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OU finds puzzling struggles, rallies late to put Mustangs away
For most of Friday evening inside Lloyd Noble Center, the 21st-ranked Oklahoma women adhered to their template.
Able to score in bunches, they turned a four-point edge 5:36 before the half into a 16-point edge by the half and that double- digit advantage lasted into the fourth quarter. Indeed, with 9:31 remaining, the Sooners still led by 12.
OU appeared to be playing reasonable defense and was getting points from multiple sources. And then, for no good reason, the bottom dropped out.
Though the Sooners’ ultimate 87-75 victory over SMU may look just fine in the boxscore, it wasn’t.
Instead, OU had to rally late to win comfortably, even surviving two defensive possessions in which a Mustang 3-pointer could have tied the game.
“I don’t know that we guarded well the whole game,” coach Sherri Coale said.
Good thing OU knows how to score those points.
Converted senior shooting guard Gabbi Ortiz led OU with 20 points, hitting 6 of 14 shots and 5 of 11 from 3-point range.
“It’s been good, I am ready to roll, it’s senior season,” Ortiz said. “I love playing with these girls and the work is paying off.”
Quietly, sixth-year graduate guard Maddie Manning filled the boxscore, finishing with 18 points, eight rebounds and five assists against two turnovers.
Senior center Viennese Pierre-Louis added 14 points despite foul trouble that limited her to 17 minutes and freshman guard Ana Llanusa chipped in 12.
All of that was plenty good, yet it was the lack of defense that stuck with Coale.
“We have to guard people,” she said. “We can’t give up 75 points on our home floor.”
Also, it was that lack of defense that forced the Sooners to execute on both ends of the floor to close out the game.
Two free throws from SMU’s McKenzie Adams brought the Mustangs within 67-64 before the two teams traded four straight empty possessions.
Then Manning hit one of two three throws, the Sooners got a stop at the other end, and Manning drove and dished, earning a layup for junior post Ijeoma Odigmbe that put OU up 70-64.
SMU answered that basket, but the Sooners kept coming, pushing the lead back to 10 on a natural three-point play from Manning, who was fouled on her way to hitting a driving left-handed layup.
“[Maddie] was really a boss for that period of time,” Coale said. “That’s what gave us a little bit of a cushion and … led to us being able to hang one and win.”
Adams led all scorers with 25 points, though it took her 27 shots from the field to do it. She made eight and finished 7 of 8 from the free-throw line.
Kiara Perry and Ariana Whitfield both finished with 13 points for the Mustangs.
The victory sets OU up for three road games in the space of a week, beginning Tuesday night at Colorado State.
From there, the Sooners are at Oregon Nov. 25 and Little Rock Nov. 28.
For most of Friday evening inside Lloyd Noble Center, the 21st-ranked Oklahoma women adhered to their template.
Able to score in bunches, they turned a four-point edge 5:36 before the half into a 16-point edge by the half and that double- digit advantage lasted into the fourth quarter. Indeed, with 9:31 remaining, the Sooners still led by 12.
OU appeared to be playing reasonable defense and was getting points from multiple sources. And then, for no good reason, the bottom dropped out.
Though the Sooners’ ultimate 87-75 victory over SMU may look just fine in the boxscore, it wasn’t.
Instead, OU had to rally late to win comfortably, even surviving two defensive possessions in which a Mustang 3-pointer could have tied the game.
“I don’t know that we guarded well the whole game,” coach Sherri Coale said.
Good thing OU knows how to score those points.
Converted senior shooting guard Gabbi Ortiz led OU with 20 points, hitting 6 of 14 shots and 5 of 11 from 3-point range.
“It’s been good, I am ready to roll, it’s senior season,” Ortiz said. “I love playing with these girls and the work is paying off.”
Quietly, sixth-year graduate guard Maddie Manning filled the boxscore, finishing with 18 points, eight rebounds and five assists against two turnovers.
Senior center Viennese Pierre-Louis added 14 points despite foul trouble that limited her to 17 minutes and freshman guard Ana Llanusa chipped in 12.
All of that was plenty good, yet it was the lack of defense that stuck with Coale.
“We have to guard people,” she said. “We can’t give up 75 points on our home floor.”
Also, it was that lack of defense that forced the Sooners to execute on both ends of the floor to close out the game.
Two free throws from SMU’s McKenzie Adams brought the Mustangs within 67-64 before the two teams traded four straight empty possessions.
Then Manning hit one of two three throws, the Sooners got a stop at the other end, and Manning drove and dished, earning a layup for junior post Ijeoma Odigmbe that put OU up 70-64.
SMU answered that basket, but the Sooners kept coming, pushing the lead back to 10 on a natural three-point play from Manning, who was fouled on her way to hitting a driving left-handed layup.
“[Maddie] was really a boss for that period of time,” Coale said. “That’s what gave us a little bit of a cushion and … led to us being able to hang one and win.”
Adams led all scorers with 25 points, though it took her 27 shots from the field to do it. She made eight and finished 7 of 8 from the free-throw line.
Kiara Perry and Ariana Whitfield both finished with 13 points for the Mustangs.
The victory sets OU up for three road games in the space of a week, beginning Tuesday night at Colorado State.
From there, the Sooners are at Oregon Nov. 25 and Little Rock Nov. 28.
