Texas Women Blow Out No. 12 Oklahoma, 78-63
The No. 16 Texas Longhorns rode a huge third-quarter to a 78-63 victory over the No. 12 Oklahoma Sooners, as Texas got a bit of revenge for their loss two weekends ago.
Texas (17-6, 7-5 in Big 12) threw a bit of cold water on the Sooners (20-4, 9-3), who were riding a four-game winning streak, but had the week off after they scored 101 points in a double-overtime win over West Virginia last Saturday.
There were no such scoring heroics for the Sooners, the second-highest scoring team in college basketball. Texas held Oklahoma 25 points below their season average of 88 points.
The Longhorns did a solid defensive job on the Sooners in their first meeting on Jan. 29, which turned into a 65-63 Longhorns loss. That set off a three-game losing streak for the Longhorns, all against ranked teams. Texas now has wins over four ranked teams this season. It was also the first time Texas scored more than 70 points in a game since Jan. 15 against West Virginia.
All it took for Texas was a third quarter the Longhorns haven’t had in quite some time.
Oklahoma actually led by a point at halftime before the Longhorns ripped things open, outscoring the normally-high scoring Sooners 27-6 to build a 64-44 lead after three quarters.
By then, three Texas players were in double figures and the normally reliable Taylor Robertson had just seven points for Oklahoma. Texas also had a 21-rebound edge on the glass and was 16-for-23 from the free-throw line.
Audrey Warren was one of four Longhorns in double figures, scoring 21 points, including a perfect 7-for-7 from the free-throw line. Joanne Allen-Taylor scored 14 points, while Lauren Ebo had a double-double — 13 points and 14 rebounds. Shay Holle added 10 points and led Texas with three steals.
Oklahoma’s Madi Williams ended up with 14 points, while Robertson added 13. Oklahoma made just six field goals in the second half.
While Texas is still three games back of the top of the Big 12 race, its win did alter the complexion of the race for the Big 12 regular-season title. Oklahoma’s loss puts Iowa State one game ahead of the field, as the Cyclones beat TCU on Saturday. But, the Longhorns can further alter the race on Wednesday, when they host the Cyclones in Austin at 7 p.m.
You can find Matthew Postins on Twitter @PostinsPostcard.
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