OU Hosts SWOSU for Wednesday Exhibition

SW OKLA. STATE

^17/18 Oklahoma

November 4 | 7 p.m. | Norman

WEDNESDAY'S GAME BASICS

No. 17/18 Oklahoma women's basketball plays its only exhibition game of the season when it hosts Southwestern Oklahoma State on Wednesday at 7 p.m. CT at the Lloyd Noble Center. OU is starting its 20th season under head coach Sherri Coale and finished 21-12 last year. The Sooners return four starters from last season's squad that was second in the Big 12 with a 13-5 record in conference play. Southwestern Oklahoma State is coming off a 12-15 season under head coach Kelsi Musick.

ON THE AIR

Wednesday's contest will air on the Sooner Radio Network with Brian Brinkley calling the action on KOKC 1520-AM. The game will be televised by Sooner Sports TV (Fox Sports Southwest +) with Chad McKee, Dan Hughes and Jessica Coody announcing.

TICKETS

Tickets are available for $5 and $10 at the OU Athletics Ticket Office (800-456-4668) and online here. Lloyd Noble Center's north and east ticket windows will open at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday. OU students will be admitted free with a valid school I.D.

FIVE THINGS TO KNOW

• The Sooners play their first and only exhibition game of the year on Wednesday as they host Southwestern Oklahoma State at 7 p.m. CT at the Lloyd Noble Center. The game will be televised by Sooner Sports TV with Chad McKee, Dan Hughes and Jessica Coody calling the action.

• Oklahoma finished the 2014-15 season with a 21-12 overall record (13-5 Big 12; second place) and advanced to the NCAA Tournament (No. 5 seed) for the 16th consecutive year. The Sooners return four starters from last year's squad including Big 12 Freshman of the Year Gabbi Ortiz and Big 12 Newcomer of the Year Peyton Little.

• Head coach Sherri Coale begins her 20th year at the helm of the OU program. Coale has a 420-206 record at OU and has led the Sooners to three Final Four appearances, four Big 12 Tournament titles and six Big 12 regular season championships. In July, Coale was selected as an inductee for the 2016 class of the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame.

• OU brings back 11 letterwinners from last season's team that ranked 26th in the nation in scoring (74.7 points per game). The Sooners also return four of their top 5 scorers: Peyton Little (12.6 ppg), Kaylon Williams (12.2 ppg), Gioya Carter (9.9 ppg) and Gabbi Ortiz (8.2 ppg).

• Southwestern Oklahoma State, coached by Kelsi Musick, finished 12-15 last season and returns three of five starters. Jessica Penner is the Bulldogs' leading returner scorer, averaging 11.5 points per game along with 8.7 rebounds per game a year ago. Guard Jade Jones (9.5 ppg; 3.4 rpg) and forward Korina Chapman (9.9 ppg; 8.5 rpg) also return for the Bulldogs.

PREVIEWING SWOSU

• Located in Weatherford, Okla., NCAA Division II member Southwestern Oklahoma State is a school of 5,154 students that competes in the Great American Conference. The Bulldogs finished the season with a 12-15 overall record and a 9-11 (6th) mark in conference play.

• SWOSU welcomes back three starters from last year's squad. Jessica Penner is the Bulldogs' leading returning scorer and rebounder after she averaged 11.5 points and 8.7 rebounds per game.

• The Bulldogs also return Korina Chapman, who started 26 of 27 games a year ago and registered 9.9 points and 8.6 rebounds per game. Jade Jones is SWOSU's only returning starter in the back court after scoring 9.5 points per game a year ago.

• Wednesday's meeting marks the first exhibition game between OU and Southwestern Oklahoma State since the 2001-02 season. The Sooners earned an 82-46 victory behind 20 points from LaNeisha Caufield. OU's last regular season meeting against the Bulldogs was on Feb. 23, 1979 (W, 79-35).

Peyton Little averaged a team-high 12.6 points per game during the 2014-15 season with the Sooners.

YIELDING RETURNS

Thanks to the loss of just three players from last year's roster, the Sooners return the majority of their production in every statistical category for 2015-16. That includes 81 percent of the team's points and rebounds, along with 85 percent of its assists, 81 percent of its blocks and 78 percent of its steals. OU also brings back 80 percent of its made 3-point field goals and its free throw production.

Oklahoma returns four of its top five scorers from last season along with four starters. Gabbi Ortiz started all 33 games as a freshman. Kaylon Williams started 32 games while Peyton Little started 31.

Williams was second in the Big 12 last season and ranked fourth in the nation with a .596 field goal percentage, Ortiz ranked eighth in the league with 3.5 assists per game and Little was seventh in the 3-point field goal percentage (.344) and ninth in scoring (12.6 ppg). OU's back court also returns junior Gioya Carter, who led the team in free throw percentage (.793) and was third on the squad in scoring (9.9 ppg). The Midwest City, Okla., native made 26 starts during the 2014-15 season.

The Sooners bring back 11 letterwinners from last season's squad that combined to play 5,377 minutes a year ago.

UP NEXT

The Sooners open the regular season on Friday, Nov. 13 when they host Winthrop at the Lloyd Noble Center. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. and the game will be televised by Sooner Sports TV on Fox Sports Southwest +.

OU has won 16 out of its last 17 home openers at the Lloyd Noble Center dating back to the 1999-00 season. The Sooners are 31-7 all-time in home openers.

For more information on Oklahoma women's basketball, follow the Sooners on Twitter (@OU_WBBall) or like Oklahoma Sooners Women's Basketball on Facebook.