Completed Event: Women's Basketball at #23 Alabama on February 15, 2026 , Win , 79, to, 71
Final
Women's Basketball
79
at #23 Alabama
71
University of Oklahoma Athletics
Top 10 Teams Clash Sunday
January 17, 2009 | Women's Basketball
Jan. 17, 2009
THE BATTLE FOR PERFECTION
Oklahoma and Texas A&M will battle to maintain perfect records in the Big 12 Conference standings when they meet Sunday. OU and A&M represent two-thirds of the undefeated left in the league with Baylor also sitting 2-0.
Interestingly, the four other times OU started 2-0 in conference play (2000, 2002, 2006 and 2007) they earned at least a share of the regular-season title and advance to the Sweet 16.
Texas A&M is 2-0 in the Big 12 for the first time in the league's 13-year history.
CHEER LIKE A CHAMPION SUNDAY
OU's annual Cheer Like a Champion game is schedule for Sunday, Jan. 18. The Sooners host No. 8 Texas A&M at 3 p.m. Over 12,000 white "Cheer Like a Champion" t-shirt will be placed in seats for fans to help support the Sooners.
| Game Specifics | |
| Date and Time | Sunday, Jan. 18 at 3 p.m. Central | Game Notes |
| Location | Norman, Okla. | Lloyd Noble Center |
| Tickets | OU Athletics Ticket Office | 800-456-GoOU |
| TV | Fox Sports Network COX Channel 37 in Oklahoma City |
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Radio
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SoonerSports Radio Network KOKC 1520 AM in Oklahoma City |
| Webcast | None |
| Live Stats | SoonerSports.com CBS GameTracker |
GAME PREVIEW
No. 3 Oklahoma hosts No. 8 Texas A&M Sunday, Jan. 18, at the Lloyd Noble Center in Norman. The game tips off at 3:05 p.m. The game matches two of the three teams undefeated in league play after two games. For Oklahoma, it is Cheer Like a Champion Day with over 12,000 white t-shirt available to fans to sport during FSN's national telecast.
• Oklahoma and Texas A&M are meeting for the 36th time. OU leads the all-time series 24-11.
• OU and A&M split the series last season with each team taking its home contest.
• Oklahoma head coach Sherri Coale is 267-129 (.674) in her 13th season.
• Gary Blair is 116-59 (.663) in his sixth year at A&M and 524-222 (.702) overall in his 25th year.
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ABOUT TEXAS A&M
Texas A&M continues its best start in school history with its current 14-1 overall record, including only its second win at Missouri. It also marked the program's fourth-ever victory in a league opener since the Big 12's inception in 1996-97.
Texas A&M, the defending Big 12 Tournament Champions, remain as one of three schools undefeated in league play after two games. It is the first time the Aggies have started 2-0 in the conference.
Senior Danielle Gant shot a career-best 10-for-10 from the floor and 2-for-2 from the charity stripe to end the game with a game-high 22 points versus the Tigers. Her perfect performance from the field set the A&M single-game record previously held by former player Lisa Jordon (9-of-9) versus Oregon State on Dec. 5, 1987. Gant also moved into third all-time in career rebounds in the A&M record books.
Senior Takia Starks, cousin of Tulsa native and former New York Knicks All-Star John Starks, scored 21 points in the team's victory over Texas Tech on Jan. 13. Starks was 8-for-13 from the field and collected eight rebounds. Gant scored a double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds.
Gary Blair is 116-59 (.663) in his sixth year as head coach at A&M and 524-222 (.702) overall in his 25th year.
THE ALL-TIME SERIES
• Oklahoma meets Texas A&M for the 36th time in the series' history.
• Oklahoma leads overall 24-11, including a 14-2 advantage in Norman.
• Texas A&M has won three of the past four meetings. They had won only three of the previous 16 before that.
• The Sooners and Aggies have met as ranked foes in each of their past four games, but Sunday's is the first game ever in the series when both teams are ranked in the Top 10.
