Tisdale Scorches OU To Extend No. 6 Baylor's Winning Streak

For the second time in three games, Baylor's Kim Mulkey got picked up as she went to walk off the court after a win against a defending Big 12 co-champion. And once again, point guard Angela Tisdale was the hero.

OU couldn't keep up with Tisdale, who scored a career-high 35 points and directed the sixth-ranked Bears' decisive run in an 84-73 win against No. 11 Oklahoma on Sunday. Afterward, guard Jhasmin Player came over and lifted Mulkey off her feet.

The Baylor coach got similar treatment after a 59-56 win against Texas A&M last week, which Tisdale won with a late 3-pointer.

This one snapped a six-game losing streak to Oklahoma (11-4, 2-2 Big 12).

"I don't think it has anything to do with the six in a row,'' Mulkey said. "I'd have to look, but there's teams that have beaten us that many times. It's the mere fact that they were picked, as was A&M, to win the league and the two of them were co-champs last year.

"That probably has more of a motivation factor for us than the six in a row.''

Baylor (16-1, 4-0), which was picked to finish third in the Big 12, extended its best start in Big 12 play and won its ninth straight game overall.

"This is just one win. It's nothing more than one win,'' Mulkey said. "There's 12 more basketball games to be played. This win means nothing other than it helps us get to that ultimate goal of trying to win a Big 12 championship.

"It doesn't win a championship for you.''

Tisdale helped put some distance between the Bears and Sooners when she scored seven points in an 8-1 run midway through the second half. After sinking a 3-pointer from the top of the key, she scored a basket in transition off Melissa Jones' steal and then hit two free throws that extended Baylor's lead to 66-59 with 8 minutes remaining.

Courtney Paris cut into the lead by rebounding two of her own misses and scoring in close, and then rebounding a miss at the other end to set up Danielle Robinson's driving layup in the open court that made it 70-68.

Tisdale answered with a jumper, and the Sooners went cold from the floor before resorting to fouls down the stretch. Tisdale went 8-for-8 from the line in the final minute to seal the win.

"I thought Tisdale managed the game, took it over and ran it the way she wanted to do it,'' Sooners coach Sherri Coale said.

Paris had a season-high 28 points and 12 rebounds for her 76th double-double in a row, and Robinson scored 16 points for Oklahoma. Paris' twin sister, Ashley Paris, also had a double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds.

Rachel Allison added 17 points, Player scored 14 and Danielle Wilson blocked seven shots, including several against Courtney Paris, the Sooners' 6-foot-4 center and reigning AP player of the year.

Baylor shot 53 percent overall, the highest percentage allowed by Oklahoma this season, and went 8-for-19 from 3-point range to make up for a 50-34 deficit on the boards.

It was the second time in Big 12 play the Sooners encountered a speedy point guard and struggled to contain her. Oklahoma State's Andrea Riley scored 45 points against the Sooners in an 82-63 upset last weekend.

"It's very difficult to guard Tisdale,'' said Robinson, the Sooners' freshman point guard. "She's a great player, very athletic and quick, and it seemed like she was knocking down every shot that she took tonight. I'm definitely not that happy about how I played defensively, but she's a great player.''

Tisdale had been in a 13-for-53 slump (25 percent) over the Bears' last four games, but hit five of her first six 3-point attempts and was 9-for-12 overall before missing a few shots late. She ended up 10-for-16 for the game, and 5-for-9 from 3-point range.

"It just wasn't going in the last couple of games. They've been guarding me well,'' Tisdale said. "I got good looks tonight, and they went in.''