Big 12 Semifinals: OU and Mizzou

DALLAS -- After surviving a shoot-out with Iowa State on Wednesday, No. 1 seed Oklahoma (27-4) heads to the semifinals of the Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship where they will meet No. 4 Missouri (21-8) on Thursday at 6 p.m. CST.

The game will be broadcast nationally by Fox Sports Net with Kevin Eschenfelder on play-by-play and Debbie Antonelli on color commentary. Fans within Oklahoma can also catch the game on radio station KOKC (1520 AM) with the usual team of Brian Brinkley and Tara DeGiusti.

Oklahoma has won 15 straight games and 17 straight games against conference opponents. A win on Thursday would tie the longest Big 12 winning streak in league history. That mark of 18 was set by OU from 2001-2002. The Sooners are also one win shy of 28, which is the second best win total in program history. The 2000-01 squad went 28-6 and reached the Sweet 16.

Championship Central

Thursday will mark the first Championship meeting between Mizzou and OU. All-time, MU leads the series 28-21 but has fallen to the Sooners in two straight meetings. In fact, OU has won six of the last seven, including a convincing 88-73 win in Columbia on Feb. 4.

OU was paced by freshman Courtney Paris in the quarterfinal win over Iowa State. Paris had a career-high and Big 12 Championship record 36 points, to go along with 16 rebounds and six blocks. The rookie has 461 rebounds and 106 blocks, both of which are NCAA freshman single season rebounds.

No. 2-seed Baylor and No. 3-seed Texas A&M also reached the semis and will meet in the 8:30 game on Thursday. The winner of both semifinals will advance to the Saturday 6 p.m. CST, title game.

Setting The Scene
Date: Thursday, March 9. 2006
What: Big 12 Championship
Location: Dallas
Arena: Reunion Arena
Opponent: No. 4 Seed Missouri
Tipoff: 6 p.m. CST
Venue: Reunion Arena
TV: Fox Sports Net
TV Talent: Kevin Eschenfelder (Play-by-play) & Debbie Antonelli
Radio: KOKC (1520 AM)
Radio Talent: Brian Brinkley (Play-by-Play) & Tara DeGiusti
Tickets: www.ticketmaster.com

Player To Watch
First she broke the 18-year old NCAA freshman single season blocks record, then she went to work on the Big 12 Championship record books. Courtney Paris' 36 points, 16 field goals, 26 field goal attempts and 6 blocks either broke or tied tourney records in each category. After the unforgettable debut the center remains in the spotlight as she chases 700 points and 500 rebounds.

Quarterfinals & Iowa State Leftovers
(AP) - Erin Higgins made a 3-pointer with 49 seconds remaining to help lift No. 8 Oklahoma past pesky Iowa State 78-74 Wednesday and advance to the Big 12 tournament semifinals.

Though freshman Courtney Paris scored a season-high 36 points, the top-seeded Sooners needed Higgins to bail them out. Brittany Wilkins scored with 1:05 left to cap a 16-3 run and give the ninth-seeded Cyclones a 74-73 lead.

But Higgins' 3 from the top of the circle put the Sooners (27-4) ahead for good, 76-74. Laura Andrews made two free throws in the final 24 seconds and Paris blocked Wilkins' layup attempt with 10 seconds remaining to seal Oklahoma's 15th consecutive win.

Paris, whose previous game-high was 32 points against Texas on Jan. 25, added 16 rebounds and six blocked shots. Teammate Chelsi Welch scored 13 points.

Wilkins had a career-high 28 points for Iowa State (17-12), while Lyndsey Medders had 15 points and 12 assists.

The Sooners established their inside game early as Paris had 12 points in the first 10 minutes. Iowa State coach Bill Fennelly tried Wilkins and Megan Ronhovde guarding Paris, and he also went to a zone, but Paris dominated the paint in the first half.

While Paris was going 9-for-15 from the field in the opening half to account for the bulk of Oklahoma's points, Iowa State got at least seven points from four different players and the Cyclones trailed 37-35 at halftime.

Postgame Notes
OU head coach Sherri Coale won the 200th game of her career. Her current career mark during 10 years with OU is 200-112 (.641)

With six blocks, Courtney Paris broke the NCAA freshman single season block record and improved her season total to 106. She surpassed Kathy Gilbert, who had set the mark at 101 in 1987-88.

Paris also broke the Big 12 single season block record, surpassing Texas Tech great Cisti Greenwalt who had 105 last season.

Thanks to 16 field goals against Iowa State, Paris was also able to break the OU single season record for field goals made with 280.

Paris' 36 points are the most points scored in a game in the history of the Big 12 Championship. The previous record was 32 points by Tera Bjorklund (Colorado) and Nicole Kubik (Nebraska).

Paris' 16 rebounds are tied for third-most boards by a player in a Big 12 Championship game.

Paris' 16 made field goals are a Big 12 Championship single game record.

Paris' field goal attempts (26) are a Big 12 Championship single game record

Paris' six blocks tied the Big 12 Championship single game record.

This season Paris has broken 27 OU records, seven Big 12 records, three Big 12 Championship records and two NCAA records.

Paris has recorded a double-double in 23 straight games and 28 games overall this season. She has scored in double figures every game this season (31 games). She has also grabbed 10 or more rebounds in 28 games this season and in 23 straight.

OU's eight team blocks are tied for second-most by a team in a Big 12 Championship game.

Chelsi Welch was OU's second leading scorer with 13 points, which marks the 15th time this season that she has scored in double figures.

