No. 16 OU basketball claims Big 12 regular season title with win over Oklahoma State

No. 16 Oklahoma (24-5, 14-4 Big 12) defeated Oklahoma State (20-10, 10-8) 80-71 Saturday in Stillwater.

With the win, the Sooners claim at least a share of the Big 12 regular season title and will be solo champions if Texas loses to Kansas State.

Senior Taylor Robertson led the Sooners with 15 points and six assists. Junior Skylar Vann tallied 13 points, 11 of which came in the first half, in addition to 11 rebounds and five offensive boards.

Foul trouble hit the Sooners early, causing them to dig deep into their bench and play 12 players in the first half. Vann, senior guard Ana Llanusa and senior forward Liz Scott each committed three fouls in the first half. Scott fouled out in the late stages of the third quarter.

OU also spent the majority of the contest without senior forward Madi Williams, who limped off the court at the 5:48 mark of the first quarter after seemingly suffering a left leg injury while setting a screen for Llanusa.

The Sooners trailed 45-39 at the half, but turned the tides in the third quarter, outscoring the Pokes 24-10. The Sooners forced six turnovers and shot 56.3% from the field to the Pokes’ 18.2% during the third.

Without Scott, the Sooners turned to freshman Beatrice Culliton, who delivered with nine points and four rebounds in the second half. Culliton’s efforts helped OU outrebound the Pokes 42-26 through the contest. The Sooners also dished 23 assists to OSU’s 10.

Senior Kennady Tucker deflated the Pokes with her first points of the night, a 3-pointer with 3:42 remaining to extend the Sooners’ lead to 73-64. OU continued to make clutch buckets down the stretch, including a Llanusa layup after a nice feed down low from Vann.

The Sooners will now await their seeding for the Big 12 tournament, which begins Thursday in Kansas City.

This story was edited by Austin Curtright.