• OU head coach Sherri Coale is 20-6 versus KSU, with a 11-1 mark at home. The lone loss came on Jan. 27, 2007, and ended OU's 24-game winning streak versus the Big 12.
• The average margin of victory in the past 10 games of the series is 13 points. The average margin of victory in the overall series is just 7 points.
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PREVIEWING THE OKLAHOMA SOONERS
Oklahoma begins the season with high expectations and high rankings -- No. 4 in the Preseason AP Poll and No. 7 in the Coaches' Poll. Returning for Oklahoma are 11 players, including four starters and three-time consensus All-American Courtney Paris. Big 12 Freshman of the Year Danielle Robinson will run the offense as a sophomore and teammates and coaches are raving about the prospects of Preseason Big 12 Freshman of the Year Whitney Hand.
Oklahoma again plays one of the toughest schedules in the nation with consensus No. 1 Connecticut, and top-ranked Tennessee and California as well as ranked Big 12 teams Texas A&M, Texas, Oklahoma State and Baylor on the slate.
115 GAMES, 112 DOUBLE-DOUBLES, 107 CONSECUTIVE
Courtney Paris has collected 112 double-doubles in 115 career games. She has an active streak of 107 consecutive games with a double-double. The streak began with a 22-point, 24-rebound effort versus UCLA on Dec. 5, 2005, and will be 1,144 days old when OU plays Texas A&M on Jan. 18, 2009.
OFFICIALLY A RECORD
It has long been thought that Courtney Paris' double-double numbers were NCAA records. Beginning with the 2008-09 season, those statements are now factual.
The NCAA has made single-season and career double-doubles as well as single-season and career consecutive double-doubles new records for women's basketball.
| Single-Season Double-Doubles 33 - Courtney Paris, Oklahoma, 2006 33 - Courtney Paris, Oklahoma, 2007 32 - Anne Donovan, Old Dominion, 1983 31 - Courtney Paris, Oklahoma, 2008 30 - Cheryl Taylor, Tennessee Tech, 1986 |
Single-Season Consecutive Double-Doubles 33 - Courtney Paris, Oklahoma, Nov. 12, 2006-March 25, 2007 31 - Courtney Paris, Oklahoma, Nov. 11, 2007-March 25, 2008 28 - Courtney Paris, Oklahoma, Dec. 5, 2005-March 25, 2006 18 - Cheryl Miller, Southern Cal, Nov. 28, 1984-Feb. 14, 1985 15 - Gail Koziara, Dartmouth, Jan. 16-Feb. 28, 1982 |
| Career Double-Doubles 112 - Courtney Paris, Oklahoma, 2006-Active 90 - Cheryl Taylor, Tennessee Tech, 1984-87 78 - Janet Harris, Georgia, 1982-85 75 - Sylvia Fowles, LSU, 2005-08 |
Career Consecutive Double-Doubles 107 - Courtney Paris, Oklahoma, Dec. 5, 2005-Active 19 - Anne Donovan, Old Dominion, Jan. 29, 1982-Dec. 29, 1983 18 - Cheryl Miller, Southern Cal, Nov. 28, 1994-Feb. 14, 1985 |
C. PARIS NAMED NATIONAL PLAYER OF THE MONTH
Oklahoma's Courtney Paris was named the National Player of the Month of December by the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA), which made the announcement Thursday. It is the fifth career WBCA Player of the Month for Paris. Paris averaged 17.2 points, 12.2 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 1.2 steals and 1.8 blocks in five games in December, while playing just 25.2 minutes a game. She shot 77.3 percent from the field, connecting on 33-of-44 field goal attempts.
POSTGAME LEFTOVERS
Triple Double-Double
Double-doubles by Ashley and Courtney Paris and Amanda Thompson against North Carolina on Nov. 23, 2008, marked the first time three Sooners recorded double-doubles in the same game. It happened a second time on Dec. 21, 2008, vs. Tulsa when the Parises and Danielle Robinson each tallied a double-double.
