Coming into Tuesday night’s game against No. 20 Texas A&M;, Oklahoma women’s coach Sherri Coale said the Aggies were a barometer.
Though just 5-4 in Big 12 play coming in, A&M; was the coaches’ pick to win the conference and with very much the same team beat the Sooners twice last season.
But the way things went, OU ended up becoming its own barometer. After a forgettable and horribly sloppy first half that included 17 turnovers, the Sooners turned around and played their best half of the season.
“It was recess,” Coale said of the first half.
It’s a term she uses frequently, and not so surprising given that her team has committed at least 20 turnovers 10 different times. OU (18-4, 8-2 Big 12) has committed less than 10 turnovers only once this season.
But now, after Tuesday’s second 20 minutes, the Sooners have created a new standard for how well they can play. Though likely impossible to maintain such a level for entire game after entire game, approaching it more often might not be asking too much.
How high a level?
OU came out in the second half and scored on its first six possessions, netting 13 points. Just like that a 32-26 deficit became a 39-34 lead. After netting no points on their next two possessions, the Sooners came back with a natural three-point play from Danielle Robinson and a 3-pointer from Jenna Plumley to make it 45-37.
It was like that the rest of the game.
In the final 20 minutes against the Aggies, OU scored 42 points on 65.4 percent (17 of 26) shooting, hit 50 percent (3 of 6) from beyond the 3-point arc, hit 5 of 7 free throws, outrebounded the Aggies 14 to 9, dished eight assists against four turnovers and stole the ball eight times.
According to Coale, the Sooners had to slow down to get moving.
“I felt like the reason we missed so many chippies in the first half was because we were just moving so fast,” she said. “Our movement to get the open shot was so rushed and so hurried that it led into the delivery of the shot.”
The Sooners made 9 of 27 first-half shots.
Nobody mirrored the horror of the first half and the beauty of the second quite like Plumley.
The sophomore guard committed four turnovers without an assist in 10 first-half minutes. After the half, she hit 3 of 4 3-point tries, dished three assists and did not commit a turnover.
“I just had to play at my level and speed,” she said. “When I came out, I was trying to make too many things happen and … I was rushing things too much.”
So was everybody else.
Until everything changed.
Clay Horning
366-3526
cfhorning@normantranscript.com
OU Sports
Related Photos
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Oklahoma forward Courtney Paris looks to pass against Texas A&M Tuesday
Discussion
Rising to another level
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