by NORMAN – All 10 Sooners found the score sheet and Landry Allen notched her first career double-double as OU ran away from Grambling State in Norman on Friday, defeating the Lady Tigers 103-69.
Oklahoma (6-2) buried 14 3-pointers en route to the second-highest scoring output under third-year head coach Jennie Baranczyk to snap a two-game skid and return to the win column.
“That was a really fun game for us and I think for our fans, too,” Baranczyk said. “Grambling State is a good basketball team and they play a really fun style of basketball, and I thought that they played so hard tonight. I’m proud of the way we rebounded and shared the ball, but I’m most proud of our balance. We had every one of our players play big minutes tonight and I thought they were tremendous.”
After Grambling State (3-4) opened the night with the game’s first bucket, OU opened an early eight-point lead before the Lady Tigers used their strongest run of the game, a 7-0 sprint over three minutes, to take their final lead of the contest. A Skylar Vann free throw tied the game at 13 apiece with 3:46 left in the opening frame and the Sooners never looked back. OU outscored GSU by five in the first and 13 in the second quarter to hold a commanding 55-37 advantage at the break.
Powered by Kiersten Johnson’s career-best four blocks and the season’s largest rebounding margin (+23), the Sooners’ lead ballooned in the second half. Seven different Sooners scored in the third quarter as OU claimed a 77-51 lead entering the final quarter. A final burst of offensive firepower sent OU across the century mark as the Crimson and Cream finished off the 34-point, 103-69 win. It marked the seventh time in three seasons that the Sooners eclipsed 100 points, the most in the Big 12 and fifth-most nationally.
Aubrey Joens’ season-high five 3-pointers led to a 2023-best 19 points to lead all scorers. The senior from Iowa City added eight rebounds and an assist in her strongest outing of the season. Skylar Vann nearly secured her first double-double of the year, posting 16 points and nine boards on 50% shooting before fouling out in the fourth quarter. Landry Allen, a product of Tuttle, Okla., was sensational off the bench, notching the first double-double of her career with 11 points, 12 rebounds and one steal.
Allen’s double-double made her and fellow freshman Sahara Williams the second OU freshman pair to post double-doubles within their first 10 games in the last decade, joining Nevaeh Tot and Skylar Vann, who did so when they each posted a double-double on Dec. 29, 2020, vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff. Williams already has two double-doubles in her freshman campaign.
Sophomore center Beatrice Culliton got her first career start, scoring six points without missing a shot and adding six boards in a career-high 20 minutes. Nevaeh Tot poured in a season-high 16 points while dishing out four assists compared to just one turnover.
OU shot 47% (36-77) and held GSU to 34%, improving to 35-2 under Baranczyk when the Sooners hold their opponent under 40% shooting. Oklahoma made 38% of its 3-pointers, hitting 14 on Friday night, one shy of its high with Baranczyk as head coach.
