The Oklahoma Sooners had a three-point shooting problem this past season, and it'll be even worse next season if Jennie Baranczyk can't find help in the Transfer Portal.
Star point guard Aaliyah Chavez will return and led the Sooners with 83 three-pointers this season, but Payton Verhulst and Zya Vann were Nos. 2 and 3, respectively, and now both are on their way out. Verhulst ran out of eligibility and Vann surprisingly entered the Transfer Portal after having the best three-point percentage among all starters this season at 33%.
However, even if Verhulst and Vann were coming back, Baranczyk would still need to search the portal for a three-point shooter after the Sooners were tied for 14th of 16 SEC teams with an abysmal 29% team three-point percentage. Now, it's an even more obvious need for the Sooners that could finally get them past the Sweet 16 or even falling short of that.
Possible Oklahoma replacements for Payton Verhulst and Zya Vann
Shooters shoot no matter the level of competition, so Taryn Barbot could make the jump after spending her first three seasons as a three-year starter for Charleston. Barbot's career began as the first player in program history to win CAA Rookie of the Year, then the next year she was the first to earn CAA Player of the Year. She then got Player of the Year for the second time in a row this season.
This season, Barbot averaged 20.1 points while shooting 36.1% from three-point range. She made 82 from deep this season and 87 in 2024-25. Other than the level she's played at, there's no reason to overlook Barbot, who could also be a better value than the other players on this list.
Talaysia Cooper just had a season for Tennessee that was good enough to earn All-SEC Second-Team honors before joining the Vols' mass exodus that's left their roster empty. As a redshirt junior, Cooper led Tennessee with 16.0 points, 3.6 assists and 2.7 steals a game. Most importantly, she also led the Vols with 61 made three-pointers while shooting a career-high 34.3% from beyond the arc.
Cooper is a top target for everyone in the portal so will come with a hefty price, but if the Sooners fail to land a big-time center like Iowa State's Audi Crooks, then Cooper will be worth the price to make the Sooners' backcourt elite with even more SEC experience.
Zam Jones broke out for NC State this past season a sophomore with 14.9 points, 3.3 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 1.2 steals a game. She's also deadly from beyond the arc after shooting 36.6%, which is what the Sooners need most. Better yet and unlike the others, Jones still has two years of eligibility left and has already shown tremendous improvement from one season to the next.