The Big 12 covers an area stretching from Iowa, over to West Virginia down to central Texas. Thankfully for the Sooners, they’ll be competing for a Big 12 Championship just minutes from their home floor at Chesapeake Energy Arena.
After residing in Dallas, Texas last year and rotating around in years prior, the Big 12 Women’s Basketball Championship is slotted to stay in Oklahoma City through the 2019 season and with a team with several local players, it’s certainly welcomed.
“That’s pretty cool,” Midwest City native Kaylon Williams said. “I didn’t know if it was going to be here again my senior year, and it’s actually going to be here for the next couple years so that’s awesome.”
With four players on the roster from the Oklahoma City area, the Sooners take pride in the ability to play in their backyards.
“I do love playing in Dallas because it's a good little neutral area for everyone. The American Airlines Center is pretty cool to play in but so is Chesapeake and then the fact that the Thunder play there is pretty cool,” Williams said.
For guard Gabbi Ortiz, who hails from Wisconsin, it's exciting to play in front of what she hopes will be plenty of Sooner fans. And whether it be to cheer for the Sooners or another team, fans show up when the tournament comes to town.
In the three previous years Oklahoma City has hosted, each game averaged 6,287 fans, more than the average from any other city that has hosted it in the past. With that being said, the Sooners will have their work cut out for them immediately as their second round matchup pits them against Oklahoma State, a team that beat OU twice this season.
That game will tip off at 11 a.m. CT on Saturday at Chesapeake Arena.
