DePaul, Oklahoma bring contrasting styles into tournament (Mar 14, 2018)
Two of the nation's most consistent programs square off Friday in the opening round of the 2018 Women's NCAA Tournament as No. 5 seed DePaul takes on No. 12 Oklahoma at Reed Arena in College Station, Texas.
The Blue Demons (26-7) secured an automatic bid by routing Marquette 98-63 on March 6 en route to their third Big East tournament title in five seasons.
It's DePaul's 16th-consecutive NCAA Tournament berth, which ranks sixth among the nation's longest active streaks.
Oklahoma (16-14) earned the last at-large bid of the field of 64, marking its 19th-consecutive appearance, which ranks fifth in the nation. The Sooners were seemingly rewarded by the selection committee for their strength of schedule, which ranks second in the country behind No. 1 seed Notre Dame. Oklahoma's .533 winning percentage is the lowest among tournament participants since Monmouth received an automatic bid in 1983 with a .500 record. Oklahoma played 12 games against nine tournament teams this season, amassing a 2-10 record.
The Blue Demons defeated then 21st-ranked Oklahoma during the regular season, edging the Sooners 111-108 in overtime on Nov. 13 at McGrath-Phillips Arena when Amarah Coleman hit the game-winning 3-pointer at the buzzer.
It was the second straight high-scoring game between the schools. In the 2014 NCAA tournament, DePaul posted a 104-100 first-round victory.
"Having these last 24 hours, the way everything kind of shook out with the committee and being in this predicament has reminded us of what a difficult thing it is to get into the NCAA Tournament and what a special thing it is to be in that field. There is a lot of gratitude," Oklahoma coach Sherri Coale said. "There is also a lot of fight in that room tonight because we feel like we earned a position in the NCAA Tournament. Now it is up to us to play that way."
The Sooners will have to find a way to limit DePaul's perimeter shooting and control the paint if they hope to advance to the next round.
The Blue Demons lead the nation in made 3-pointers per game at 12.1, and set school records this season for made 3-pointers (398) and attempts (1,104). In the last meeting against Oklahoma, DePaul made 19 of 45 attempts from behind the arc.
Among the most dangerous of DePaul's perimeter scoring threats is junior guard Ashton Millendar, who averages 13.6 points per game and leads the team in made 3-pointers (98), 3-point attempts (232) and 3-point percentage (42.2). Millendar had 21 points against Oklahoma back in November, shooting 5-of-7 from behind the arc.
The Sooners shoot a respectable 33.9 percent from 3-point range, but are a primarily post-oriented team, led by center Vionise Pierre-Louis. The 6-foot-4 senior leads the Sooners in scoring, rebounding, and blocks. She ranks eighth in the Big 12 Conference in scoring, averaging 15.7 points per game, fourth in rebounding at 8.8 per game, and second in blocks, averaging 2.7 per game. Oklahoma averages 75.9 points per game, 36.6 of which come from point in the paint.
The Sooners have outscored their opponents 1098-867 in the paint this season.
"They like to score the ball and we like to score the ball, so we'll see what happens." DePaul coach Doug Bruno said. "I'm actually thrilled that Oklahoma got in because they played one of the toughest schedules in the country, and sometimes you don't get rewarded for that. We're going to play a really good team."
