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The Oklahoma Sooners battle the St. John's Red Storm in the second round of the women's NCAA tournament.

NORMAN, Okla. -- Aaryn Ellenberg scored 21 of her 28 points in the second half, Whitney Hand added 12 points and 10 rebounds and Oklahoma defeated Michigan, 88-67, Sunday night in the first round of the NCAA women's tournament.

Playing on their home court, the Sooners (21-12) took control with an early 14-4 run and never trailed.

Oklahoma led by 12 in the first 8 minutes. The advantage grew to 19 as Ellenberg came out hot in the second half and Oklahoma held the Wolverines without a basket for the first 5 1/2 minutes.

Michigan (20-12), making its first tournament appearance in 11 years, got as close as eight with a flurry of 3-pointers by Carmen Reynolds before the Sooners closed it out.

Reynolds finished with 20 points to lead the Wolverines. Michigan's leading scorer, Rachel Sheffer, had only three points in a season-low 14 minutes.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Kelsey Bone's 16 points led Texas A&M (No. 14 ESPN/USA Today, No. 22 AP) past Oklahoma, 79-66, in the semifinals of the Big 12 women's tournament Friday.

The third-seeded Aggies (22-9) will face top-ranked Baylor for the championship Saturday.

Skylar Collins scored 15 points, Alexia Standish 13 and Sydney Carter 10 for Texas A&M, which becomes the first school in league history with five straight appearances in the title game. Kristi Bellock's eight rebounds spearheaded a 38-27 edge on the boards.

Whitney Hand's 24 points paced the second-seeded Sooners (20-12), who shot just 38 percent (20 of 53). Aaryn Ellenberg added 13 and Sharane Campbell 11.

An 8-0 run by the Aggies broke a tie and put them ahead 25-17 with 8:18 left in the first half. They never trailed again.

Oklahoma closed within 49-45, but Texas A&M ripped off a 12-3 run for a 61-48 lead with 9:35 left to virtually seal it.

NORMAN, Okla. -- Steven Pledger scored 17 points, Romero Osby added 16 points and 13 rebounds and Oklahoma snapped a six-game losing streak by beating Oklahoma State 77-64 on Wednesday night.

Oklahoma (14-13, 4-11 Big 12) extended its home winning streak against Oklahoma State (13-15, 6-9) to eight games, rolling to an 18-point halftime lead and holding off a second-half rally by the Cowboys.

Oklahoma led 30-12 at halftime after Oklahoma State set a school record for fewest points in a half against a Big 12 foe. The Cowboys came roaring back and had two chances to tie the game before the Sooners pulled away again.

Keiton Page led Oklahoma State with 29 points, going 9 of 17 from 3-point range.

Oklahoma coach Lon Kruger talks about motivating his team despite a big lead at the half.

Oklahoma snapped its six-game losing streak with a 77-64 win over Oklahoma State at Lloyd Noble Center on Wednesday night.

The Sooners’ second half struggles continued against the Cowboys as OSU started the second half by going on a 24-11 run to eventually cut OU’s lead to 42-39. But the Sooners responded with an 8-0 run of their own and pulled away in the final ten minutes to cruise to the win.

Player of the Game: Romero Osby. When OSU made its run early in the second half, it was Osby who became more aggressive and scored two layups to spark the 8-0 run. Osby finished with 16 points and 13 rebounds.

Unsung Hero: Tyler Neal. The sophomore provided a great spark off the bench for the Sooners finishing with 9 points and 3 rebounds in 20 minutes.

Key Stat: 7. The Sooners finished the game with seven blocks which helped limit the Cowboys to eight points in the paint.

Key Stat II: 15. The Sooners outrebounded Oklahoma 46 to 31 -- a difference of 15 -- in the game as OU dominated inside throughout the night.

Up Next For Oklahoma: at Baylor at 12:30 p.m. CT on Saturday.

A strong second half from Texas sparked the Longhorns' 69-58 win over Oklahoma on Tuesday night at the Lloyd Noble Center. UT outscored the Sooners 41-25 in the final 20 minutes.

Early turnovers by the Sooners and back-to-back three-pointers from J’Covan Brown, followed by another trey from Myck Kabongo sparked a 15-6 run in the first seven minutes of the second half.

Texas improved to 17-9 overall and 7-6 in the Big 12 with the win, while OU dropped to 13-12 and 3-10 in conference play.

Texas Player of the Game: J’Covan Brown. After he didn’t shoot the ball well in the first half, Brown was brutally efficient in the second half. He scoring 15 points on 3 of 6 shooting from the field and added two steals in the final 20 minutes.

