Jennie Baranczyk was focused on something deeper than the outcome of Saturday’s game.
The Sooners’ coach had just witnessed Oklahoma’s top collegiate teams go toe-to-toe for 40 minutes in front of a packed crowd at Lloyd Noble Center. To her, that mattered nearly as much as the outcome.
“I want these guys to love playing,” Baranczyk said. “Tonight, you got to see a group of women on both sides love playing the game. That’s why we need to fill this place, because in our state our sport is hurt. At the grassroots level, we’re not doing our job.
“I think everyone that left here had a wonderful time and they want to come back. We need to make sure … this isn’t where we have to try to get to. This needs to be our baseline, and it will be some day.”
No. 15 OU (16-2, 6-1 Big 12) came out victorious over Oklahoma State (13-6, 3-4) 97-93. The LNC crowd of 9,580 fans was the highest at an OU home game since 2013.
“I don’t even know if we’ve played in a Lloyd Noble Center that loud,” senior forward Madi Williams said. “It was just super fun … being out there. I was in awe of the amount of people that came.”
Despite being two of the top three highest-scoring teams in the Big 12, the matchup started slow, with the rivals combining for just 13 points through the first five minutes. After OSU opened the scoring with a 3-pointer, the Sooners went on a 12-2 run to take an early 12-5 lead.
OU took its first lead after senior Ana Llanusa dished a pass from beyond the 3-point arc to a driving Williams under the basket, resulting in a layup.
“They’re always gonna make better reads than I can coach,” Baranczyk said. “And when they can play intuitively, when they can play to their authentic selves in their game, I don’t think there’s anything better.”
The Cowgirls focused much of their first half defensive attention on senior Taylor Robertson, who entered the contest just four 3-pointers shy of tying the NCAA’s all-time record for career 3-pointers. Robertson struggled to find open looks and attempted just one shot, a contested, off-balance 3-pointer at the first quarter buzzer.
The Sooners let their 39-36 lead slip near the end of the second, when Oklahoma State closed out the half on a 12-1 run, capped by a near-half court 3-pointer as the buzzer sounded.
The Sooners during their win over OSU on Jan. 21.
The Cowgirls’ momentum rolled over to the second half, with back-to-back made shots increasing their lead to 12. OU responded with a 13-2 run of its own to cut the deficit to one. Oklahoma State went 13 for 27 from 3-point range in the first three quarters, but made just one of its 10 fourth quarter attempts.
The back-and-forth trend continued for much of the second half until under five minutes to play in the fourth, when junior Nevaeh Tot forced a turnover, which Williams capitalized on with a drive to the basket and layup.
“That’s what makes this team really challenging to play against,” Barancyzk said. “You can’t put us away. (Our) players … stay steady, they believe, they take the scoreboard out of it (and) just focus on playing. If we’re in a (close) game, I’ll bet on us every single time.”
After a pair of Oklahoma State free throws, junior Skylar Vann regained the lead for the Sooners with a 3-pointer, marking the start of a 9-0 run and causing LNC to erupt.
“When you have this many people cheering for you, look what happened at the end of the game,” Baranczyk said. “You cannot convince me that didn’t help with the outcome of this game.
“We have an incredible fan base here in Oklahoma. That’s a huge reason why I came. People are gonna want to follow this team. We’re a little critical sometimes as fans but at the same time man, we bleed crimson.”
As the Sooners held a five point lead with seven seconds remaining, Llanusa was called for a foul on a 3-point attempt, leading to an outpour of boos from the Sooner faithful. Despite the impact of the call, Baranczyk voiced her support for officiating afterwards.
“No matter what, we’re the ones that have to adjust,” Baranczyk said. “Every official is trying to do their job. They’re not coming out here to be against us or be against us. There used to be over 2,000 officials, now there’s less than 800. There’s not opportunities for kids if we continue to do this.”
OU was able to overcome the late whistle and secure the victory after a pair of free throws from Robertson sealed the deal. Next, the Sooners will face another rival, No. 25 Texas, at 7 p.m. Jan. 25 in Austin.
“We’re trying to grow this game in our state,” Baranczyk said. “(We) really want girls to grow up and look at these women and … realize there’s a lot of people they can be watching that play great basketball. I’m really proud of that.
“Did anybody come here tonight saying, ‘Man, they were terrible, that was a terrible game, I’m never coming back?’ Not one person.”
This story was edited by Colton Sulley.
