The 16th seeded Golden Hurricane made a game of it. Tulsa took top seed Stanford into halftime with the score tied at 24 apiece.
But the Cardinal regrouped and pulled away in the second half for a 72-56 win in the first round the NCAA Tournament on Sunday.
Taleya Mayberry had a team-high 18 points for TU, and finishes her career as the fifth most prolific scorer in the program’s history with 1,144 points.
Freshman Kelsey Grovee had 12 points and was the only other TU player to reach double figures.
Stanford All-American Chiney Ogwumike had 29 points as Stanford came alive in the second half, outscoring Tulsa 48-32.
Tulsa head coach Matilda Mossman talked about her program and the steps it is taking in the right direction in getting to the NCAA Tournament.
“While we weren’t settling for just being here, it still kind of drew that line in the sand that said that this is where we want to be each and every year,” Mossman said.
“And I think our players now have a clear understanding of what it takes to beat this kind of team. And I think they’re going to be hungry to be here again.”
Tulsa finishes the season at 17-17, the sixth season in school history of .500 winning percentage or better. The loss halted a five-game winning streak that included the Golden Hurricane winning four games in four days to take the Conference USA Tournament title.