Completed Event: Women's Basketball at #23 Alabama on February 15, 2026 , Win , 79, to, 71
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Women's Basketball
79
at #23 Alabama
71
University of Oklahoma Athletics
Women's Basketball Takes On Texas A&M
January 16, 2001 | Women's Basketball
Jan. 16, 2001
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THE GAME
Oklahoma (11-4, 3-1 Big 12) host Texas A&M on Wednesday, Jan. 17, in a Big 12 Conference matchup at 7 p.m. inside the Lloyd Noble Center. The Sooners welcome the Aggies (11-4, 1-3 Big 12) for the first of the two-game series between the two teams.
The contest will be broadcast live on KOMA-AM (1520) radio station and on the Internet at www.SoonerSports.com.
OU enters the game ranked 13th in the AP and 15th in the USA Today/ESPN coaches' polls. Texas A&M enters the game unranked.
OU looks to extend its two-game winning streak as the Sooners defeated Texas, 85-74, and Baylor, 90-87, last week. Texas A&M is on a two-game losing streak with conference losses at Missouri, 69-61, on Wednesday and to Texas Tech, 85-78, on Saturday.
SERIES RECORD
Oklahoma has won four straight and five of the last six games against Texas A&M. The Sooners sport an all-time series record of 10-7 against the Aggies. The last time OU lost the Texas A&M was in 1998, 91-83, in College Station. When playing in Norman, OU is
7-1 vs. A&M. OU's Head Coach Sherri Coale is 6-4 against TAM's Peggie Gillom.
IOWA STATE/OKLAHOMA TO COMPETE IN BIG 12/ACC CHALLENGE
Oklahoma and Iowa State will represent the Big 12 against the ACC in the fourth Big 12/ACC Challenge Sunday. OU will travel to North Carolina (9-6, 3-3 ACC) for a 2 p.m. CST tipoff while ISU plays at North Carolina State at noon. Both games will be televised nationally by ESPN2.
The Big 12 took a 4-2 advantage in the challenge last year with wins by Iowa State over North Carolina and Texas over North Carolina State. The two conferences did not meet in 1998 as the Big 12 battled the Pac-10.
OKLAHOMA (11-4, 3-1 BIG 12) LED BY COMMITTEE
Oklahoma has had seven different players leading the Sooners' offense this season. Last game it was junior guard Stacey Dales (Brockville, Ontario) with a career-high 28 points at Baylor, followed by center Jen Cunningham (Kingston, Ontario) career performance of 18 points and 12 rebounds against Texas for her first collegiate double-double. Before that it was senior guard Sunny Hardeman (Norman, Okla.) pouring in a career-high 20 points on a 6-of-8 performance from beyond the arc. Sophomore forward Caton Hill (Ada, Okla.) recorded her fifth double-double of the season with career highs of 25 points and 15 rebounds at Colorado to open Big 12 Conference action. Bottom line, OU has many weapons to throw at its opponents and when they try to stop one or even two of those weapons, Head Coach Sherri Coale unleashes another.
Leading Oklahoma in scoring this season is preseason All-Big 12 selection and Conseco Nancy Lieberman-Cline Step Up Award candidate Stacey Dales (Brockville, Ontario). Dales sports team highs of 7.7 assists and 16.7 points per game, ranking first and seventh in the Big 12 Conference, respectively. Her assists per game also ranks fourth in the nation. In addition, Dales ranks second on the team and seventh in the nation in steals with 3.4 thefts per outing, plus she's third on the team in rebounds with 4.6 rpg.
Preseason third team All-American canadiate LaNeishea Caufield (Ada, Okla.) leads the Sooners and ranks fourth in the nation in steals with 4.3 thefts per outing. She also leads the team in free throw percentage, of players averaging 10-plus minutes per game, hitting 86.3 percent (63-for-73). Caufield ranks second on the squad in scoring (16.2 ppg), assists (3.5 apg) and fourth in rebounds (4.5 rpg).
Hill continues to play well for the Sooners with six double-doubles this season. She leads the team in rebounding with 8.9 boards per game and ranks third in scoring with 12.7 points per game. Hill's boards per game rank fourth in the league. She also leads the team in field goal percentage (.507), of players averaging 10-plus minutes per game, and ranks third in free throw percentage (.806). Cunningham tops the team in blocks with 1.5 stuffs per outing and ranks second on the team in rebounds with 6.3 rpg.
As a team, OU scores 82.4 points and gets 41.6 rebounds per game compared to its opponents' 73.1 points and 36.5 rebounds.
TEXAS A&M (11-4, 1-3 BIG 12 )
Texas A&M opened the season winning 10 of its first 11 games but enters Wednesday contest on a two-game losing streak. The Aggies are 1-3 in Big 12 Conference action with their only victory over Nebraska, 67-65, in College Station. Texas A&M has to Texas, 62-49, and Missouri, 69-61, in league action.
Leading the Aggies is senior guard Jaynetta Saunders who sports team highs of 21.4 points and 7.9 rebounds, ranking her third and eighth in the league in each category. Backing Saunders is Brandy Jones and LaToya Rose who average 12.1 and 10.2 points per game, respectively.
