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Oklahoma Basketball: Men Aren’t the Only Sooner Team Headed to NCAA Tournament

By Chip Rouse

Mar 6, 2016; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Baylor Bears guard Niya Johnson (2) and Oklahoma Sooners guard T
Mar 6, 2016; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Baylor Bears guard Niya Johnson (2) and Oklahoma Sooners guard T /
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Oklahoma basketball has not one but two teams headed to the Big Dance.

Like it or not, most of the attention among Sooner basketball fans has been focused on the Buddy Hield-led men’s team, but the Lady Sooners have had another good hoops season, as well.

Mar 5, 2016; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Oklahoma Sooners guard Gabbi Ortiz (21) drives to the basket against Oklahoma State Cowgirls guard Brittney Martin (22) in the fourth quarter during the women
Mar 5, 2016; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Oklahoma Sooners guard Gabbi Ortiz (21) drives to the basket against Oklahoma State Cowgirls guard Brittney Martin (22) in the fourth quarter during the women /

The Oklahoma Lady Sooners reached the 20-win level for the 10th time in the past 11 seasons, finishing with a 21-12 record in the regular season and 11-7 in the Big 12, good for a share of fourth place and a No. 24 ranking in the AP Women’s Top 25.

The Sooner women were a No. 5 seed in the Big 12 Women’s Championship and, like the Oklahoma men, were victorious in their opening tournament game, defeating Bedlam rival and No. 4 seed Oklahoma State 61-43.

The following  day, in a semifinals matchup with regular-season champion and eventual tournament champion Baylor, the Lady Sooners were quickly humbled by the six-time defending league champions, ending up on the short end of an 84-57 battering.

Despite losing to Baylor in the Big 12 Championship, the OU women own a 26-23 record all-time against the Lady Bears, who have become the women’s version of the Kansas Jayhawks in men’s basketball. The Lady Sooners have a 4-1 record against Baylor in the Big 12 postseason tournament, but this year’s matchup was the first between the two teams since 2010.

Like the OU men, the Oklahoma women are a lock to make the NCAA Women’s Basketball Championship, but they won’t know their seed, their opponent or where they will play until the full bracket is revealed on Monday.

This will mark the Lady Sooners’ 17th consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament in Sherri Coale’s 20 seasons as head coach. The Oklahoma women have been to the Women’s Final Four three times during Coale’s tenure and played in the championship game in 2002, losing to the University of Connecticut.

Before Coale became the Sooners’ head coach in 1996, the OU women had made only two previous appearances in the NCAA Tournament.

Coale is 59 wins shy of 500 wins as the coach of the Lady Sooners and is easily the winningest coach in Oklahoma women’s basketball history.

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