OU Basketball: No. 13 Oklahoma Preparing to Handle 'Incredible Environment' Against No. 7 LSU

Oklahoma is leaning on the tough lessons learned against No. 2 South Carolina ahead of Thursday's matchup in Baton Rouge.
Oklahoma's Payton Verhulst
Oklahoma's Payton Verhulst / SARAH PHIPPS/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
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Oklahoma’s last major SEC test didn’t quite go to plan. 

The Sooners’s meeting with Dawn Staley’s South Carolina juggernaut quickly turned into a nightmare, with the No. 2-ranked Gamecocks throttling OU 101-60.

Last Sunday, Jennie Baranczyk’s No. 13-ranked Sooners bounced back with a 86-55, but attention was immediately fixed on another massive task. 

Thursday OU reunites with a villain of old, coach Kim Mulkey, and No. 7 LSU. 

The contest won’t resembled the battles of old between Mulkey and Sherri Coale, but it will represent another road challenge for Oklahoma.

“The SEC’s different… It’s true,” Baranczyk said on Sunday. “You know, you’re playing on a professional stage. Not because of NIL but because you’re playing against future pros day-in and day-out. So there is a difference there. What we got to see (against South Carolina) was elite playing elite. And what we got to feel was elite playing elite. And we saw an arena that had 18,000 people there… It was an incredible environment for women’s basketball. 

“… Life doesn’t always give you a one week notice that you get to re-live the same thing. We’re going to go to LSU and have the same environment. Not the same team, not the same style of play, different coaches, different players, but same environment.”


How to Watch No. 13 Oklahoma vs. No. 7 LSU

  • When: Jan. 30
  • Where: Pete Maravich Assembly Center in Baton Rouge, LA
  • Time: 6 p.m.
  • Channel: ESPN2

The Sooners won’t have to battle 10 McDonald’s All-Americans like they did against South Carolina, but Flau’Jae Johnson, Aneesha Morrow and Mikaylah Williams still form a lethal trio for the Tigers. 

Those three, along with guard Kailyn Gilbert, are all averaging at least 10 points per game for LSU, posing another tough test for OU’s defense. 

Despite the rough outing against the Gamecocks, Oklahoma center Raegan Beers did find some confidence in the second half. 

She rolled that into a strong showing against Georgia, and guard Payton Verhulst found her scoring touch again back in Norman. 

Baranczyk said her team owned the shortcomings against South Carolina, and did a nice job of just getting back to work ahead of the Georgia game — a process they’ll have to replicate before taking on LSU. 

“It’s one game. And this is what we talked about all week. I don’t care if we win or lose on (against Georgia), I care if we keep getting better every day as we continue to go forward,” Baranczyk said. “So it’s going to depend on how we show up tomorrow in practice. It’s going to depend on the next day that we show up. And we have to continue to do that because if we want to represent Oklahoma the way we want to represent in the SEC Conference, we don’e get to pick and choose days anymore.”

That message was well received by the entire team, sophomore forward Sahara Williams said. 

“I think we all just decided to hold each other to higher standards,” she said. “Never make excuses… But just always having each other’s back. You can fall down 100 times but getting up and responding is what matters.”

Oklahoma’s process will be put to the test at 6 p.m. on Thursday, and it’ll be another benchmark to see how far Baranczyk’s team has come and how far they still have to go before the NCAA Tournament. 

“We (weren’t) ready for that environment, so now we know what we’ve got to get ready for in terms of environment,” Baranczyk said. “That’s something that life doesn’t always teach you, so what an incredible lesson.”


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Ryan Chapman
RYAN CHAPMAN

Ryan is managing editor at Sooners On SI and covers a number of sports in and around Norman and Oklahoma City. Working both as a journalist and a sports talk radio host, Ryan has covered the Oklahoma Sooners, the Oklahoma City Thunder, the United States Men’s National Soccer Team, the Oklahoma City Energy and more. Since 2019, Ryan has simultaneously pursued a career as both a writer and a sports talk radio host, working for the Flagship for Oklahoma sports, 107.7 The Franchise, as well as AllSooners.com. Ryan serves as a contributor to The Franchise’s website, TheFranchiseOK.com, which was recognized as having the “Best Website” in 2022 by the Oklahoma Association of Broadcasters. Ryan holds an associate’s degree in Journalism from Oklahoma City Community College in Oklahoma City, OK.