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COLLEGE STATION, Texas — Shaina Pellington’s gray expression matched the concrete hallway she stood in deep within Texas A& M’s Reed Arena, just moments removed from Oklahoma’s last stand.
But following OU’s 90-79 firstround NCAA women’s tournament loss Friday to DePaul, the guard’s grit stood out from her sadness.
The Big 12 freshman of the year shot three 3-pointers this season and missed each one. Teams won’t be able to play off her next year, once she fixes her jump shot, she says.
“I promise you,” Pellington added.
Following a lukewarm season that ended with 16 victories and 15 losses, OU is left reviewing the lows and highs, as well as the promise that next season always brings.
The Sooners’ schedule was ranked No. 2 most difficult nationally for much of the year, and they attacked it with a roster that had been trimmed to nine players after two players transferred during last offseason.
OU coach Sherri Coale compared the Sooners’ loss to DePaul to their entire season, full of short-lived spirited moments. The highs were always fleeting, and her players were always better with their backs against the wall.
They found ways to score despite limited bench production, behind an All-Big 12 center in Vionise Pierre-Louis, plus veterans Maddie Manning and Gabbi Ortiz. Two future stars emerged in freshmen Pellington and Ana Llanusa, and all five starters averaged 12 or more points, something no other Power 5 school did this season.
But defensively, a stopper — or two — never emerged as Coale had hoped in the preseason. OU’s 72.7 points allowed per game ranked ninth in the Big 12, and its 3-point field goal percentage defense (35.4 percent) ranked last.
The Sooners weren’t aloof about those deficiencies. Defending the 3-point line was their main defensive focus in the season’s final two games, yet they surrendered 22 combined makes.
It made for a puzzling, and of course, sad ending.
As much as Pellington’s improved shooting can help the Sooners moving forward, perimeter defense will surely be a focus as she and Llanusa continue their development.
OU will also add freshman Madison Williams, the nation’s No. 10-ranked high school wing player according to ESPN. The organization ranks Coale’s recruiting class 18th nationally.
Pierre-Louis leaves a major void, which junior Ijeoma Odimgbe and incoming freshmen Nydia Lampkin (6-3) and Aspen Williston (6-4) must fill by committee.
Coale has indicated her future teams will face a similarly brutal schedule as this year’s. Though it was a rocky season, with just one win streak of three games or more, OU made its 19th consecutive NCAA tournament largely because of the difficult non-conference teams it played.
OU had a small army of opposing college coaches campaigning in its favor during, and even after, the Sooners’ final attempt to escape the NCAA bubble.
“If strength of schedule is that important to the committee, you can’t leave Sherri Coale out,” Baylor coach Kim Mulkey said during the Big 12 tournament.
DePaul coach Doug Bruno campaigned for Coale again, even after his team eliminated the Sooners.
“I’m thrilled they earned their way [in],” Bruno said. “I really do believe they did by having the courage to play the teams they played in their non-conference schedule.”
While the Sooners waited anxiously to learn their postseason fate, Coale had a lot of time to think about how she schedules. If her team was left out, would she map an easier route?
Unequivocally, no, she said.
OU wants some things to change next year, whether it’s Pellington developing into a respectful shooter, or Odimgbe becoming an offensive threat, or the team solving the defensive issues that plagued it as a whole.
What the Sooners won’t change, Coale promises, is who they play.
They’ll continue seeking out the best teams, because attractive matchups create optimum exposure for women’s basketball.
“And we gotta get better,” Coale said, “and win more of those games.”
But following OU’s 90-79 firstround NCAA women’s tournament loss Friday to DePaul, the guard’s grit stood out from her sadness.
The Big 12 freshman of the year shot three 3-pointers this season and missed each one. Teams won’t be able to play off her next year, once she fixes her jump shot, she says.
“I promise you,” Pellington added.
Following a lukewarm season that ended with 16 victories and 15 losses, OU is left reviewing the lows and highs, as well as the promise that next season always brings.
The Sooners’ schedule was ranked No. 2 most difficult nationally for much of the year, and they attacked it with a roster that had been trimmed to nine players after two players transferred during last offseason.
OU coach Sherri Coale compared the Sooners’ loss to DePaul to their entire season, full of short-lived spirited moments. The highs were always fleeting, and her players were always better with their backs against the wall.
They found ways to score despite limited bench production, behind an All-Big 12 center in Vionise Pierre-Louis, plus veterans Maddie Manning and Gabbi Ortiz. Two future stars emerged in freshmen Pellington and Ana Llanusa, and all five starters averaged 12 or more points, something no other Power 5 school did this season.
But defensively, a stopper — or two — never emerged as Coale had hoped in the preseason. OU’s 72.7 points allowed per game ranked ninth in the Big 12, and its 3-point field goal percentage defense (35.4 percent) ranked last.
The Sooners weren’t aloof about those deficiencies. Defending the 3-point line was their main defensive focus in the season’s final two games, yet they surrendered 22 combined makes.
It made for a puzzling, and of course, sad ending.
As much as Pellington’s improved shooting can help the Sooners moving forward, perimeter defense will surely be a focus as she and Llanusa continue their development.
OU will also add freshman Madison Williams, the nation’s No. 10-ranked high school wing player according to ESPN. The organization ranks Coale’s recruiting class 18th nationally.
Pierre-Louis leaves a major void, which junior Ijeoma Odimgbe and incoming freshmen Nydia Lampkin (6-3) and Aspen Williston (6-4) must fill by committee.
Coale has indicated her future teams will face a similarly brutal schedule as this year’s. Though it was a rocky season, with just one win streak of three games or more, OU made its 19th consecutive NCAA tournament largely because of the difficult non-conference teams it played.
OU had a small army of opposing college coaches campaigning in its favor during, and even after, the Sooners’ final attempt to escape the NCAA bubble.
“If strength of schedule is that important to the committee, you can’t leave Sherri Coale out,” Baylor coach Kim Mulkey said during the Big 12 tournament.
DePaul coach Doug Bruno campaigned for Coale again, even after his team eliminated the Sooners.
“I’m thrilled they earned their way [in],” Bruno said. “I really do believe they did by having the courage to play the teams they played in their non-conference schedule.”
While the Sooners waited anxiously to learn their postseason fate, Coale had a lot of time to think about how she schedules. If her team was left out, would she map an easier route?
Unequivocally, no, she said.
OU wants some things to change next year, whether it’s Pellington developing into a respectful shooter, or Odimgbe becoming an offensive threat, or the team solving the defensive issues that plagued it as a whole.
What the Sooners won’t change, Coale promises, is who they play.
They’ll continue seeking out the best teams, because attractive matchups create optimum exposure for women’s basketball.
“And we gotta get better,” Coale said, “and win more of those games.”