Whitney Hand and the Sooners will be all smiles if they can knock off Baylor tonight. AP Photo originally posted on the OU Daily.
#13 Oklahoma (16-4, 6-1) at #1 Baylor (19-1, 6-0)Ferrell Center in Waco, TexasSooner Sports Network, COX Channel 3, ESPN Full CourtWebcast on ESPN3.comTip off at 7 PM CST
Two of the best teams in women's basketball will face off on Wednesday Night in Waco, Texas as OU visits Baylor. Coaching from the sidelines will be two of the more successful veteran coaches in the sport - Sherri Coale who is 329-147 in her 15th season at OU, and Kim Mulkey who is 283-77 in her 11th season at Baylor. It promises to be a good game, so tune in and cheer on the Sooners!
| Baylor Projected Starters | |||||
|
No.
|
Name |
Pos.
|
Ht.
|
Year
|
2010-11 Statistics |
|
0
|
Odyssey Sims |
G
|
5-9
|
Fr.
|
13.9 ppg, 2.9 rpg |
|
1
|
Kimetria Hayden |
G
|
6-0
|
So.
|
7.4 ppg, 3.2 apg |
|
5
|
Melissa Jones |
G
|
5-11
|
Sr.
|
9.3 ppg, 6.9 rpg |
|
10
|
Destiny Williams |
F
|
6-1
|
So. (RS)
|
8.2 ppg, 5.9 rpg |
|
42
|
Brittney Griner |
C
|
6-8
|
So.
|
21.9 ppg, 8.0 rpg |
| Oklahoma Projected Starters | |||||
|
No.
|
Name |
Pos.
|
Ht.
|
Year
|
2010-11 Statistics |
|
13
|
Danielle Robinson |
G
|
5-9
|
Sr.
|
19.3 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 5.4 apg |
|
3
|
Aaryn Ellenberg |
G
|
5-7
|
Fr.
|
17.1 ppg, 3.3 rpg |
|
25
|
Whitney Hand |
G
|
6-1
|
So. (RS)
|
14.9 ppg, 6.8 rpg |
|
10
|
Carlee Roethlisberger |
F
|
6-1
|
Sr.
|
6.4 ppg, 4.9 rpg |
|
53
|
Joanna McFarland |
C
|
6-3
|
So.
|
6.7 ppg, 7.9 rpg |
The Sooners lineup is a change from the days of the Paris twins and features three very talented guards. Danielle Robinson, Aaryn Ellenberg and Whitney Hand together average 51.3 points. Those three players will need to be firing on all cylinders if Oklahoma wants to have a chance to win.
A few interesting notes:
- Oklahoma is 0-9 all time in games against the AP #1 team. Five of those losses have come at the hands of Connecticut.
- Danielle Robinson is on pace to become the third top-level women' s college basketball player, and just second in NCAA Division I competition, to total 2,000 points, 700 assists and 300 steals in a career. Previously, only Dawn Staley and Nancy Lieberman had reached those benchmarks. Robinson trails the milestones by 119 points, 44 assists and 19 steals.
- Baylor leads the country in scoring margin at a +30.9 mark.
- Baylor also has a very good turnover margin. The Sooners need to limit the Bears' possessions by limiting turnovers. In Baylor's one loss (to UConn) they lost the turnover battle 14-24, and attempted 26 less shots than the Huskies. Team rebounding and smart passing will be important.