shot.

Michigan coach Dusty May has to deal with this on the flight back to Ann Arbor.

May said he talked to his players in the huddle before the game about “going from 1 to 5” and taking away the 3-pointer in the huddle before kickoff.

The Wolverines chose not to foul earlier to avoid the 3-point shot, although the Sooners were hot behind the arc all night, making 12 of 25 attempts.

“We defended the first action really well,” May said of the play. “And then something like that happens in basketball. I didn’t see exactly where he was shooting from. But he sprinted to the sideline, made contact and knocked it down. Obviously it’s not our intention to foul a 3-pointer, but things happen.”

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