Texas State women’s basketball (1-2) lost 52-40 in its third straight road game against the University of Oklahoma Sooners (1-3, 0-1 Big 12) Dec. 13.
This was the Bobcats’ first contest following a 10-day hiatus after their Dec. 9 game at the University of Incarnate Word was canceled due to COVID-19 protocols.
On the other side, Oklahoma was missing three starters due to COVID-19 contact tracing. For the second game in a row, the Sooners had a six-player lineup.
Two of the starters out for Oklahoma were junior guard/forward Madi Williams and senior forward Mandy Simpson. Williams is the Sooners’ leading scorer (21.5 points per game) while Simpson is the team’s leading rebounder (11.5 rebounds per game).
Starting the game, Texas State jumped out to an early 9-3 lead. During the run, Oklahoma had trouble scoring, shooting 1-7 from the floor. Texas State took advantage of the Sooners’ struggles and finished the first quarter leading 11-9.
In the second quarter, Oklahoma took its first lead at 14-13 off a layup from freshman forward Heavenly Greer. Texas State responded after an offensive rebound and put-back layup by sophomore forward Lauryn Thompson gave back the lead to the Bobcats 15-14 at the 6:20 mark in the second quarter.
The Bobcats then went on to have a scoring drought for the next 4:19 as they shot 0-7 from the field.
After a foul by Texas State junior guard Ja’Kayla Bowie and two free throws by Oklahoma sophomore guard Gabby Gregory, the Sooners took a 19-15 lead. Junior point guard Kennedy Taylor would respond with a three-point shot bringing the Bobcats within a point 19-18. Following two made free throws by Gregory, the Sooners led 21-18 at halftime.
While looking promising at the beginning of the half, Texas State struggled to score as it shot 27.6% from the field (8-29) and 22.2% from the three-point line (2-9). The Bobcats also grabbed 18 rebounds (seven offensive) and dished out five assists.
At the half, junior forward Da’Nasia Hood led the Bobcats with seven points, three rebounds and one steal. Taylor showed her versatility with five points, two boards, two assists and one block.
Oklahoma also struggled to shoot in the first half, going 28.6% from the field (6-21, 3-8 three-pointers). In the period, the Sooners had 19 rebounds and four assists.
The Bobcats were winning the turnover battle by a slight margin, forcing OU to give up the ball eight times while committing six of their own.
The Sooners were able to gain an advantage in the half by getting to the free-throw line. They were fouled 10 times and shot 60% from the line (6-10).
Leading Oklahoma in scoring was Gregory and junior guard Taylor Robertson with six points each. Gregory also grabbed six rebounds. The freshman trio of Greer, guard Neveah Tot and forward Skylar Vann scored three points each.
Oklahoma started the third quarter by extending its lead to 25-19. The Bobcats came back with quick a 4-0 run, closing the gap to 25-23.
The Sooners went on a 15-2 run capped off by a three-pointer from Vann to bring their lead to 40-25. The Bobcats’ senior guard Avionne Alexander managed to make a shot with a successful and-one attempt to end the third quarter trailing 40-28.
A layup by Taylor early in the fourth quarter cut the Sooners’ lead to 40-30. Oklahoma went on a 10-4 run finished off by a dagger three-pointer by Vann with 4:20 left in the game, putting the Sooners up 50-34.
The Bobcats came back with a 6-0 run to bring the score to 50-40 with 2:39, but time was not on their side. At the final horn, the Sooners won 52-40.
For the game, the Bobcats shot the ball at 27% (17-63, 2-21 three-pointers), grabbed 37 rebounds and dished out six assists. Defensively, Texas State forced 17 turnovers (nine steals and two blocks).
Hood led the Bobcats with 18 points (7-22, 1-11 three-pointers) and six rebounds (four offensive), along with two steals. Also making an impact was Alexander who recorded 11 points and six rebounds (three offensive) with three steals. Thompson led the team with ten boards.
The Sooners shot the ball efficiently at 43.9% (18-41, 6-15 three-pointers) and found their way to the free-throw line at ease making 10-14 on the day. Oklahoma grabbed 35 rebounds and assisted on 11 of its 18 made shots. The Sooners also put together seven steals and four blocks.
Leading OU in the victory was Gregory who amassed 16 points (4-7), shot 8-8 from the free-throw line and had nine rebounds (four offensive). In the supporting cast, Tot scored 12 points (5-9, 1-2 three-pointers), recorded five assists and three steals. Vann scored 11 points (4-7, 3-4 three-pointers), brought in seven rebounds and blocked three shots.
Greer managed to lead the Sooners with 10 rebounds despite playing a mere 16 minutes in the contest.
Texas State will have a three-day rest and then take on Texas A&M-Corpus Christi at 7 p.m. on Dec. 16 at the American Bank Center in Corpus Christi, TX.