Oklahoma Sooners-Alabama Crimson Tide women's basketball

Junior center Raegan Beers during the game against Alabama on March 2.

 Willie Gillespie/OU Daily

No. 10 Oklahoma (24-6, 12-5 SEC) defeated Georgia (12-19, 4-13 SEC) 70-52 in its SEC Tournament debut on Thursday at Bon Secours Wellness Arena.

Here are three takeaways from the win:

Inside the paint dominance

Throughout the entire game, Oklahoma fought in the paint. Junior center Raegan Beers continued to use her size to her advantage and raked in three blocks, contributing to OU’s 10. The center was able to grab eight rebounds, including five defensive boards.

On offense, the Sooners made 15 of 20 layups, helping the team post 38 points inside the paint. Oklahoma’s defense held Georgia to 18 points inside the paint and allowed only six of 20 Lady Bulldogs layups.

Zya Vann was on fire

Freshman guard Zya Vann was a top scorer for the Sooners. In her first collegiate postseason game, the freshman posted 10 points. In the second quarter, Vann reached double digits with 10 points, sinking two threes and four of five shots. This season, Vann is 19-for-54 within the three-point range

In the second half, Vann slowed down when it came to scoring but helped her teammates through assists. Vann finished the game with three rebounds and five assists along with her 10 points.

Momentum was key

At the beginning of the game, Oklahoma did what it needed to do to keep the lead and prevent Georgia from gaining too much momentum. The Sooners grabbed the momentum at the beginning of the first quarter with an important three-point shot from Beers.

This season, OU has struggled to maintain momentum throughout the entire game. Despite the Sooners efforts, the Lady Bulldogs were able to slow Oklahoma down a little in the second quarter. Nearing the end of the first half, OU was able to pick momentum up again and extend the lead to 36-29.

By the second half, Oklahoma continued to keep the momentum and expanded its lead from a seven-point lead to a 22-point lead. OU being able to keep up the energy helped it secure the win and move on to the quarterfinals.

The Sooners will compete against No. 12 Kentucky (22-6, 11-5 SEC) in the quarterfinals at 1:30 p.m. on Friday at Bon Secours Wellness Arena on ESPN.

This story was edited by Josh McDaniel.

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