OU Women Escape With Two-Point Win over Texas Tech

The Sooners did not make a field goal in the final five minutes, but still managed to hold on.

Thursday, May 26th 2011, 12:16 pm

By: News On 6

OU Women Escape With Two-Point Win over Texas Tech

Originally Published: Mar 9, 2011 10:57 PM CDT

Corey DeMoss
Oklahoma Sports Staff Writer

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The Oklahoma women withstood a late scare Wednesday and escaped with a 71-69 victory over Texas Tech in the Big 12 Championship.

The Sooners led by two with 11 seconds left in the game and had a chance to put things away. But Aaryn Ellenberg missed a jumper and Texas Tech pulled down the rebound for one last shot to tie the game.

With time winding down, Chynna Brown charged toward the basket but lost control of the ball. It bounced into the hands of Whitney Hand as she fell to the floor, but she managed to pass it from her back. The Sooners took possession and ran out the clock to seal the win.

The teams were tied at 66 with five minutes left in the game, and both offenses struggled after that. The Sooners missed their last four shots and did not make a field goal for the rest of the game, but Texas Tech could not take advantage.

The Red Raiders went 1-for-10 from the field in the last five minutes and committed three costly turnovers. The bad finish led to both teams shooting 39 percent from the field on the night, and both teams had only one player make more than half of her shots.

Danielle Robinson led OU with 19 points, and Carlee Roethlisberger added 18 points. Nicole Griffin also recorded a double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds.

Monique Smalls led Texas Tech with 15 points, and Casey Morris scored 13. Smalls and Roethlisberger were the two players who shot better than 50 percent.

The Sooners will now advance to the semifinals of the conference championship, where they will face Texas A&M. The No. 2 seed Aggies defeated Texas 77-50 earlier Wednesday.