WACO, Texas — Odyssey Sims knew her coach wasn’t very happy at halftime Wednesday night.
So the junior point guard went out in the second half and made sure No. 3 Baylor came away with a lopsided victory.
Sims scored a season-high 27 points, Brittney Griner had 22 points and 10 rebounds, and the Lady Bears ran their home winning streak to 44, beating Oral Roberts 94-56.
After jumping out to a 22-point advantage about 8 minutes into the game, Baylor (8-1) had its lead trimmed to 13 early in the second half.
Sims responded with 10 points and three steals during a 25-7 run that put the game away.
“It seemed like our feet were stuck to some sand,” Sims said about Baylor’s second-half start. “We came out and picked it up. We didn’t want to make (Baylor coach Kim Mulkey) unhappy for two halves. She was already unhappy for one.”
Sims, playing in her second game since returning from a hamstring injury, connected on a 30-footer just before the first-half buzzer sounded to give Baylor a 51-34 halftime lead.
Oral Roberts was within 53-40 when Jaci Bigham made a scoop shot in the lane with 17:45 remaining.
Sims started Baylor’s surge with a 3-pointer from the corner.
Griner had consecutive baskets to make it 73-47 and Sims capped the run with a steal and basket that made it 78-47 with 11:18 left.
Robinson and Griner both praised Sims’ defensive contributions after the game.
“It’s great to have her back,” Griner said. “I love when I can watch her rip the point guard and score.”
Kevi Luper had 19 points and Taylor Cooper added 16 for Oral Roberts (3-4). The Golden Eagles have lost 40 consecutive games to ranked opponents.
“I was pretty happy with our execution the first 28 minutes of the game,” Oral Roberts coach Misti Cussen said. “It went south in a hurry.”
Brooklyn Pope, making her second start of the season, was 8 of 9 from the floor and scored 19 points for the defending NCAA champion Lady Bears, who have won six straight since having their 42-game winning streak snapped Nov. 16.
The Lady Bears, who led by 38 in the second half, shot 56.3 percent for the game and they outrebounded the Golden Eagles 44-29
Baylor was coming off a 73-61 victory at No. 5 Notre Dame last week in a rematch of last season’s title game. The Lady Bears will have some time off before hosting No. 13 Tennessee in Waco next Tuesday.
The Lady Bears haven’t lost at home since Jan. 17, 2010, against Nebraska. Stanford has won 81 straight at home, the longest active streak in the nation.
Baylor (8-1) hit 16 of its first 19 shots to start the game.
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