Senior Madi Williams scored 19 points, grabbed 11 rebounds and dished out seven assists as No. 19 Oklahoma erased an early double-digit deficit to top Kansas 80-68 in the quarterfinals of the Phillips 66 Big 12 Women’s Basketball Championship.
It was the seventh time this season that OU has rallied back and won after trailing by double figures. Senior Taylor Robertson matched Williams’ 19 points as she knocked down three of seven 3-pointers. Junior Liz Scott added 11 points to round out the Sooners’ double-figure scorers against the Jayhawks. In the process, OU avenged its regular season-ending 73-67 loss to Kansas.
๐๐จ๐ฐ '๐๐จ๐ฎ๐ญ ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ฆ ๐๐จ๐จ๐ง๐๐ซ๐ฌโ๏ธ
Oklahoma wins and advances to the #Big12WBB semifinals!#Sooners x #ONE pic.twitter.com/rCJk4s3Vwg
— Oklahoma Basketball (@OU_WBBall) March 11, 2022
“I’m so proud of these guys and what a great game to start off the Big 12 Tournament, and Kansas is an incredible team. And I hope they do an incredible job in the NCAA Tournament. It’s a beast of a league. It’s been really fun, and I’m almost speechless,” Oklahoma head women’s basketball coach Jennie Baranczyk said.
Oklahoma finished with 25 assists on 30 made baskets.
“Our point guards, we have a freshman and sophomore in those two positions, so there’s not a ton of experience there. And even in our center position, we don’t have a ton of experience.ย To be able to have 25 assists, typically they come between your point guard and your center. For us to be able to share the ball the way that we were able to today, I thought was great,” Baranczyk said.
After trailing early, the Sooners raced away from the Jayhawks in the second quarter. Oklahoma outscored Kansas 25-11 in the second quarter.
“We were able to do what we do. I think we were able to focus on ourselves and be the aggressors in that quarter. We got to feel out how the game would be in the first quarter. That’s what we took from that. And we were able to come out and hit them hard in the second quarter,” Williams said.
The Sooners advanced in the Phillips 66 Big 12 Women’s Basketball Championship for the first time since 2016. Now, OU plays No. 4 Baylor. The Bears beat Oklahoma State 76-36 to set up a third matchup against Oklahoma.
OU swept top-seeded Baylor in the regular season for the first time since 2009, winning on Jan. 12 in Norman, 83-77, and in Waco on Feb. 2, 78-77.
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