Oklahoma
Controversial ending makes loss to Oklahoma even harder for Texas women’s basketball
NORMAN, Okla. — Following a 71-70 loss to Oklahoma at the Lloyd Noble Center on Wednesday evening, the Texas Longhorns chose to blame themselves.
Referees make for good scapegoats, though, and it’s unlikely that many Texas fans would have minded if some burnt-orange ire was directed toward the officials. But that wasn’t the tactic Madison Booker used when she was asked if she was fouled on the game’s final play.
“Did I get fouled? I really don’t know,” the freshman guard said.
“That’s a good answer,” said UT coach Vic Schaefer, who was seated to Booker’s right at the postgame press conference.
What about the controversial traveling call on Booker that set up the game-winning sequence for Oklahoma?
“We can say ‘the refs’ all we want, but I think we kind of got riled up at the end when those two calls happened,” Booker said. “I think we were just thinking about other things than just getting a rebound. A lot of factors was affecting us and our mental.”
In the end, Texas wasn’t beaten by the officiating crew. The Longhorns were done in by Sooners Lexy Keys, Skylar Vann and Payton Verhulst.
Keys hit the game-winning 3-pointer with 4.5 seconds left to lift Oklahoma to a one-point victory that secured the Big 12’s outright championship. The Sooners split last year’s conference championship with Texas, but they had last finished a season alone atop the Big 12 standings in 2009.
“First, just congratulate Oklahoma on winning the championship,” Schaefer said. “It’s awfully hard to do and coach (Jennie) Baranczyk and her team played really hard tonight and made one more play than we did.”
A wild ending to a wild game
Oklahoma was playing catch-up for much of Wednesday’s game, but Texas failed to take advantage of a 15-point lead that it built in the first half and the nine-point edge it held with 8:56 remaining. And Texas still led by three points before the wild sequence that ended the game.
With 26 seconds left, Vann made one of two free throws. The miss came on Vann’s second attempt and that set off a wild scramble for the ball. Oklahoma point guard Nevaeh Tot eventually got her hands on it, but her subsequent layup attempt missed and Booker grabbed the rebound. Booker, however, was called for traveling as she tried to scoot upcourt even though replays suggested that she may not have had possession of the ball in the first place.
“I’ll have to go back and look at it, but I’m really disappointed that something like that happens in a game of this magnitude from the vantage point that was made from,” Schaefer said. “I can’t really comment on that.”
Following the turnover, Vann missed twice. But after her second miss, Vann beat UT guard Shaylee Gonzales to the loose ball and was able to save it from going out of bounds with a pass to an open Keys, who then nailed the decisive 3-pointer.
“We had the opportunity to grab the rebound, it fumbled,” Gonzales said. “It’s just very unfortunate. We worked super hard to prepare for this game and we thought we had it. Unfortunately, we just didn’t end with the win.”
Sooners made the most of their second chances
Oklahoma finished with a 21-5 edge in offensive rebounds and scored 13 second-chance points. Oklahoma shot just 35.7% from the field.
“Twenty-one offensive boards was our Achilles,” Schaefer said.
After Keys knocked down her big shot, Texas called a timeout and drew up one last play. Booker drove to the basket after the inbounds pass, but Vann collapsed defensively and Texas was unable to get off a good look.
Booker finished with a game-high 26 points and also contributed seven assists and eight rebounds. Gonzales and Jones each added 10 points, but the two veterans combined to attempt just two shots in the second half.
Verhulst led the Sooners with 18 points while Keys scored 16. Despite being the shortest player on the court on Wednesday, the 5-foot-3 Tot led all players with her 10 rebounds and she also distributed eight assists.
Oklahoma, which recorded a 91-87 win over UT in Austin last month, will close out its regular season at Kansas on Saturday. Texas can secure the second seed in the Big 12 tournament by beating BYU this weekend.
“There’s still so much in front of us,” Texas guard Shay Holle said. “We’ve got to learn from it, but we can’t mope. Got to put our head down and go to work.”
Oklahoma
What channel is OU football vs Navy on today? Time, TV schedule to watch Armed Forces Bowl
Oklahoma football has one more shot to close out its 2024 season on a high note.
The Sooners (6-6) take on Navy (9-3) in the Armed Forces Bowl at 11 a.m. CT Friday in Amon G. Carter Stadium, located on the TCU campus in Fort Worth, Texas, with a chance to finish 2024 with a winning record. Oklahoma earned a clutch upset victory over Alabama on Nov. 23 to become bowl-eligible and keep alive the second-longest bowl streak in the nation.
The last time the Sooners played, LSU defeated them 37-17 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The team will look to bounce back and close out coach Brent Venables’ third year with a winning record. He has a 22-16 record with Oklahoma.
Watch Armed Forces Bowl live with Fubo (free trial)
Navy defeated Army 31-13 to earn the Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy on Dec. 14, having defeated Air Force earlier in the season. The Midshipmen are seeking their first 10-win season since 2019. Navy is 1-0 all-time vs. Oklahoma, earning a 10-0 win on Oct. 2, 1965, in Norman.
Here’s how to watch the Oklahoma vs. Navy game, including time, TV schedule and streaming information:
What channel is Oklahoma vs Navy on today?
- TV channel: ESPN
- Livestream: ESPN app | Fubo (free trial)
The Sooners will take on the Midshipmen on ESPN. Courtney Lyle (play-by-play) and Rene Ingoglia (analyst) will be on the bowl matchup broadcast.
