No. 15 Sooners Head to No. 6 Iowa State Saturday

¹⁵ Oklahoma

⁶ Iowa State

Saturday, Feb. 19, 2022 / 6 p.m. CT / Ames, Iowa / Hilton Coliseum

NORMAN – The No. 15/15 Oklahoma women's basketball team heads north to Ames, Iowa, Saturday for a highly-anticipated top-15 matchup with No. 6 Iowa State in a game that has major implications on the Big 12 championship race. The Sooners sit one game back of the Cyclones in the league standings as ISU is tied for first with No. 7 Baylor atop the standings.

The game is slated for a 6 p.m. tip on Big 12 Now on ESPN+ and will also air on the Sooner Radio Network with Brian Brinkley on the call.

THE STARTING FIVE

The Sooners appeared at No. 15 in the AP Poll on Monday, posting back-to-back weekly top-15 rankings for the first time since November 2017. In the NCAA Selection Committee's most recent Top 16 reveal, Oklahoma was tabbed the nation's No. 9 team and in ESPN's latest bracketology OU sits on the No. 3 line. The Sooners are one of seven teams in the country with 15 wins over NET top-100 teams and one of just five teams to post five NET top-25 wins.
The Sooners have been one of the best teams in the nation when it comes to sharing the basketball. The team's 19.3 are the fourth most in the nation. OU has hit 20+ assists a Big 12-best 12 times this season and it has dished out 25+ assists five times, which leads the nation. Oklahoma is the only team in the country to have four players with 65+ assists this season, powered by Kelbie Washington (91), Taylor Robertson (82), Nevaeh Tot (82) and Madi Williams (65). The Sooners join BYU as the only two schools with three players to have 80 assists.
Under coach Jennie Baranczyk, OU has notched four top-25 wins this season, the most ever for a first-year Sooner head coach. Two of those wins have come vs. the No. 9-ranked team in the country as OU upset then-No. 9 Texas 65-63 on Jan. 29 and then-No. 9 Baylor 78-77 a few days later on Feb. 2. The Sooners also notched wins over then-No. 16 BYU and then-No. 14 Baylor.
OU's 20-5 start to the season is its best start since the 2008-09 season when the team opened 24-2 and won 20 straight games. The 2001-02 Final Four team that will be celebrated on Feb. 26 in Norman started 22-2
The Sooners appear in the latest version of Charlie Creme's ESPN Bracketology as a No. 3 seed after starting the year as one of the "Last Four In" and a No. 11 seed. The top 16 teams host in the first two rounds of the tournament. A staple of the NCAA postseason, Oklahoma has appeared in 21 NCAA Tournaments, including 19 since the turn of the century. The Sooners' 21 appearances in the tournament are the second most in the Big 12 Conference and tied for 23rd most in NCAA history.

LAST TIME OUT

The Oklahoma women's basketball team erased a 10-point first-half deficit to enter the halftime break tied at 37 apiece but was ultimately defeated by Texas Tech, 97-87, Wednesday night in Norman. Skylar Vann was the Sooners' leading scorer Wednesday night, collecting 17 points on 50% shooting and adding six rebounds and two assists in her effort. Madi Williams was 6-of-12 shooting for 16 points and six boards, while Taylor Robertson sunk one 3-pointer and finished with 14 points and five rebounds. Sophomore guard Nevaeh Tot tied her career high with 16 points while tallying six rebounds and four assists.

SERIES HISTORY

Saturday's top-15 matchup marks the 70th all-time meeting between the Sooners and Cyclones with Oklahoma holding a 41-28 series advantage. Iowa State leads maintains a slim 16-13 lead in Ames, but are winners of the last three meetings at Hilton Coliseum. The teams split in the 2020-21 campaign with the home team winning each contest and Iowa State came to Norman this season to claim an 81-71 victory on Jan. 5. The trip to the Hawkeye State marks a return home for Sooner coach Jennie Baranczyk, who played at Iowa from 2000-04 and coached at Drake from 2012-21.

UP NEXT

The Sooners head to Fort Worth, Texas, for a game at TCU on Wed., Feb 23. Oklahoma beat the Horned Frogs 100-71 when the two met in Norman on Jan. 15.