NORMAN — No. 10 and fourth-seeded Oklahoma (25-7) will look to secure its second straight Sweet 16 appearance when it hosts No. 5 seed and No. 20 Michigan State (23-8, 11-7 B1G) on Sunday night at 7 p.m. CT on ESPN at Lloyd Noble Center. Both the Sooners and Spartans advanced to the second round with wins in Friday’s opening round, setting up a top-20 showdown in Norman.
Sam Gore (play-by-play) and Tamika Catchings (analyst) will call the action on ESPN. Fans can also listen on the Sooner Sports Radio Network (107.7 FM) with Brian Brinkley and Carolyn Baker, or in Spanish on Los Sooners Radio (1560 AM) with Danny Gonzales and Eduardo Olivas.
The Sooners dispatched Idaho, 89-59, on Friday night to improve to 5-0 under Baranczyk in first-round games, while Michigan State held on to knock off 12th-seeded Colorado State, 65-62. A win would on Sunday send Oklahoma to the Sweet 16 for the second straight season and 12th time in program history.
Ranked No. 10 nationally, the Sooners enter Sunday winning eight of their last nine games. Oklahoma earned the No. 4 seed in the Sacramento 4 Region and is hosting the first and second rounds for the second consecutive season and eighth time in program history. One of the nation’s most consistent programs, Oklahoma is making its 26th NCAA Tournament appearance and 24th since 2000. Under head coach Jennie Baranczyk, OU has reached the tournament in all five seasons and secured a top-five seed each time, matching the program record set from 2006 to 2010.
FAN INFORMATION
Doors open at 6 p.m. CT and fans are encouraged to be in their seats by 6:45 p.m. for a surprise national anthem performance.
OU’s game will air on ESPN and on the Sooner Sports Radio Network.
Tickets remain available through the Oklahoma Ticket Office. OU students can attend the game for free due to a generous gift from OU women’s basketball legend Stacey Dales. Students should enter through the normal entrance and show their student IDs.
SERIES HISTORY
Sunday marks the third all-time meeting between Oklahoma and Michigan State, with the series tied 1-1. Oklahoma won the most recent matchup, 66-55, in East Lansing in 2007, while Michigan State claimed the lone meeting in Norman in 2005, defeating the No. 16 Sooners, 80-60, who got 29 points from freshman Courtney Paris.
THE FAST BREAK
• OU head coach Jennie Baranczyk and MSU head coach Robyn Fralick have met once before, when Fralick’s Bowling Green team topped Baranczyk’s Drake squad, 78-68, in the 2021 WNIT, Baranczyk’s final game at Drake. Sunday also features a familiar on-court matchup between Raegan Beers and Grace VanSlooten, who faced off in the Pac-12 while at Oregon State and Oregon. Beers went 3-1 in those meetings, averaging 14.3 points and 10.8 rebounds, including 19.0 points on 65% shooting with 16.5 boards across their final two matchups. The pair also won gold together with Team USA at the 2025 FIBA AmeriCup, where Baranczyk served as an assistant coach.
• The game pits two of the nation’s top offenses against each other with the Sooners ranked third nationally in scoring offense at 86.8 points per game and the Spartans ranked 11th at 82.5 points per game.
• The Sooners consistently make offenses uncomfortable. Oklahoma is holding opponents 8.5% below their typical shooting percentage, and only seven opponents have exceeded their season scoring average against OU this season. The Sooners have held a program record 10 teams under 30% shooting this season. Oklahoma has built one of the nation’s most effective defenses, holding opponents to 35.5% shooting (10th NCAA) and is on pace to finish among the best defensive seasons in program history. On average, opponents score 8.0 points under their season scoring average against OU as the Sooners rank 22nd nationally in defensive rating.
• Oklahoma has been one of the nation’s most dominant rebounding teams, ranking second nationally in rebounds per game (48.78) while grabbing 32.6 defensive rebounds (1st NCAA) per contest. The Sooners own a +11.8 rebounding margin, fourth-best in the country.
UP NEXT
With a win, Oklahoma would move on to the Sweet 16 for the 12th time in program history and for the second straight season. It would play the winner of No. 1 seed South Carolina and No. 9 seed Southern Cal in Sacramento on Saturday, March 28.