by OU Athletics Communications
NORMAN – The Oklahoma women’s basketball team erased a 10-point deficit to knock off No. 16/17 BYU 99-91 in overtime on Friday night at the Lloyd Noble Center in Norman.
Madi Williams led the way for Oklahoma (9-1) as the senior notched her third straight double-double by scoring 25 points and securing 14 rebounds. Taylor Robertson added 23 points on 6-of-8 shooting, sinking four 3-pointers in the win. Freshman Kelbie Washington (Choctaw) added 8 Points in the contest as well.
The victory over the Cougars (9-1) is Oklahoma’s first home win over a ranked opponent since a 90-68 win over No. 25 LSU on Dec. 7, 2019.
“It was such a fun game and I’m so proud of our team,” head coach Jennie Baranczyk said. “From a grit standpoint, I could not be prouder of our team. BYU is a very, very good basketball team and they played well. Honestly, I am kind of speechless after watching some of those performances.
“The Sooners trailed BYU early in Norman as the Cougars used a 9-0 run in the first quarter to take a 10-point lead. Baranczyk’s team would chip away at that deficit over the next two quarters, cutting it to just two points in the second before finally overcoming the Cougars at the 7:46 mark of the third off a Kennady Tucker layup.
The remainder of regulation featured a back-and-forth affair as the matchup saw six total lead changes. Skylar Vann finished a layup with 49 seconds left in regulation, and the Cougars missed their game-winning shot, sending the Sooners into their first overtime battle of the year.
In the overtime period, BYU took a 91-88 lead off a pair of Lauren Gustin free throws, but a 3-pointer from Williams, a layup from Nevaeh Tot and free throws from Robertson sent the Sooners into the win column. When the dust had settled, OU had closed the game on an 11-0 run over the final 2:47 of play.
As a team, OU shot 42.5% from the field and 44.8% (13-of-29) from behind the arc, compared to BYU’s 40.9% mark from the floor. The Sooners dominated the glass, pulling down 56 rebounds and outrebounding the Cougars by 11. The team’s 56 boards are the most since a 57-rebound performance vs. Prairie View A&M on Nov. 8, 2019.
With the win, Oklahoma owns a six-game winning streak – its longest since an eight-game winning streak in 2015-16.
