Women's basketball: Tremendous post play key in 72-57 win against Kansas State

The Oklahoma women's basketball team was on mission to redeem themselves and break their two-loss streak by absolutely destroying any hope the Wildcats had of leaving the Lloyd Noble Center with a win.

The Sooners (19-7, 9-5 Big 12) came out firing on all cylinders, swiftly jumping out to a nine-point lead within the first five minutes of the game. From that point on, the Wildcats struggled to contain the Sooners ferocious offensive attack as the game quickly fell out of reach.

The Sooners shot an outstanding 52.5 percent from the field, which was their second-highest mark of the season. However, the Sooners played strong on defense as well, holding Kansas State to just 29.9 percent shooting from the field, and for most of the second half, it didn’t look like they would reach 40 points for the game.

Coach Coale was extremely pleased with her teams overall performance.

“It was a solid defensive performance against a team that is very, very hard to guard," she said. "Then in the second half, I thought we started to look like the team I remembered offensively.”

The Sooners played an excellent team game, but the tremendous duo of senior forward Joanna McFarland and junior center Nicole Griffin was the fuel that kept the fire burning strong. Griffin finished with 14 points, three rebounds and one block.

She had her way in the paint, playing tough physical basketball, and extended her streak of double-digit scoring games to seven. Griffin has been an absolute beast in the post, she attributes her outstanding play to being patient and more confident in her game.

“I would say I’m confident," she said. "Especially with the previous games where I have been doing a lot better in being more patient which is key for me getting better.”

McFarland, like Griffin, had another dominating performance. She had 15 points and 10 rebounds to record her fourth double-double in the last five games, boosting her total to nine double-doubles in conference play to lead the Big 12.

McFarland was an unstoppable force on both sides of the ball, especially in the second half. Her physical play was no match for the Wildcats who attempted to guard her.

“Its very important (to establish the post early)," McFarland said. "We want to be something where the team has to guard us. They have to worry about the post. If Nicole has to have a double team, that opens up a lot of things for our offense.”

The dynamic duo of McFarland and Griffin definitely proved to be effective as the Sooners avenged their previous losses with this blowout win.

The Sooners hope to continue this dominant play as they get ready for round two of the Bedlam matchup against the Cowboys in Stillwater.

Demetrius Kearney

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