As a team, Texas A&M scores 71.9 points and averages 37.1 rebounds per game. A&M holds its opponents to 62.1 ppg and 43.6 rpg.
A LOOK BACK AT BAYLOR
WACO, Texas (AP) - Stacey Dales scored a career-high 28 points to lead 17th-ranked Oklahoma past No. 23 Baylor 90-87 Saturday night.
Caton Hill added 18 points, LaNeishea Caufield 11, and Jen Cunningham 10, including a key three-point play in the final minute for Oklahoma.
Oklahoma shot 54 percent (30-for-56) for the game.
The Sooners shot 59 percent in the first half and led by as many as 14 points before the Lady Bears went on a 7-0 run to make it 51-40 at halftime.
Baylor lost despite a game-high 30 points from Sheila Lambert. Danielle Crockrom had 28 points and Monica Arnold added 12.
Baylor opened the second half on a 15-3 run to take a 62-60 lead at the 11:46 mark.
Dales' two free throws with 1:43 left gave Oklahoma an 85-84 lead, but Lambert hit one of two free throws on Baylor's next possession to tie the game.
The Sooners missed their next shot but Cunningham grabbed an offensive rebound and scored while being fouled.
DALES BECOMES THE 16TH PLAYER TO SCORE 1,000 POINTS
In just two-an-a-half seasons, junior guard Stacey Dales (Brockville, Ontario) became the 16th player in Oklahoma women's basketball history to score 1,000-points. It took Dales 77 career games to achieve this goal, while teammate LaNeishea Caufield accomplished this milestone earlier this year against Georgia (65 career game).
Dales surpassed this milestone by matching a career-high 28-points in OU's 90-87 victory at Baylor on Saturday. She scored her 1,000 point on a jumper with eight second to play in the opening half. The Canadian has scored 250 points this season, pushing her career total to 1,016.
She opened the season by scoring 24 points against Tulsa in the Bertha Teague Classic and has scored in double digits in 13 of 15 games this year. Dales also scored 21 against Wisconsin at the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic in November. She produced her first double-double of the year with 14 points and a career-high 14 assists against SMU on Dec. 9, in Norman. In addition, she leads the team in scoring (16.7 ppg) and is third in rebounding (4.6 rpg).
She ranks fourth in the NCAA while leading the team and Big 12 Conference in assists per game with 7.7. Dales also holds the league record for most assists per game. OU's point guard has dished out a team and Big 12 Conference best 116 assists. Dales currently ranks second among OU's all-time greats in assists and needs 145 to become OU's all-time leader. She has 456 career assists.
BIG 12 HAS FIVE RANKED TEAMS FOR SECOND STRAIGHT WEEK
For the second straight week and only the third time in the conference's five-year history, the Big 12 has five ranked teams in the Associated Press Poll. Last week Baylor earned its first ranking in 23 years as it entered the poll at No. 23 to join Iowa State, Texas Tech, Texas and Oklahoma. This week's rankings are: No. 7 Iowa State, No. 9 Texas Tech, No. 13 Oklahoma, No. 17 Texas, and No. 25 Baylor. Prior to the last two weeks, the only other time the Big 12 has had five ranked teams was Nov. 17, 1997.
CUNNINGHAM HAS BECOME A FACTOR FOR SUCCESS
One of the most obvious keys to Oklahoma's success this season has been the emergence of junior Jen Cunningham (Kingston, Ontario, Canada). Not only does the 6-3 center bring size and strength to the court but she has the ability to score, rebound and block shots.
The Canadian had a stellar performance against Texas and Baylor last week. She recorded a career-high 18 points and had 12 rebounds for her first collegiate double-double against Texas. She also set personal bests in field goals made (8) and attempted (12) against the Longhorns. Cunningham sealed the win for OU at Baylor when she grabbed an offensive rebound for a key three-point play in the final minute. She had 10 points and nine rebounds.
Cunningham has provided a steady presence inside for the Sooners in the first 15 games. She's appeared in 12 starting lineups and has set or matched career highs in 10 of 13 categories, including 15 rebounds and five blocked shots at San Diego on Dec. 21. Cunningham has led the Sooners' blocking efforts with 22 of Oklahoma's 41 blocked shots. She now ranks ninth on OU's all-time blocked shots list with 41.
She contributes 5.7 points, 6.5 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game plus shoots 44.9 percent from the field [35-for-78]. The Canadian also ranks among the Big 12 Conference best in blocked shots (4th) and rebounds (18th).
DALES NAMED BIG 12 CONFERENCE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Oklahoma's Stacey Dales (Brockville, Ontario, Canada) was named the Big 12 Conference Player of the Week in a vote of a media panel for games played from Jan. 8-14. Dales becomes just the second OU women's basketball player to earn the Big 12 Conference award and just in 16th in school history to earn a conference player of the week honor.
