OU Women's Basketball Preseason Primer

NORMAN -- Oklahoma women's basketball begins official practice for the 2016-17 season on Monday. Get ready for the new year with our preseason primer.

The Sooners begin their 21st season under head coach Sherri Coale with their first practice Monday. Coale, a 2016 inductee to the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame, owns a 442-218 record at Oklahoma. She ranks first among active Big 12 head coaches with 212 conference wins and is one of two coaches to win at least four Big 12 Coach of the Year honors.

#STATCHECK

• Oklahoma returns four starters and 12 letterwinners from last year's squad that finished with a 22-11 overall record and a 11-7 mark in the Big 12 standings. The Sooners made their 17th straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament, which ranks as the fifth-longest active streak in the nation (only Tennessee, Connecticut, Stanford and Notre Dame have made more consecutive appearances among Division I teams).

• OU's four returning starters are all upperclassmen as seniors Gioya Carter, Peyton Little (honorable mention All-Big 12), Maddie Manning and junior Gabbi Ortiz played significant roles a year ago.

• Oklahoma's returning leaders: Scoring -- Peyton Little (10.9), Rebounding -- Maddie Manning, Vionise Pierre-Louis (5.2), Assists -- T'ona Edwards (3.1), Blocked Shots -- Vionise Pierre-Louis (51), Steals -- Maddie Manning (53), 3-pointers made -- Derica Wyatt (52), Free Throws made -- Vionise Pierre-Louis (84), Minutes -- Peyton Little (993).

• OU reached the 20-win plateau for the tenth time in the last 11 seasons under head coach Sherri Coale. The Sooners have won at least 20 games 14 times in Coale's 20 years at Oklahoma.

• Oklahoma's non-conference schedule includes matchups against four NCAA Tournament teams from last season (BYU, Colorado State, Kentucky and South Dakota State). The Sooners will play nine of their 14 non-conference matchups at Lloyd Noble Center. OU's first six opponents this season each won at least 20 games a year ago.

• The Sooners open the regular season with six straight games against opponents that won at least 20 games a year ago. The non-confernece schedule also includes road trips to BYU (26-7, #16 RPI) and Kentucky (25-8, #12 RPI).

Maddie Manning

• Oklahoma's non-conference slate along with its 18-game Big 12 schedule will allow the Sooners to play nine teams that were ranked inside the top 50 of the RPI to finish the 2015-16 season.

• Junior center Vionise Pierre-Louis became the third player in program history to win the Big 12's Sixth Man of the Year Award. During her sophomore season, Pierre-Louis averaged 9.3 points, 5.2 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per game. Her .577 shooting percentage and 51 blocks rank sixth and tenth in OU single-season history, respectively.

• OU's top three returning 3-point shooters (Little, Ortiz, Wyatt) combined to shoot 146-of-427 (.341) from long distance last year. All three rank just outside OU's career top-10 for made 3-pointers.

• Oklahoma's 205 made 3-pointers last season were the fourth-most by the Sooners in a single season in school history. It marked the eighth season under Coale that the Sooners recorded at least 200 triples in a one year. Over the last six years, only Iowa State (1,455) has made more shots from beyond the arc than Oklahoma (1,377).

• OU's 112 blocks were the tenth most in school history and the most in a single season since finishing with 137 rejections in 2011-12.

• Over the last 10 seasons, Oklahoma ranks second in the Big 12 in overall wins (212) and conference victories (144). The Sooners are the only team in the Big 12 to make every NCAA Tournament since 2000.

MARK YOUR CALENDAR

Monday, Oct. 10 - The OU women's basketball Fast Break Club will hold its annual preseason banquet on the main floor at Lloyd Noble Center. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. with the banquet set to begin at 7 p.m. CT. Fans will be able to interact with players and listen to Coach Coale preview the upcoming season.

Saturday, Oct. 22 - Sooner Session, the OU women's basketball coaches clinic will be held in the Sooners' practice gym on Oct. 22 from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. The clinic will begin at 8:30 a.m. CT. Registration will begin at 7:30 a.m. CT in the Chesapeake Courtside Club located above the men's and women's basketball offices. The clinic will break at noon and lunch ($7 cost) will be provided on site. Entry deadline is Friday, Oct. 14. To register, click here.

Thursday, Oct. 27 - Fans can get their first glimpse of the Sooners on Oct. 27 during their annual Fast Break Club preseason scrimmage. The event will start at 6 p.m. and admission is free.

Season tickets for the 2016-17 season are available through the OU Athletics Ticket Office. Fans can call 800-456-GOOU or click here for more information.