OU women's basketball falls short vs. Texas in SEC opener

OU women’s basketball falls short vs. Texas in SEC opener | 3 takeaways

Posted by Admin January 3, 2025 Basketball

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NORMAN — Thursday’s SEC opener between No. 10 OU and No. 6 Texas looked like a heavyweight fight.

The teams traded shots, traded words and went back and forth.

In the end, though, the Longhorns were too much, winning the fourth quarter to beat the Sooners 80-73 at Lloyd Noble Center.

The first-ever SEC game for the longtime rivals was also the first-ever meeting between the two as top-10 opponents.

It was also the first top-10 matchup at Lloyd Noble Center since Feb. 21, 2009, when the then-No. 2 Sooners beat No, 5 Baylor.

There was plenty of electricity in the air at Lloyd Noble Center, with a season-best crowd of 8.039 fans, which included Danielle Robinson — the star of that 2009 game — and Sherri Coale sitting courtside.

The loss snapped the Sooners’ 16-game home winning streak.

The Sooners went nearly eight minutes in the second and third quarter without hitting from the field, missing 10 consecutive shots.

But OU still managed to stay within striking distance, thanks to seven free throws during that span.

The game was tied heading into the fourth but Texas scored the first six of the quarter and the Sooners trailed the rest of the way.

The Sooners (12-2, 0-1 SEC) open their SEC road schedule Sunday when they take on No. 13 Tennessee at 2 p.m. in Knoxville.

Here are three takeaways from OU’s loss:

The game was chippy at times earlier, but things boiled over a bit in the final minute of the third quarter.

OU’s Skylar Vann and Texas’ Kyla Oldacre battled for the ball under the Texas basket.

As Oldacre wrested the ball away, the Sooners’ Beatrice Culliton was knocked to the floor by Oldacre, who bent down briefly toward Culliton.

OU’s Payton Verhulst and Reyna Scott chased after Oldacre, and Texas’ Madison Booker pushed Scott away from Oldacre.

After a delay of 12 minutes while officials reviewed the play, Oldacre was called for a technical foul while Verhulst, Scott and Booker were all called for intentional fouls.

The teams combined for 54 fouls, with Texas called for 29.

The Sooners came into the game averaging 9.2 3-pointers per game, No. 19 nationally.

But OU had a season-low two 3-pointers against the Longhorns, shooting just 12.5% (2 of 16) from beyond the arc.

Verhulst, who came into the night shooting 39.5% on 3-pointers, was just 1 of 11 from beyond the arc.

The Sooners missed all six of their fourth-quarter 3-pointers.

Verhulst finished with a game-high 23 points.

The Sooners got off to a hot start, reeling off a 20-8 run to end the first quarter and take a 26-17 lead into the second.

OU did much of their damage, especially at the start of the run, with Raegan Beers off the floor.

In two stints without Beers, the second coming after Beers picked up her second foul with just more than three minutes remaining in the quarter, the Sooners outscored Texas 17-9.

OU built its lead early by taking care of the ball, turning the ball over just three times in the first while forcing five Longhorns’ turnovers.

Liz Scott scored seven of her 14 in the first quarter. Scott’s scoring output tied her season high.

What channel is Oklahoma vs Texas on today?

TV channel: ESPN2

Livestream: ESPN+ (here’s how to stream it live)

Oklahoma vs Texas will be broadcasted on ESPN2. It will also be streamed on ESPN+.

Watch Oklahoma vs Texas live with ESPN+

What time does OU play today? Oklahoma vs Texas time

Date: Thursday, Jan. 2
Start time: 8 p.m. CT

The Oklahoma vs Texas game starts at 8 p.m. from Lloyd Noble Center in Norman.

Oklahoma women’s basketball schedule 2024

All times are Central Standard Time (CST)

Monday, Nov. 4:Oklahoma 76, Southern 44
Friday, Nov. 8: Oklahoma 95, Virginia 51
Wednesday, Nov. 13:Oklahoma 122, Western Carolina 56
Tuesday, Nov. 19: Oklahoma 79, Wichita State 49
Friday, Nov. 22: Oklahoma 88, UNLV 58
Monday, Nov. 25:Oklahoma 85, DePaul 62
Wednesday, Nov. 27:Duke 109, Oklahoma 99 (OT)
Wednesday, Dec. 4:Oklahoma 78, Louisville 72
Sunday, Dec. 8:Oklahoma 110, Alabama State 46
Sunday, Dec. 15:Oklahoma 94, Oral Roberts 54
Tuesday, Dec. 17:Oklahoma 72, Michigan 62
Sunday, Dec. 22:Oklahoma 111, Omaha 65
Sunday, Dec. 29:Oklahoma 82, New Mexico State 64
Thursday, Jan. 2: vs. Texas at 8 p.m. (ESPN2)
Sunday, Jan. 5: at Tennessee at 2 p.m. (ESPN)
Thursday, Jan. 9: at Mississippi State at 6:30 p.m. (SEC Network+)
Sunday, Jan. 12: vs. Texas A&M at 4 p.m. (SEC Network)
Thursday, Jan. 16: vs. Missouri at 6 p.m. (SEC Network+)
Sunday, Jan. 19: at South Carolina at 2 p.m. (ESPN or ESPN2)
Sunday, Jan. 26: vs. Georgia at 1:30 p.m. (SEC Network+)
Thursday, Jan. 30: at LSU at 6 p.m. (ESPN2)
Sunday, Feb. 2: vs Kentucky at 3 p.m. (SEC Network)
Thursday, Feb. 6: at Ole Miss at 6:30 p.m. (SEC Network+)
Monday, Feb. 10: vs. Auburn at 7 p.m. (SEC Network)
Sunday, Feb. 16: at Missouri at 1 p.m. (SEC Network)
Thursday, Feb. 20: vs. Vanderbilt at 6 p.m. (SEC Network+)
Sunday, Feb. 23: at Arkansas at 2 p.m. (SEC Network+)
Thursday, Feb. 27: at Florida at 6 p.m. (SEC Network+)
Sunday, March 2: vs. Alabama at 1:30 p.m. (SEC Network+)

Oklahoma vs Texas women’s basketball highlights

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