Matt Hellman | Lariat Photo Editor
Krista Pirtle
Sports Writer
The best offense is a good defense, even with Brittney Griner.
In only 29 minutes she was two blocks and boards away from a triple double, scoring 27 points.
The No. 1 Lady Bears continued their reign on the hardwood, defeating the Oklahoma Sooners 81-54.
Besides three free throws Oklahoma went 0-16, unable to break the seal on the basket until 9:14 left in the game.
On the evening Baylor picked the Sooners’ pockets ten times and denied the ball’s access to the hoop 13.
Sophomore Odyssey Sims had four steals.
From these turnovers the Lady Bears scored 24 points as opposed to Oklahoma’s nine.
Griner had eight blocks on the evening and junior Brooklyn Pope contributed a pair of volleyball-esque denials herself. Sophomore Shanay Washington also threw in a pair.
“I remember a lot of blocks,” Oklahoma junior Whitney Hand said.
“They’re buying into what we teach on the defensive side of the court and taking pride in it,” Baylor Head coach Kim Mulkey said.
Behind junior Destiny Williams’ season high 15, Baylor owned the battle of the boards, pulling down 51 and the Sooners 38.
Williams has pulled down double digit rebounds in seven of the last 12 games.
Once again the depth of the Lady Bears was evident in 26 points from the bench, led by Pope with 11.
“You chose,” Pope said. “Do you want to play on national television or do you want to watch on national television?”
After losing to Baylor 89-58 in Norman, Oklahoma strutted into the Ferrell Center with no intention of letting the Lady Bears get an easy victory.
“I think this was our most physical game of the year,” Mulkey said.
Despite hard fouls and calls not going her way, Griner was a perfect 13-13 from the charity stripe, a career high.
“It’s like coach always tells me,” Griner said. “Cool head, hot game.”
In every aspect of the game, different individuals on the team are stepping up and fighting hard.
“We’re firing at all cylinders,” Mulkey said.
It has been noted that all the players in the green and gold would be starting heroes at other division one schools.
The depth is key, but the attitude coming from the bench is what brings the heat to the floor.
“It’s fine,” Pope said. “I’ll get there. I’ll continue to play well if it’s two minutes or one minute. As long as we win at the end, it doesn’t matter how many minutes I play. I’ll get mine.”
The Lady Bears return to the Ferrell Center 5 p.m. to host the Texas A&M Aggies.
Baylor will be sporting the Nike Platinum jerseys as its quest for unfinished business continues.
