OU looking forward to having home-court advantage in NCAA Tournament 

A year ago, OU just seven points away from reaching the Sweet 16. 

The Sooners fell to fourth-seeded Indiana 75-68 in Bloomington in the Round of 32. They trailed by only 2 with 40 seconds remaining. Having to play on the road in front of a soldout crowd was a major factor in the close loss.

This year, the Sooners will get to experience that home court advantage in Norman. And they’re hoping it can help them reach the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2013.

“I think from our experience last year, honestly, we saw how big and how much it impacted Indiana being able to play at home,” senior guard Payton Verhulst said. “I think that kind of maybe gave them the push they needed to get past that second round.. We’re real excited. We took care of business during non-con and during conference this year to put us in a position to host. We’re excited, and I know that we can rely on our fans to be able to show up tomorrow. I know that Jennie and our staff and everyone has done everything they can to try and get as many people here as possible. I think it’s a big deal and something that matters when it comes to getting past the second round.”

This season, the Sooners have earned the right to host an NCAA regional as a No. 3 seed. OU boasts a 25-7 record, with six top-25 wins. It wasn’t always easy though, as they struggled in January, losing to Texas, South Carolina and LSU. 

But before falling to South Carolina in the semifinals of the SEC Tournament, Oklahoma won nine in a row. 

“You can see us continuing to grow this year just at a different level,” coach Jennie Baranczyk said. “And I think what’s really going to come to fruition here is to see the lessons that we actually did learn and a lot of the firsts this year. You’re in the SEC. We fall on our face a lot. Had to get up, had to keep going. We’re not afraid of it. We’re not afraid to continue to grow resiliency skills. We’re not afraid to lose a close game last year like we did in the NCAA Tournament and like we did the year before, too.”

Standing in Oklahoma’s way is 14-seeded Florida Gulf Coast and the winner of 6-seeded Iowa and 11-seeded Murray State. The Sooners faced FGCU in the first round last season, winning 73-70 after trailing by 10 in the first half. 

“They’re the team you don’t really want to play in the NCAA Tournament. That’s the team you circle that you don’t want to play,” Baranczyk said. “At the same time, I’m really excited to be able to see us step on the floor and play somebody else. We’ve had a couple of weeks off. Also, we’ve played in a different conference to prepare you in a little different way too.”

OU will have its hands full on Saturday and Monday, if the Sooners advance.

But OU should have some help from Sooner Nation, which it didn’t have a year ago.

“Our coaching staff, our supporting staff have done a phenomenal job of promoting this,” junior center Raegan Beers said. “It’s not every day you get to host March Madness, and it’s a cool and unique opportunity we have. So our staff has done a phenomenal job of getting it out there and getting as many people as out here as possible. As Payton says, truly an advantage. We felt it at South Carolina and the SEC tournament. It felt like a home game in the third game for them. To have that environment to play in is super fun. Not only that, as Payton said, we’ve worked hard to put us in a position to host.

“We’re excited to put on another show for you tomorrow. This is why we do it. This is why we play. We want you to come. We want you to have fun. So be there Saturday.”