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Oklahoma basketball: Takeaways from Lady Sooners’ opening win

By Chip Rouse

Oklahoma's Madi Williams (25) goes past IUPUI's Rachel Kent (22) during a women's basketball game between the University of Oklahoma Sooners (OU) and IUPUI in the first round of the NCAA Tournament at Lloyd Noble Center in Norman, Okla., Saturday, March 19, 2022. Oklahoma won 78-72.Women S Ncaa Tournament
Oklahoma's Madi Williams (25) goes past IUPUI's Rachel Kent (22) during a women's basketball game between the University of Oklahoma Sooners (OU) and IUPUI in the first round of the NCAA Tournament at Lloyd Noble Center in Norman, Okla., Saturday, March 19, 2022. Oklahoma won 78-72.Women S Ncaa Tournament /
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The 15th-ranked Oklahoma basketball women set the table for the Sooner men at Lloyd Noble Center with a 105-94 win over Oral Roberts in a game that wasn’t nearly as close as the final score might indicate.

As it turns out, perhaps the two games should have been flipped in terms of the time of day they were played because the OU women played a much better brand of basketball than the Sooner men’s performance in the evening game versus Sam Houston State.

The Sooner women, led by Madi Williams’ team-high 19 points, forged a 21-point advantage in the opening quarter, scoring a program-record 38 points behind 59-percent shooting. OU widened the lead to 30 points and a 67-37 advantage at halftime.

Oklahoma raced out to 14-0 lead from the opening tip and never looked back after that.

Oral Roberts made a nice run late, outscoring the Sooners 36 to 22 to cut into OU’s massive lead, but Oklahoma was in full control of this game from the opening tip.

The Oklahoma women’s program is 38-11 all-time in season openers.

Next up for the OU women is SMU on Friday morning at the LNC in the annual Sooner Junior Kids Field Trip Day.

Takeaways from the season-opening win by the Lady Sooners:

Five different Sooners score in double figures

Five Oklahoma players (four starters) scored in double figures against Oral Roberts. Madi Williams’ 19 points led the Sooners. Ana  Llanusa, Taylor Robertson and Nevaeh Tot all scored 13 points apiece. Skylar Vann added 18 points off the bench. Robertson, the Big 12’s all-time recorder holder in made three-pointers, made three of five three-balls on Monday night.

OU sets two historic records in first half

The Lady Sooners set two program records in the first half. The 38 points OU scored in the opening quarter was the most in women’s program history in a single quarter. Additionally, the Sooners’ 19 assists in the first half was a program record.

39 of the Sooners’ 105 total points scored by reserves

Thirty-seven percent of Oklahoma 105 points was contributed by Sooners off the bench. The OU reserves scored 39 points to just 15 by the Oral Roberts bench players. OU’s Skylar Vann contributed 18 of the 39 bench points.

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