The game can also be streamed on the ESPN app (with a cable login) or Fubo, which carries the ESPN family of networks and offers select users a free trial.
Oklahoma vs Navy time today
- Date: Friday, Dec. 27
- Start time: 11 a.m. CT
Oklahoma and Navy will play at 11 a.m. CT at Amon G. Carter Stadium, located on the TCU campus in Fort Worth, Texas.
Oklahoma vs Navy predictions, picks, odds
Odds courtesy of BetMGM as of Thursday, Dec. 26
- ODDS: Oklahoma (-3)
- O/U: 43.5
- Moneyline: Oklahoma (-155) | Navy (+130)
Prediction: Oklahoma 24, Navy 20
Oklahoma football schedule 2024
- Friday, Aug. 30: vs. Temple (W, 51-3)
- Saturday, Sept. 7: vs. Houston (W, 16-12)
- Saturday, Sept. 14: vs. Tulane (W, 34-19)
- Saturday, Sept. 21: vs. No. 6 Tennessee* (L, 25-15)
- Saturday, Sept. 28: at Auburn* (W, 27-21)
- Saturday, Oct. 5: BYE
- Saturday, Oct. 12: vs. No. 1 Texas* (L, 34-3)
- Saturday, Oct. 19: vs. South Carolina* (L, 35-9)
- Saturday, Oct. 26: at No. 18 Ole Miss* (L, 26-14)
- Saturday, Nov. 2: vs. Maine (W, 59-14)
- Saturday, Nov. 9: at No 24 Missouri* (L, 30-23)
- Saturday, Nov. 16: BYE
- Saturday, Nov. 23: vs. Alabama* (W, 24-3)
- Saturday, Nov. 30: at LSU* (L, 37-17)
- Friday, Dec. 27: vs. Navy (Armed Forces Bowl)
- Record: 11-2, 2-6 SEC
* Denotes SEC game
Navy football 2024 schedule
- Saturday, Aug. 31: vs. Bucknell (W, 49-21)
- Saturday, Sept. 7: vs. Temple* (W, 38-11)
- Saturday, Sept. 14: BYE
- Saturday, Sept. 21: vs. No. 23 Memphis* (W, 56-44)
- Saturday, Sept. 28: at UAB* (W, 41-18)
- Saturday, Oct. 5: at Air Force (W, 34-7)
- Saturday, Oct. 12: BYE
- Saturday, Oct. 19: vs. Charlotte* (W, 51-17)
- Saturday, Oct. 26: vs. No. 11 Notre Dame (L, 51-14)
- Saturday, Nov. 2: at Rice* (L, 24-10)
- Saturday, Nov. 9: at South Florida* (W, 28-7)
- Saturday, Nov. 16: vs. Tulane* (L, 35-0)
- Saturday, Nov. 23: BYE
- Friday, Nov. 29: at East Carolina* (W, 34-20)
- Saturday, Dec. 14: vs. No. 18 Army (W, 31-13)
- Friday, Dec. 27: vs. Oklahoma (Armed Forces Bowl)
- Record: 9-3, 6-2 AAC
* Denotes AAC game
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Oklahoma
Oklahoma State’s Star WR Might be Most Difficult to Replace
Oklahoma State has plenty of talent to replace next season, but no one will be more difficult to replace than its star receiver.
Over the past few years, no one has embodied the OSU program better than Brennan Presley. Since he stepped on the field for the first time in 2020, he has been a symbol of consistency for the Pokes.
Although he has played significant roles on a couple of OSU teams that made the Big 12 Championship, he had no issues staying focused throughout the three-win campaign in 2024. In a season where it was easy to find the negatives in just about everything the Cowboys did, Presley remained a bright spot. Entering the season on the Biletnikoff watch list, Presley finished his final collegiate season with 90 catches for 767 yards and seven touchdowns.
The reason Presley will be so difficult to replace is not only because of his impressive numbers each season but also because of how consistent he has been at putting those numbers up.
His consistency led to him breaking the Cowboys’ all-time receptions record in 2024, becoming the first player to cross the 300-catch mark in an OSU uniform by ending his career with 315.
Without Presley out there to be a reliable target next season, there will be some growing pains for whoever suits up under center. Along with always being available for a pass, Presley could be used in a variety of ways.
While it wasn’t his best ability, Presley was also occasionally used as a rusher throughout his career. He ended his OSU tenure with 30 rush attempts for 160 yards and six touchdowns, with most of his carries used as a wrinkle near the goal line.
Of course, the five-year Cowboy was well-known for his ability to return on special teams. His most notable was a kickoff return touchdown in Bedlam in 2021, and 1,667 kick and punt return yards helped him break 5,000 career all-purpose yards.
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Oklahoma
Oklahoma 8-year-old girl missing, father dead after SUV crash in Texas flood
An 8-year-old Oklahoma girl is still missing in Texas after floodwaters carried away the family SUV on Christmas Eve.
According to local reports in Sherman, Texas, the SUV ran off the road into a drainage ditch before succumbing to the flood. The Sherman Police Department said six people were inside the vehicle when it crashed.
Four family members were rescued. CBS News reported that the missing girl’s father, Will Robinson, did not survive. Robinson was a coach for the Durant High School Lady Lions basketball team.
By the afternoon of Christmas Day, searchers had covered seven miles of creek in the area without success.
“We are shifting our focus into the county, targeting some possible locations where we have not looked to as yet,” the department wrote on Facebook Wednesday. “Our search will continue until dark today, then we will resume searching again (Thursday) before daylight.”
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