GAME PREVIEW
The winner will play in Saturday's 2:30 p.m. semifinal round. Baylor defeated 11th-seeded Colorado Thursday night to advance.
• The games of the Big 12 Championship will be televised on Fox Sports Net. Brent Stover, Debbie Antonelli and Brenda VanLengen will call the action for OU's games.
• The OU radio broadcast with Brian Brinkley and Kendra Wecker can be heard on the Sooner Sports Network (all games on KOKC 1520 AM in Oklahoma City, quarterfinals on KAKC AM 1300 and subsequent games on KTBZ 1430 AM in Tulsa) and online at SoonerSports.com through CBS College Sports All-Access.
The Teams
• Third-seeded Oklahoma is ranked No. 12 by the Associated Press and No. 12 in the USA Today/ESPN Coaches' poll.
• Sixth-seeded Baylor is ranked No. 16 in the AP and No. 18 in the Coaches'.
• Oklahoma is 21-9 overall and 11-5 in the Big 12 after routing No. 20 Oklahoma State, 95-62, Sunday, March 7, in Norman.
• Baylor is 23-8 overall and finished 9-7 in the Big 12. The Lady Bears defeated Colorado, 72-65, in the first round of the Big 12 Championship on Thursday.
The Championship
• This marks the 14th Big 12 Championship and the ninth at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City. Oklahoma is 18-9 (.667) all-time in the Big 12 Championship with the best winning percentage among all teams and four titles (2002, 2004, 2006, 2007). OU is 6-3 in the second round; 5-1 in the semifinals; 4-1 in the championship game; and 6-7 all-time in the tournament in Kansas City.
The Coaches
• Sherri Coale is 307-141 (.685) in her 14th season at Oklahoma. She has been the Big 12 Coach of the Year four times.
• Kim Mulkey is 260-74 (.779) in her 10th season at Baylor.
The Program
• OU's victory over Kansas (Jan. 23) was victory No. 300 for Sherri Coale. Coale is OU's all-time wins and winning percentage leader.
• OU's all-time program record is 631-434 (.592). OU is 146-76 (.658) all-time in Big 12 regular-season play.
PREVIEWING OKLAHOMA
The Sooners were picked by the league's coaches to finish fifth in the strong Big 12 Conference this season, but remain in the hunt for a bye in the postseason tournament.
Following a season when Oklahoma notched a program record 32 wins, won its sixth Big 12 regular season title and made its second trip to the Final Four, the Sooners had to make immediate solutions to losses of the Paris twins to graduation and star sophomore Whitney Hand to an ACL injury early in the playing season.
The Sooners are 19-7 overall and 9-3 in the Big 12 with the nation's second-toughest strength of schedule and No. 7 RPI.
THREE SOONERS ALL-BIG 12
Oklahoma's Danielle Robinson, Nyeshia Stevenson and Amanda Thompson were named to the All-Big 12 Team in a vote by the league's coaches.
Robinson, a unanimous choice, and Thompson were voted to the 10-member first team. Stevenson was selected to the second team.
Robinson was also named to the All-Defensive Team for a second consecutive season.
All-Big 12 First Team
Brittney Griner, Baylor; Alison Lacey, Iowa State; Ashley Sweat, Kansas State; Kelsey Griffin, Nebraska; Cory Montgomery, Nebraska; Yvonne Turner, Nebraska; Danielle Robinson, Oklahoma; Amanda Thompson, Oklahoma; Andrea Riley, Oklahoma State; Tanisha Smith, Texas A&M.
All-Big 12 Second Team
Danielle McCray, Kansas; Nyeshia Stevenson, Oklahoma; Tegan Cunningham, Oklahoma State; Brittainey Raven, Texas; Danielle Adams, Texas A&M.
ROBINSON ON EVERY WATCH LIST
OU junior Danielle Robinson's big play has her in the national spotlight. She's in consideration for All-America honors as well as the Naismith, Wooden and Lieberman awards.
Three Named Academic All-Big 12
Danielle Robinson (first team), Jasmine Hartman (second team) and Amanda Thompson (second team) were named to the 2010 Academic All-Big 12 Women's Basketball Team on March 4.
Thompson Climbing Rebounding Charts
Amanda Thompson passed Dionnah Jackson, who had 829, for sixth all-time on OU's career rebounding list March 2 at Texas A&M. Thompson had six rebounds in the game and now has 843 for her career.
Thompson trails Phylesha Whaley for fifth by 49 rebounds and Caton Hill, fourth all-time, by 101 boards.
Three Reach 1,000 Career Points
Sooners Danielle Robinson, Amanda Thompson and Nyeshia Stevenson have reached 1,000 career points scored this season.
Robinson scored nine points to become Oklahoma's 23rd player to reach 1,000 in a career against Marist, Dec. 9. Thompson reached 1,000 career points with a 16-point effort versus No. 1 Connecticut on Feb. 15. Stevenson scored 28 points versus Texas on Feb. 27 to reach the milestone.
Robinson Breaks Multiple FT Records
OU junior Danielle Robinson finished the 2008-09 season as one of the nation's leading free throw shooters. And this year, she is finding many of her opportunities at the line.
Robinson is 128-of-147 (.871) from the charity stripe this season, including a 91-of-95 (.958) effort in Big 12 games.
The junior broke her own OU record (previously 30 set last season) for consecutive free throws made with a streak of 35 straight that ended with a miss on her first attempt against Baylor, Feb. 10.
Against Oklahoma State on Feb. 6, Robinson made 16-of-16 free throws, breaking OU and Big 12 records for best single-game FT percentage and most consecutive single-game FT.
Stevenson Matches 3FG Record, Ends Another
Nyeshia Stevenson's nine 3-pointers made versus Marist helped her establish a new career scoring high and also matched a 28-year-old Sooner record.
The only other Sooner to make as many 3-pointers in a game was Carin Stites, who did it twice -- vs. Arkansas on Nov. 27, 1990, and vs. UT-San Antonio on Jan. 21, 1991.
Stevenson's streak of consecutive games with at least one 3-pointer ended March 2 vs. Texas A&M at 22, breaking her previous record of 9 games set last season.
Thompson One of a Kind
Senior forward Amanda Thompson, a.k.a. `The Waitress', loves to serve up people. She's only the second Sooner ever -- the other being Courtney Paris -- to record 100 blocks and 100 steals in her career. She's the only one to do so and have 250 assists.
Against Oklahoma State on Feb. 6, Thompson reached her 800th rebound and 250th career assist, making her one of OU's most prolific players, statistically, on both offense and defense.
Block Party
Amanda Thompson is the only Sooner in history under 6-foot-2 to have 30 or more blocks in a season -- a feat she has achieved three times. Thompson reached 30 blocks as a senior in 27 games and currently has 31.
Amanda Thompson had 21 blocks as a freshman, 34 as a sophomore and 31 as a junior. She ranks third all-time on OU's career blocks charts, behind only Courtney Paris (446) and LaNae Jones (243).
