Oklahoma Women Bounce Back With Gritty Win At Kansas State

After a disappointing performance on the road against West Virginia on Sunday, the Oklahoma women's basketball team was looking to rebound against Kansas State and stay in the thick of the race for second place in the Big 12.

The Sooners got the job done, holding off a pesky Wildcats team in the second half en route to a 74-68 victory.

Aaryn Ellenberg led five Sooners in double figures with 18 points, hitting 4-of-7 from 3-point range after shooting a terrible 5-for-17 against West Virginia on Sunday.

Sharane Campbell had 14 points, while Nicole Griffin added 13. Morgan Hook scored 11 points and Joanna McFarland had a double-double with 10 points and 15 rebounds.

As a team, the Sooners shot 10-for-20 from behind the arc and shot 42.1 percent for the game.

Haley Texada scored 25 points to lead the Wildcats. Mariah White scored 15 points and Brittany Chambers had a double-double with 14 points and 11 boards.

The Sooners fought off a hot KSU start from 3-point distance to take a 13-12 lead on an Ellenberg 3 with 14:02 remaining in the first half. An 11-0 spurt midway through the half gave the Sooners a 27-15 lead, one they protected all the way to halftime where they led 35-25.

Over the last minute of the first half and the first three minutes of the second, the Wildcats went on a 9-0 run to cut the 14-point OU lead to 35-30 on a free throw by White.

OU responded with a 6-0 burst, capped by a layup from Griffin to boost the lead by to 11, but the Wildcats quickly cut the lead by to single digits where it would remain for the rest of the game. The Wildcats twice cut the lead to two points, but that was as close as KSU would get.

With the win, the Sooners moved into second place by themselves at 7-3 in Big 12 play, a half-game ahead of Iowa State and Texas Tech, who are both 7-4 in the conference.

The Sooners are back in action Sunday afternoon when they host the first leg of Bedlam against Oklahoma State. Tip time from Lloyd Noble Center is set for 4 p.m.