WBB Game Preview: Sooners Host Mississippi State in SEC Home Opener

Sunday, January 4

Norman, Okla.

2 PM

University of Oklahoma

Mississippi State

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WBB Game Preview: Sooners Host Mississippi State in SEC Home Opener

January 03, 2026 | Women's Basketball

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By: OU Athletics Communications

NORMAN — No. 8 Oklahoma (13-1) hosts its first SEC home game on Sunday when it welcomes Mississippi State (14-1) to Lloyd Noble Center.

Tip is set for 2 p.m. CT on SECN+ with Chad McKee and Bryndon Manzer calling the action. Fans can tune in on the Sooner Sports Radio Network (107.7 FM) with Brian Brinkley and Carolyn Baker or listen in Spanish with Luis Rendon on Los Sooners Radio (1560 AM). Both radio broadcasts will also stream on the Varsity App.

Sunday's matchup is the only game of the weekend featuring two teams riding winning streaks of 10 or more, as Oklahoma enters on a 12-game run while Mississippi State has won 10 straight.

Tickets are still available and can be purchased for just $5 via OU's Holiday Sale. Fans also have the opportunity to sit in the student section for $15, as University of Oklahoma students are on break.

FAN INFORMATION AND HOW TO FOLLOW

Doors open at 1 p.m. CT at Lloyd Noble Center, with tip scheduled for 2 p.m. The game will air on SEC Network+ and on the Sooner Sports Radio Network.

Fans can follow live stats throughout the game, and tickets remain available.

To celebrate the New Year, fans can pick up trading cards of all 11 OU women's basketball players, which can be signed during the postgame autograph session on the court.

(8) Oklahoma vs. Mississippi State
Date: Sunday, Jan. 4
Tip Time: 2:00 p.m. CT
Location: Norman, Okla.
Arena: Lloyd Noble Center

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GAME NOTES

LAST TIME OUT

Oklahoma (13-1, 1-0 SEC) won its 12th straight game on Thursday night, defeating Texas A&M, 72-50, in College Station to open SEC play. The 12-game winning streak is the program's second longest, trailing only a 20-game run in 2008-09. The win also extended OU's road winning streak to six dating back to last season, the fifth-longest active streak in the country.

OU's defense again showed why it ranks among the nation's elite, holding Texas A&M to 50 points, the lowest opponent total in a conference game for the Sooners since 2020. Oklahoma, which entered the day second nationally in opponent field goal percentage, limited the Aggies to 26% shooting, 15% below their season average. Freshman Aaliyah Chavez shined in her SEC debut, scoring a game-high 20 points on 8 of 18 shooting while matching a career high with seven rebounds and adding six assists, two steals and a +20 plus-minus in 34 minutes.

THE STARTING FIVE NOTES

• Oklahoma boasts one of the nation's most explosive offenses, ranking second nationally at 94.5 PPG and fifth in assists per game (21.6 APG). The Sooners' starting five ranks second in the country in scoring at 72.1 PPG, trailing only No. 3 South Carolina. All five starters average double figures, led by Aaliyah Chavez (19.0 PPG) and Raegan Beers (17.6 PPG). OU ranks top-five nationally in fast break points (20.9), second-chance points (18.1) and paint points (47.1), while also sitting 16th in ORTG (115.7).

• Oklahoma enters riding a 12-game winning streak, the second-longest in program history behind only the 2008-09 Final Four team's 20-game run. Over the stretch, the Sooners have been historic, reaching 100 points a program-record six times and averaging 98.3 points per game. OU is outscoring opponents by 39.4 points per contest, shooting nearly 20% better than the opposition with four Power Five wins and two over ranked foes.

• Oklahoma owns two Quad 1 wins (NC State, Oklahoma State) and one Quad 2 victory (Texas A&M). The Sooners' two Q1 wins are tied for eighth nationally, while their three combined Q1–Q2 wins rank 15th. Wins Above Bubble (WAB), a key NCAA selection metric, measures wins above an average bubble team. Oklahoma's 2.13 WAB ranks 18th nationally.

• Star freshman Aaliyah Chavez is one of only four players nationally – and the only freshman – averaging at least 19.0 points, 4.5 assists and 4.0 rebounds per game. She is on pace to join Hannah Hidalgo, Paige Bueckers and Caitlin Clark as freshmen since 2009 to average 19.0 PPG, 4.5 APG and 4.0 RPG.

SERIES HISTORY

Sunday marks the fourth all-time meeting between Oklahoma and Mississippi State, and the third of the Baranczyk era. OU leads the all-time series 2-1, but the teams have split the matchups since 2021, with OU winning in 2021 and Mississippi State claiming a win in SEC play last season.

UP NEXT

The Sooners remain in Norman to host No. 14 Ole Miss (14-2, 1-0 SEC) at Lloyd Noble Center on Thursday at 6 p.m. on SEC Network+.

OU defeated the Rebels last season in Oxford, 66-56, without Raegan Beers playing in the game. Since 2021, OU is 3-0 against Ole Miss, winning each game by exactly 10 points. OU's road ahead remains daunting, as OU's next four games after the Mississippi State departs Norman all come against top-15 teams with a combined 56-5 (.918) record.