Erin Higgins became the OU career 3-point attempts leader. Shehas 545 career attempts from behind the arc.

Coale Notches Win No. 200
The Sooners semifinal win over Iowa State clinched win No. 200 for Oklahoma head coach Sherri Coale. The Sooner mentor owns a career record of 200-112, which translates into a winning percentage of .642 Her career win total ranks sixth among Big 12 coaches.

600, 400 & 100
Courtney Paris is the only player in Big 12 history to collect 600 points, 400 rebounds and 100 blocks in a season.

700, 500 & 100
Courtney Paris is on pace to become the only player in NCAA history to collect 700 points, 500 rebounds and 100 blocks in a season. Currently she has 664 points, 461 rebounds and 106 blocks. The milestone is well within reach considering she averages 21.4 points and 14.9 rebounds per game.

Only two players have collected 500 rebounds in the 25-year history of the NCAA. Wanda Ford of Drake had 534 rebounds in 1984-85 and 506 rebounds in 1985-86. Anna Donovan had 504 boards in 1983.

Big 12 History
The Oklahoma Sooners went 8-8 in the Big 12 last season and finished in a tie for sixth place. All-time, OU has a 97-63 (.606) Big 12 record under head coach Sherri Coale. The Sooners have won four regular season titles (2000, 2001, 2002, 2006) and two conference tournaments (2002, 2004). The Sooners were picked to finish fourth in the Big 12 Coaches Preseason Poll this season, behind No. 1 Baylor, No. 2 Texas and No. 3 Texas Tech.

This season Oklahoma became the first team in Big 12 history to run the table to a perfect 16-0 record in league play. OU has won 17 straight conference games dating back to 2004-05. The Sooners own the conference winning streak record of 18, which was set from 2000-01 to 2001-02.

Overall, OU is 54-26 (.675) in Big 12 games played at the Lloyd Noble Center and 44-37 (.543) in conference road contests.

OU is 12-7 overall in the Big 12 Championship and 6-1 as the No. 1 seed. Missouri and OU have never met in the Big 12 Championship.

Streaks
3 Wins over ranked teams
7 Road Wins
6 NCAA Tournament Berths
8 Road Big 12 wins
8 Home Big 12 wins
8 Home wins
8 Winning seasons
15 Wins
17 Big 12 regular season wins
18 Consecutive wins over Big 12 teams
20 Starts for Britney Brown
18 Weeks in AP and Coaches Polls
18 The Big 12 record, set by OU (2001 to 2002) for consecutive conference wins over two seasons
23 Double-Doubles for Courtney Paris
31 Double figure scoring games for Courtney Paris
31 Starts for Courtney Paris
81 Starts for Leah Rush
92 Games with a made 3-pointer

A Look Back - OU 88, Mizzou 73
(AP) Courtney Paris recorded her 15th straight double-double with 27 points and 16 rebounds to help No. 11 Oklahoma end Missouri's 11-game home winning streak with an 88-73 victory on Feb. 4.

The 6-foot-4 freshman has 20 double-doubles, tying a Big 12 record set by Angie Welle of Iowa State in 2001-02, in the first 23 games for Oklahoma (19-4, 9-0 Big 12). The consecutive games streak already is a conference record.

Paris, who missed much of the second half after getting her fourth foul and also was rested during the Sooners' dominant first half, entered the game leading the nation with 14.7 rebounds per game and averaging 21 points.

LaToya Bond scored 30 points and Christelle N'Garsanet 16 for Missouri (16-5, 6-3), which had the longest home winning streak in the conference. The Tigers, who were the first also-ran in the last Top 25 poll, shot only 34 percent in the first half.

Missouri's home streak was the third ended by Oklahoma in the last three games. The Sooners previously halted perfect runs of 13 games at Texas A&M and 25 games at Baylor, and earlier in the season ended streaks of 21 games at Iowa State and 16 at New Mexico.

Chelsi Welch added 17 points and was 3-for-4 from 3-point range for Oklahoma, which has won seven in a row overall. Paris' twin sister Ashley had 14 points and seven rebounds.

Courtney Paris nearly had a double-double after the first 8 1-2 minutes when she had 10 points and eight rebounds, before getting rested late in the half. The Sooners shot 51 percent and ended the half with a midcourt shot at the buzzer by Kendra Moore after the last of Missouri's 11 turnovers for a 47-27 lead.

Postgame Notes
OU improved to 8-0 when two players score 15 or more points. The Sooners also improved to 10-0 when scoring 80 points.

Kendra Moore was three points off a career high with 11 in the first half, including a buzzer beating 3-pointer from one step inside the half court line to end the half.

Chelsi Welch posted 17 points. Welch also knocked down three 3-pointers, marking the third time in 2005-06 that she had knocked down at least three treys in a game.

Paris moved up to No. 4 on the Big 12 single-season rebounding list, at that point she had 339.

Keep An Eye On...
Courtney Paris already has the NCAA freshman single season rebounding and blocks record and she has a chance at the bigger prize as well. The NCAA single season rebounding record is 534, a number that would take Paris fives games to reach at her current pace (14.8 RPG). Paris currently has 461 and is 73 shy of tying the mark.

The NCAA lists the top-13 single season rebounders in the official record books and every one of them came during the 1980's.

Paris entered that list after the March 8 game against Iowa State and moved up to No. 9 with 461 boards this season. She is right behind basketball legend Cheryl Miller, who had 474 as a freshman at USC.

University of Oklahoma Athletics

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