Dales led Oklahoma to wins over No. 14 Texas and No. 23 Baylor last week as she averaged 20.5 points, 8.0 assists and 4.0 rebounds. She also shot 50 percent from the field, hitting 14-of-28 attempted shots, and nailed 78.6 percent of her free throw attempts (11-of-14).
The 6-1 junior point guard scored 13 points vs. Texas and contributed eight assists and four rebounds. At Baylor, Dales surpassed the 1,000-point plateau with a career-high 28 points, including six points in the final two minutes of action. She also had eight assists, four rebounds and shot 52.9 percent (9-of-17) from the field.
STEPPING UP THE D
Even though Oklahoma prefers a fast-paced offense, the Sooners don't lose track of the importance of good solid defensive pressure. That fact is shown in the Sooners' holding nine of their 15 opponents to 40 percent or below from the field which in return produced a 9-0 record for OU. Opponents are shooting 40.2 percent from the field against the Sooners, including just 33.0 percent from three-point territory. Oklahoma has also collected 188 steals as opposed to its opponents' 149. In addition, the Sooners have outrebounded their opponents 41.6-36.5 (+5.1) per game (624-548 overall).
Only three teams have scored more than 80 points against the Sooners this season -- Southwest Missouri State, Stanford and Baylor.
SOONER BACKCOURT TANDEM AS GOOD AS IT GETS
Juniors LaNeishea Caufield (Ada, Okla.) and Stacey Dales (Brockville, Ontario) are one of the best guard tandems in America. Fifteen games into the season, Caufield and Dales lead the Sooners and are among the Big 12 Conference and NCAA best as they post impressive numbers.
Dales ranks fourth in the NCAA and leads the team and Big 12 Conference in assists with 7.7 per game. She also averages a team-high 16.7 points while contributing 4.6 rebounds and 3.4 steals per game. Dales shoots 45.4 percent from the field and 69.4 percent from the charity stripe. The Canadian is also among the league's best in four categories: assists, assists/turnover ratio, steals and scoring.
Caufield leads the team and Big 12 Conference plus ranks second in the nation in steals per game with 4.3. She also ranks second on the squad in scoring with 15.9 points per game. The Oklahoman averages 4.5 boards and nails 86.8 percent of her free throws.
DOUBLE DOSE
Sophomore Caton Hill (Ada, Okla.) continues to play well for the Sooners as the 6-1 power forward dropped 17 points and 12 rebounds against the Texas Longhorns on Jan. 10, for her sixth double-double of the season and fourth all-time against UT. Hill is third in the Big 12 Conference and leads the team for most double doubles (6).
From Dec. 18 to Jan. 3, Hill produced four straight double-doubles, including career highs of 25 points and 15 rebounds at Colorado on Jan. 3. Hill owns 12 career double-doubles.
She tops the team in rebounding with 8.9 per game and field goal percentage (.507) of players averaging 20-plus minutes per game. She also ranks third on the team in scoring with 12.7 points per game. Within the Big 12 Conference, Hill is fourth in rebounding, 12th in field goal percentage and 26th in scoring.
SOONER VERSATILITY
Head Coach Sherri Coale has a deeper and more versatile team as eight players are playing 10-or-more minutes per game. Coale has also seen six different player lead the Sooners in scoring, making it tougher for OU's opponents to focus on stopping the Sooners' dynamitic duo of junior guards LaNeishea Caufield and Stacey Dales.
OU RANKS 12TH IN LATEST RPI
The Sooners are also ranked 12th in the most current WBCA/ Summerville RPI Rankings. Oklahoma ranks 19th in the latest Collegiate Basketball News Women's RPI College Basketball Rankings.
Oklahoma has played eight top-25 teams this year. OU is 4-4 against the nation's best teams, defeating Southwest Missouri State, 89-82, Stanford, 102-98 OT, Texas, 85-74, and Baylor, 90-87.
SOONERS AGAINST TOP 25 TEAMS
The Sooners are 5-2 against top-25 opponents at the Lloyd Noble Center over the last two years. The wins against Texas and Stanford marked the second and third time this year that Oklahoma has accomplished the feat after upsetting then-13th-ranked Southwest Missouri State on Dec. 1. Last year, OU defeated Texas Tech (No. 13/13), 82-76, and Kansas (No. 24/25), 88-69, in Norman.
OU's only home losses to top-25 teams have been against Iowa State, 81-79, on Jan. 6, 2001 and to the 2000 NCAA champions Connecticut, 84-68, on Dec. 29, 2000.
SOONER BRIEFS
SUNNY DAYS ARE HERE
Senior Sunny Hardeman (Norman, Okla.) hit a career-high six three-pointers en route to scoring a career-high 20 points against Iowa State on Jan. 6. The guard hit six of her eight attempts treys vs. the Cyclones.
Hardeman's performances around the arc has moved her up to No. 5 on the career three-pointers made chart. She now has hit 95 career treys. She also ranks on the all-time assists list at No. 12 with 231.
For the year, she averages 5.0 points, 2.3 rebounds, 2.9 assists and hits 46.5 percent of her three-point shots. Hardeman is among the conference leaders in three-point percentage, (8th), and three-pointers made per game (14th).
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