Oklahoma Sets Comeback Record
Oklahoma's comeback win against Cal set the largest deficit overcome in regulation to win a game. The Sooners trailed the Bears by 26 points with 19:01 remaining in the second half and won 86-75.
New Turnover Low
Oklahoma's eight turnovers against UConn and 10 versus Creighton set a record low in back-to-back games for Sherri Coale-coached teams. Previously, no Sooner team coached by Coale had consecutive games with fewer than 20 combined turnovers.
Offensive Output
Lost in the struggle from a 106-78 defeat to No. 1 UConn was the efficiency of OU's offense. The Sooners ripped off 85 field goal attempts while turning the ball over just eight times, matching a three-year season low. OU also connected on 56 percent of its 3-point attempts,then its best mark since the fourth game of the 2007-08 season.
Courtney Paris sets OU Scoring Record
The second-ranked Sooners never trailed at home against Arizona State, winning the Preseason WNIT semifinal, 70-57. Courtney Paris scored 19 points and 20 rebounds for her 100th career double-double and passed Phylesha Whaley as OU's career scoring leader.
More on Paris' Scoring Efficiency
Phylesha Whaley scored 2,187 points in 116 career games and an OU record 4,025 minutes played. Courtney Paris passed Whaley's mark with 2,189 points in 103 games. Paris' 3,152 minutes played to reach the record -- 873 fewer than Whaley --wasn't even in the top 10 on OU's career charts.
Rebound Record on Pace
The two-time NCAA single-season rebounding leader also passed Mississippi Valley State's Patricia Hoskins for second on the NCAA career rebounding list. With 1,729 career rebounds, Paris needs 158 to match the NCAA record.
Lucky Number Seven
Whitney Hand became just the seventh true freshman under OU head coach Sherri Coale to start in her first collegiate game, joining LaNeisha Caufield, Stacey Dales, Caton Hill, Courtney Paris, Chelsi Welch and Phylesha Whaley.
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The Greatest Comeback in NCAA History
Led by Nyeshia Stevenson's 21 second-half points, Oklahoma engineered the greatest comeback win in regulation in NCAA history against then-No. 9 California in the final game of the Basketball by the Bay Classic in San Jose, Calif., on Dec. 13. Oklahoma trailed 52-26 at the half and began a 10-0 run in the second half with 19:00 remaining. The Sooners also reeled a 28-0 run from 9:00 to 0:42 in which OU made 6-of-12 field goals and Cal missed 11 consecutive. Eleven of Stevenson's 21 points came during this run, including the tying, go-ahead and, eventually, winning field goals. OU outscored Cal in points off turnovers, 20-0, in the final period.
The only team to win from a greater deficit was Texas State, which trailed UT-San Antonio 40-8 (32 points) with 2:18 remaining in the first half and won 73-71 in overtime on Feb. 18, 2006. Texas State's halftime deficit in that game was 27 points.
Stevenson...Beyond the Arc
Junior forward Nyeshia Stevenson set an OU record by making nine consecutive 3-point field goals. Stevenson was a perfect 4-for-4 in the second half versus California and 2-for-2 in the game against Tulsa and 3-for-3 at Saint Louis for a total of nine consecutive 3-pointers made.
Stevenson has made at least one 3 in nine straight games. Erin Higgins holds OU's record for most consecutive games with at least one 3 made at 19.
As a freshman, Stevenson made just 2-of-11 (.182) 3-pointers. As a sophomore, she improved to 28-of-82 (.341). Already in 2008-09, the junior has made 24 of 55(.431) 3-point attempts and is second in the Big 12 in 3-point field goal percentage.
True to Point
Danielle Robinson's improved efficiency at point guard as a sophomore is incredible considering she was, statistically, the top freshman point guard in the nation last season, leading her to Big 12 Freshman of the Year honors. Robinson has 89 assists to 43 turnovers in 2008-09, a 2.0 assist-to-turnover ratio, and leads the team with 34 steals.
Robinson has also been spreading the ball around well, counting assists to eight teammates. Her only exceptions, injured forward Carolyn Winchester, reserve point guards Rose Hammond and Jasmine Hartman and reserve center Abi Olajuwon.
