Oklahoma Cruises Past Henderson State, 87-44

NORMAN, Okla. The Oklahoma women's basketball team (8-3) improved its win streak to four with an impressive 87-44 victory against Henderson State (7-4) Wednesday night inside the Lloyd Noble Center. The game marks the final tune-up before entering Big 12 play.

Sophomore Leah Rush scored a game-high 23 points as OU used a 28-0 run in the first half to put the game out of reach. Rush was one of four Sooners to score in double digits in front of 5,722 fans as they improved to 5-0 at home.

“You always want to come off Christmas break right,” OU head coach Sherri Coale said. “I thought we were pretty sharp in the first half considering we took five days off. I've found that while it might make the team a little ragged in early January, it pays dividends in February and March.”

Box Score | Notes | Quotes | Sooner Gameday Central

The Reddies shot just 13-of-73 (17.8 percent) from the field, marking the lowest field goal percentage by an opponent in the Sooners' history.

Casey Walker came off the bench to score 11 points, nine in the second half, as the Sooners scored 50 points in the paint and relied on their bench to keep the offense alive. The Sooners bench outscored the entire Henderson State team with 47 points.

“In the second half, we lost our focus a bit. We weren't nearly as tight with the basketball as we should have been. About half way through the second half, we got it back and got some good plays from people on our bench. People are becoming more comfortable with their roles. In particular, Antoinette Wadsworth and Kendra Moore did some very solid things in the second half. Overall, I thought we had a very good effort.”

Antoinette Wadsworth added more excitement, scoring all of her season-high 11 points in the second half. The junior also grabbed six boards.

Senior Dionnah Jackson ended the evening with 12 points, seven rebounds, three assists and two blocked shots.

Four Sooners either matched or surpassed their season highs in scoring.

Sophomore Chelsi Welch grabbed a career-high nine boards as the Sooners outrebounded the Reddies, 62-45.

Wednesday's game was co-hosted by the Sooner Kids Club. A total of 162 boys and girls participated in the “Kids Take Over the Lloyd Noble Center” promotion. The promotion gave kids, ranging from kindergarteners to 8th graders, an opportunity to take part in running an athletic event. They assisted in numerous areas such as marketing, media relations, security, SoonerVision, and spirit.

Oklahoma begins its Big 12 slate against Texas Tech on Wednesday, Jan. 5, in Lubbock, Texas. The game begins at 7 p.m.