OCU Athletics
Rich Tortorelli, Assistant Athletic Director for Communications
MUSKOGEE – The 25-win mark is a difficult one to achieve in college basketball. The Oklahoma City University women’s basketball team has made reaching that mark a habit, and on Saturday, OCU reached the milestone again.
Abby Selzer posted a 24-point effort in just 16 and a half minutes, and she was joined in double figures by two teammates as OCU (25-0) cruised to a 73-34 win at Bacone College (3-20).
The Stars have reached the 25-win mark for the 21st time in the last 22 seasons. Since the 1998-99 season, the Stars have won 672 of 759 games, posting a winning percentage of 88.5 percent. The Stars have claimed National titles in 1988, 1999, 2000, ’01, ’02, ’12, ’14, ’15, and ’17, and they have made an additional four title game appearances, including a trip to the national championship game last season.
OCU opened the game on Saturday on a 7-0 run, and after a 3-pointer from Bacone cut the margin to four, OCU seized complete command. The Stars closed the first quarter on an 18-0 run and held a 25-3 advantage after 10 minutes of play.
The second quarter got off to a bit of a sluggish start for OCU, as they made only one field goal in the first six minutes of the frame, but in the final moments of the frame, Selzer went to work on the block. The sophomore from Thomas, Okla. made five of OCU’s final six shots in the first half, and as a result, the Stars carried a 41-11 lead into the locker room.
The Warriors tried to keep things close in the third, and Bacone actually managed to out-score OCU 16-15 in the frame, but in the fourth, OCU again went to work in the paint. Selzer and Brennyn Seagler helped spark a 7-0 OCU run to open the fourth quarter, and the Stars lead swelled to as many as 43 points before OCU settled in with the 73-34 win.
Selzer was 11-for-16 from the floor, pouring in 24 points and grabbing seven rebounds. Seagler added 14 points and eight boards on 6-for-12 shooting, and Erika Ankney scored 10 and picked up four steals. Seagler and Shamika Smith each had five helpers in the game, and Taylor Sylvester swatted away four Bacone shots.
As a team, OCU shot 29-for-70 (41.4%) from the floor, including 6-for-20 (30%) from long distance. At the foul line, OCU made nine of 14 (64.3%) attempts. The Stars held sizeable advantages in each of the five enhanced scoring categories, posting 16-0 advantages in fast break points and second chance scoring, a 28-3 edge in points off turnovers, a 36-9 margin in the battle of the benches, and a 42-10 stranglehold on points in the paint.
OCU will return to action on Thursday night on the road across town at Mid-America Christian University (18-8, 10-6 SAC). Tip-off is scheduled for 6 p.m.