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Payton Verhulst scores career-high in win over Missouri

headshotby:George Stoia•about 18 hours•

GeorgeStoia

Syndication: The Oklahoman
Oklahoma 's Payton Verhulst (12) goes up for a basket as Missouri's Abbey Schreacke (23) defends during the women's college basketball game between the University of Oklahoma Sooners and the Missouri Tigers at Lloyd Noble Center in Noble, Okla., Thursday, Jan., 16, 2025.

OU senior guard Payton Verhulst went nuclear in the third quarter at the Lloyd Noble Center on Thursday.

Verhulst scored 20 points in the quarter, helping the No. 13 Sooners beat Missouri 80-63. She scored a career-high 38 points on 13-of-19 shooting, including 6-of-9 from 3. Her previous high was 32, which she scored last season against ORU. Her 38 points are tied for the fifth-most in a game in school history.

“I was actually pissed she missed a couple,” coach Jennie Baranczyk said jokingly after the game.

For Verhulst, she was just in the moment, not even realizing what she was doing.

“I think it just came from the flow of the offense,” Verhulst said. “I was able to get easy looks and get to the point because my team was setting me up.”

As a team, the Sooners controlled the pace of the game from start to finish. Oklahoma shot 51.9% from the field and 45.8% from 3. Verhulst was the only Sooner to score double digits in the game, with Sahara Williams adding nine.

Starting OU center Raegan Beers returned to the starting lineup after injuring her shoulder on Sunday against Texas A&M. Beers scored only five points and did not play in the second half. Backup center Liz Scott left the game in the third quarter after taking a hand to the face. She did not return.

“Her whole face is swollen, so I don’t really have an update on that going forward,” Baranczyk said of Scott. “I don’t with Raegan, either. I know she tried it today. Obviously, you got to see her kind of try and we couldn’t have her in the second half.”

With the win, OU improved to 15-3 and 3-2 in SEC play. The Sooners will go on the road to No. 2 South Carolina on Sunday for one of the biggest games of the season. The game will be televised on ESPN at 2 p.m. CT.

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