Lady Vols top Cowgirls

Tennessee handed Oklahoma State its first loss of the season with a 76-63 victory Sunday afternoon inside Gallagher-Iba Arena.

STILLWATER — For about the first four minutes of the second half, many of the things that had been working for Oklahoma State seemed to disappear.

And that was all it took for a potent women’s basketball program like No. 11-ranked Tennessee to undo everything the Cowgirls had done.

OSU’s three-point halftime lead and the momentum it had built vanished quickly in the early minutes of the third quarter as Tennessee took control on its way to a 76-63 victory Sunday afternoon inside Gallagher-Iba Arena.

In the first half, OSU’s Braxtin Miller scored 22 of her 29 points, and Jaden Hobbs hit three of her four 3-pointers. But Tennessee, with more athleticism and more depth than the Cowgirls could match, set out at the start of the third quarter to limit the OSU guards’ offensive attack.

“I think they picked up the pressure in the second half,” said Hobbs, who finished with 12 points. “And they really attacked on offense. That’s mainly what got the difference in the game. They attacked well and they picked up the pressure. They didn’t really come off me for a 3-point shot.”

Vivian Gray added 14 points and five rebounds for the Cowgirls (6-1), meaning OSU’s top three scorers were all sophomores.

“We enjoyed winning the first six games, but this game did us more good than the other six games combined,” OSU coach Jim Littell said. “To play that level of competition, to play a team that’s a storied program, and basically go toeto-toe with them for quite a while.”

Tennessee’s Evina Westbrook was 12-of-15 from the floor and finished with 29 points, while anchoring the Volunteers’ tight perimeter defense in the second half. Tennessee started the third quarter with a 13-2 run.

“We didn’t have any answers for Westbrook,” Littell said. “From a fan standpoint, it had to be fun watching Westbrook and Braxtin Miller go at each other. We’ve got to find a way to correct some mistakes and continue to get better.

“The first half, I thought we played as well as we have all year long. It gives you hope for the future here.”