No. 10 Sooners Drop Huskers, 84-62

Feb. 7, 2001

By DOUG ALDEN
AP Sports Writer

LINCOLN, Neb. - While her teammates couldn't hit a foul shot, Oklahoma's LaNeishea Caufield couldn't miss.

Caufield went 6-for-6 from the line to improve her own school record to 28 straight free throws as the No. 10 Sooners beat Nebraska 84-62.

"It's just something I really work on," said Caufield, who had 16 points. "Whenever we have a day off I go to the gym, I make 100 free throws then I shoot (another) 100 and see how many I make."

Caufield had hit 22 straight coming in and broke the previous mark of 24 she set earlier this season.

The rest of the Sooners were 5-for-18 from the line, but it didn't really matter. Oklahoma forced 28 turnovers and held Nebraska to 32 percent shooting to win its eighth straight.

"We shot 47 percent from the free throw line," Oklahoma coach Sherri Coale said. "If you'd have told me we would have done that and still win by 20 I'd have said you were crazy. That tells me there were some other things we were doing really well."

Stacey Dales led Oklahoma with 20 points and Sunny Hardemann also scored 16 for Oklahoma (18-4, 9-1), which kept pace with No. 8 Iowa State for first place in the Big 12.

"We know our positions on offense and it's the same with the defense," Dales said. "We have such a unique chemistry on the fast break. Our assists are up so much this year. It comes from that chemistry and trust. That trust is essential."

Rosalind Ross finished with 14 points for Oklahoma.

Margaret Richards had 15 points to lead Nebraska (10-13, 2-8), which has lost seven of eight. Steph Jones added 11 points, all in the second half, for the Cornhuskers.

"I've never been through anything quite like this," Nebraska coach Paul Sanderford said. "It's tough for me. It's frustrating for the kids."

Oklahoma got 26 points off Nebraska's 28 turnovers. It was the 14th time this season the Huskers have turned the ball over 20 or more times.

"I thought in the second half our defense picked it up, but we couldn't make a basket," Sanderford said.

Already up 11 at halftime, the Sooners opened the second half with an 11-2 run. Talbert scored five, including a three-point play, and Caufield stole the ball at midcourt and went uncontested for a layup that put the Sooners ahead 51-31 with 16:08 left.

Jones was the only Husker to score in the first seven minutes of the second half. She kept the Huskers in it with eight points, then Margaret Richards hit consecutive 3-pointers to cut the Oklahoma lead to 53-44, the first time it had been since the first half.

It was as close as the Huskers would get as the Sooners put it away with a late 15-3 run.

"I felt like in the second half we did some brilliant things - and I don't say that very often to them or anyone else," Coale said.

The Sooners led 40-29 at halftime after forcing 13 turnovers and holding the Huskers to 10-for-32 shooting. Oklahoma was 15-for-35 from the field, 7-for-17 from 3-point range. Ross only played 12 minutes in the first half, but led the Sooners with 10 points after going 4-for-7. Taylor and Dales each had nine points in the first half.

The game was delayed when the men's game between Nebraska and Oklahoma State went into overtime. The Husker and Cowboy men had been scheduled to play Tuesday, but the game was pushed back when Oklahoma State changed its schedule after a fatal plane crash Jan. 27.

University of Oklahoma Athletics

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