Oklahoma Solidifies NCAA Tournament Top Four Seed With SEC Tournament win Over Florida

Oklahoma came into its SEC Tournament opener against Florida in strong position to earn a top-four seed in the NCAA Tournament and the host slot that goes along with it.

Now, after the seventh-ranked Sooners knocked off Florida 82-64 in the second-round matchup Thursday in Greenville, S.C., there is little doubt they will be starting March Madness at Lloyd Noble Center.

After a back-and-forth first half, where Oklahoma struggled to contain Florida’s Liv McGill, the Sooners dominated in the third quarter, outscoring the Gators 27-7 to gain control.

"We knew we needed to come out and play with energy," Sooners' center Raegan Beers said. "... We had to come out in the third quarter knowing that we had to put the foot on the gas."

As they had for much of the season, Beers and Aaliyah Chavez did plenty to pull the Sooners along.

Zya Vann also did plenty.

Vann was held scoreless in the first half, taking just two shots, but she scored 14 points in the second half.

Brooklyn Stewart added 12 points, eight in the first half when Beers was dealing with foul trouble.

The Sooners (24-6) will take on No. 6 LSU at 1:30 p.m. Friday in the quarterfinals, with a chance to both continue their run through the SEC Tournament and improve their positioning in the NCAA Tournament.

The Tigers beat OU 91-72 on Jan. 19 at Lloyd Noble Center.

Oklahoma was the final No. 3 seed in the selection committee’s second reveal recently, and the Sooners have done nothing but solidify that position since.

Thursday’s win extended Oklahoma’s winning streak to seven.

"We’re just a team that’s addicted to growing. We just want to get better. … We’re still really young. …You can watch our young players grow," Sooners coach Jennie Baranczyk said. "Maybe we didn’t necessarily complete plays the first part of January, but we did in February and you can see that we just continue to grow and get better and have fun playing."

If the Sooners can hang on to a spot as a No. 3 seed, that would also mean not having to face a No. 1 seed until at least the Elite Eight.

Here are three more takeaways from the Sooners’ win:

Sign up to our free newsletter and follow us on Facebook and X for the latest news.

Beers Dominates Through Foul Trouble, Reaches Milestone

Raegan Beers came into the day needing just 15 points to reach a significant milestone.

Beers wasted little time cutting into that number.

She scored five points in the first two minutes, including converting on a three-point play.

But Beers also didn’t take much time to start drawing the attention of officials, picking up her first foul in the opening minute and then a second with 1:50 remaining in the first.

Beers headed to the bench at that point, remaining there for the rest of the half.

When Beers returned to start the third quarter, Beers quickly found her rhythm once again.

Beers scored a pair of baskets, three rebounds, an assist and a steal in the Sooners’ 14-2 run to begin the second half and create some separation.

The big run gave Jennie Baranczyk a chance to sit not only Beers but also Aaliyah Chavez, for a stretch.

In the closing seconds of the third quarter, Beers hit a pair of free throws to give her 2,000 career points.

Beers became the only active Division I player with 2,000 career points and 1,000 career rebounds.

"It’s really, really cool. It’s sometimes seen as an individual achievement," Beers said. "... I’m a post, so I don’t necessarily create a lot of my own shots, so all my shots come from great passes from my guards. … I’m so thankful for the group I got to achieve that with."

Beers became the third Sooners player to accomplish the feat, joining Courtney Paris and Molly McGuire.

James Madison’s Peyton McDaniel needs two rebounds to join Beers in reaching the mark among active players.

Aaliyah Chavez Keeps Rolling Right Along

Oklahoma’s young star, Aaliyah Chavez, might not have taken home SEC Freshman of the Year honors when the conference’s awards were announced earlier this week, but she certainly made a statement against the Gators.

Chavez finished with 17 points, going just 6-of-17 from the floor but making all three of her free throws, stretching her SEC record for consecutive free throws made to 56. Chavez is only three away from tying Taylor Robertson’s program-record 59 consecutive makes from the line, and 19 away from tying North Dakota State’s Michelle Gaislerova’s NCAA record of 75 consecutive makes.

Chavez hasn’t missed a free throw since Jan. 22 against South Carolina and is shooting 93.6% from the line this season, which would set an NCAA freshman record.

“I’ve seen someone that just really wants to grow and really wants to be great for her team,” Baranczyk said. “That’s really it. I think sometimes there’s this perception that’s not real with her and she is a worker and she is a great teammate and she is somebody that wants the people around her to be really, really good and she wants to be good.”

Oklahoma Holds Liv McGill in Check After Halftime

Florida star Liv McGill carried her team in the first half, attacking the basket repeatedly.

The sophomore scored 19 of her team’s 39 first-half points, going 4-of-9 from the field and 10-of-11 from the free-throw line before the break.

But with Beers in the game to start the third quarter, and a defensive adjustment from the Sooners, Oklahoma stymied McGill after the break.

The change was apparent from early, as the Gators’ sophomore missed all four of her early shots during the Sooners’ 14-2 run to begin the second half.

About midway through the third quarter, McGill collided with OU’s Zya Vann, and went down grabbing her right wrist.

McGill briefly went to the locker room but soon returned.

It was readily apparent she wasn’t close to 100% though.

After her return she shot free throws with her left hand and repeatedly could be seen grimacing when she did have to use her right hand.

McGill did bounce back a bit offensively in the fourth but the Sooners were so far ahead that it didn’t affect the ultimate outcome.

She finished with 28 points, going 13-of-17 from the line.