Percentage of Field Goals Assisted by Robinson
50% - Lauren Willis
37% - Whitney Hand
31% - Jenny Vining
29% - Nyeshia Stevenson
24% - Ashley Paris
21% - Carlee Roethlisberger
15% - Amanda Thompson
11% - Courtney Paris
Robinson...From the Charity Stripe
Sophomore guard Danielle Robinson leads the Big 12 Conference in free throw percentage (.917) and is 15th nationally.
The statistic is just one example of the point guard's remarkable improvement from her freshman season when she made just 68 of 99 (.687) free throws.
Simply the Best
Only two NCAA Division I programs have their football and men's and women's basketball teams ranked in the Top 25 of the AP poll -- Oklahoma and Texas. Oklahoma's football team finished the season ranked No. 5, while its men's basketball team is No. 6 and women's team is No. 3. Texas' teams are ranked Nos. 4, 11 and 16, respectively.
High Percentage
With its .487 field goal percentage, Oklahoma trails only Connecticut (.543) in the category in the NCAA national team ranking. The Sooners have shot better than 50 percent from the field in eight of 15 games this season after doing so only seven times last year. Of course, the high field goal percentages has Oklahoma scoring on more chances, which is why OU's scoring offense (82.7 points per game) is the fourth nationally.
Bench Support
Following Oklahoma's loss to Connecticut in which bench players totaled only four points, Sherri Coale issued a challenge to her reserves. They've responded in the last seven games, providing 37 percent of the team's scoring and outscoring the opponents' bench 278-83, an average of 31-9. Prior to Coale's challenge, the backups were outscored 79-100 and provided only 21 percent of OU's offensive output.
Runaways
Oklahoma has put away its last two opponents early by opening with double-digit runs. The Sooners took a 13-0 lead on North Carolina Central (Jan. 4) and then a 15-0 lead on Nebraska (Jan. 10).Those are just two of the 22 scoring runs of 10 or more points the Sooners have had this season.
OU's comeback versus California featured a 28-0 run that last from 9:00 remaining to the final 30 seconds of that game. The Sooners quickest 10-0 run lasted 2:11 over both sides of the break against No. 1 Connecticut.Oklahoma has even had three double-digit runs in one game, doing so with 12-point first half, 13-point over-the-break, and 13-point second half runs against Creighton.
PURCHASE OU BASKETBALL TICKETS
Single-game tickets for the nationally-ranked OU men's and women's basketball teams go on sale Wednesday, Nov. 19.
Tickets will first be available online at SoonerSports.com at 12:01 a.m. Phone orders begin at 8 a.m. via the OU Athletics Ticket Office at (405) 325-2424 or toll-free at (800) 456-GoOU. If supplies remain, walk-up sales at the ticket office begin at 10 a.m.
The ticket sale includes men's games against USC, Texas, Kansas and Oklahoma State and women's games against Texas A&M, Texas, Baylor and Oklahoma State.
Men's basketball single-game tickets start as low as $10 each while women's tickets are $8 for adults and $5 for youths.
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OU Basketball Single-Game Ticket Sale
Wednesday, November 19  First available at 12:01 a.m. online at SoonerSports.com, Then available at 8 a.m. by calling (800) 456-GoOU or (405) 325-2424, Then available at 10 a.m. for walk-up sales at OU Athletics Ticket Office (if tickets remain) |
OU Athletics Ticket Office
The OU Athletics Ticket Office is located on the plaza level of the Asp Avenue Parking Facility, immediately west of the Gaylord Family-Oklahoma Memorial Stadium. A limited number of metered parking spaces are available on the second floor of the parking facility and on Asp Street for customer use. The OU Athletics Ticket Office handles ticketing for all OU athletics events and is open Monday-Friday, 8 a.m.-5 p.m. | Map to Ticket Office
Phone (405) 325-2424 or toll-free: (800) 456-GoOU
Fax (405) 325-8500
Email outickets@ou.edu
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