by OU Athletics Communications
NORMAN – The Oklahoma women’s basketball team took the lead in the first quarter and dominated Mississippi State in Norman on Saturday, knocking off the Bulldogs 94-63 as part of the Big 12/SEC Challenge.
The 31-point win marks the largest non-conference margin of victory over a Power Five opponent since a 39-point win vs. Oregon on Nov. 24, 2012. With the victory over Mississippi State, the Sooners (7-1) extended their now four-game winning streak.
“Today was such a team effort, especially defensively, and I’m just really proud of the way we played,” head coach Jennie Baranczyk said. “I thought we did such a great job playing team defense. Mississippi State has some great players and they do an incredible job of getting into the paint, but our team defense was really great tonight and it showed.”
OU once again got off to a hot start early, opening the game on an 8-2 run before the Bulldogs (6-2) settled in and took their only lead of the game, an 11-10 advantage with 6:48 left in the first quarter. The Sooners then closed the opening frame with a 17-11 run to take a six-point lead into the second.
In the second quarter, the Sooners poured it on by not allowing a Mississippi State bucket for a three-minute stretch that was part of a more significant 18-3 run to take control of the game. Oklahoma entered the half with a commanding 22-point lead.
With a large lead in hand, OU locked in defensively in the third and fourth quarters, holding MSU to 34.4% from the field in the second half and just 27.8% from behind the arc over the last 20 minutes. As a result, the Sooners extended their lead to 33 late in the fourth quarter and secured a 31-point win when the final whistle blew.
Oklahoma’s senior trio of Ana Llanusa, Taylor Robertson and Madi Williams continued to show why they all rank in the top-100 nationally in scoring. After scoring 25 points at SMU on Tuesday, Llanusa poured in 21 points to notch back-to-back 20-point games for the first time since she scored 25 and 30 vs. UAB and Missouri State in November 2019. Robertson led the Sooners in scoring with 22 points, making six 3-pointers and setting a new school record for consecutive games with 5-plus made 3-pointers, which now sits at five. On Saturday, Madi Williams was an enforcer for Baranczyk’s team, securing her third double-double in four games with 13 points and 11 rebounds.
Kelbie Washington (Choctaw) reached double-digits points for the first time as a Sooner, hitting a pair of free throws late in the game to get to 10 points. Skylar Vann returned to the floor and scored nine points while grabbing seven boards off the bench. Liz Scott added nine points of her own on 4-of-6 from the field.
As a team, OU shot 50.8% (33-of-65) for the second game in a row and made 10 3-pointers led by Robertson’s six makes. The Sooners won the turnover battle, forcing 23 and surrendering 18. Baranczyk’s team held a slim advantage on the glass, too, outrebounding Mississippi State 40-39 in the win. The Bulldogs shot 36.8% from the floor in the game, the third-lowest percentage for an OU opponent this season.