OU Player of the Game: Cameron Clark. The sophomore quietly had one of his best games of the season. He had 13 points on 6 of 9 shooting and added seven rebounds.

Texas Unsung Hero: Myck Kabongo. Despite three turnovers, the freshman point guard was solid in the second half with 11 points on 3 of 4 shooting and three assists. He finished with 13 points, 7 assists and 5 turnovers.

OU Unsung Hero: Tyler Neal. The sophomore forward has been searching for confidence throughout Big 12 play so his effort against the Longhorns could spark a strong finish to the season. Neal had eight points on 2 of 4 shooting and added four rebounds.

Key Stat: 17. The Longhorns scored 17 of their 41 points in the second half from the free throw line. Brown and Kabongo combined to go 10 of 10 as UT shot 17 of 18 from the line.

Key Stat, Part II: 19. The Longhorns had 19 points off turnovers in the second half as they created eight steals to help take OU out of its rhythm. The Sooners had 3 turnovers at halftime then turned the ball over 10 times as they watched their five-point halftime lead slip disappear in the second half.

Quotable: “I just had to be more aggressive and take the shots that were there.” -- Texas guard J’Covan Brown on his second half scoring.

“If you look at the points off of turnovers, that was huge for us in the second half. Turning those deflections into points was really big.” -- Texas head coach Rick Barnes

“Early in the second half it seemed like there was a possession or two that kind of deflated us a little bit. We just couldn’t get back on top. As a result of that, we played with a little bit less energy the rest of the way. We need to figure out a way to work through that.” -- OU head coach Lon Kruger

“I don’t think it was them. I think it was us being careless with the basketball and not making strong plays, trying to do things we shouldn’t be doing.” -- guard Sam Grooms on OU’s 10 second-half turnovers.

(All dates subject to change)

Sept. 1: at UTEP
Sept. 8: vs. Florida A&M
Sept. 22: vs. Kansas State
Oct. 6: at Texas Tech
Oct. 13: vs. Texas at Cotton Bowl (Red River Rivalry)
Oct. 20: vs. Kansas
Oct. 27: vs. Notre Dame
Nov. 3: at Iowa State
Nov. 10: vs. Baylor
Nov. 17: at West Virginia
Nov. 24: vs. Oklahoma State
Dec. 1: at TCU

We'd ask you how you think Oklahoma was going to fare in 2012, but the Sooners haven't released their full nonconference schedule -- other than a home game vs. Notre Dame.

So, give us your projected Big 12 records.

UPDATE: The remainder of OU's nonconference schedule was released Wednesday. The Sooners open the season Sept. 1 at UTEP and have their home opener a week later against Florida A&M. Their home date against Notre Dame is Oct. 27.

NORMAN, Okla. -- Distraught.

That’s the best word to describe the reaction of Steven Pledger after Oklahoma’s 71-68 loss to Missouri at the Lloyd Noble Center on Monday night.

And it wasn’t his potential game-tying, missed 3-pointer as time expired that will make sleep difficult to come by for OU’s leading scorer. It was missed free throws, both by Pledger (1-of-4) and his teammates (9-of-23), that the Sooners guard will remember for the next week.

“I feel like I let my team down,” said Pledger, who was visibly upset during postgame interviews. “Missed free throws, missed some shots I should knock down. I shoot 90 percent from the line, there’s no reason I should be missing free throws. I make free throws, the shot never happens.”

Player of the Game: Pledger was outstanding in the game, finishing with 22 points on 8 of 14 shooting including 5 of 9 on 3-point attempts. But he had four turnovers to go along with his performance at the free throw line.

Unsung Hero: Sam Grooms. The junior point guard is playing better and better as the season progresses. He had 17 points and 10 assists against the Tigers. Grooms was 7 of 9 shooting from the field as Missouri forced him to prove he could make outside shots and he did.

Key Stat: 28. The Tigers finished with 28 points in the paint even though Missouri rarely feeds the ball inside. Ricardo Ratliffe was active and efficient inside with 15 points on 6 of 6 shooting with 10 rebounds.

Quotable
“We keep telling our guys afterwards, ‘Good battle and good work, but we’ve got to keep doing things from a habit standpoint to have more good possessions in a ball game, enough to get over the hump against good basketball teams.’” -- OU coach Lon Kruger

“It is hard to explain because we have shot free throws very well. Certainly Pledge is one of the top shooters in the country. When you play the game long enough, it will happen, unfortunately.” -- Kruger on the Sooners free throw shooting.

“It was perfect. The play was designed to miss the free throw and get the tip-out and we actually got the tip-out. It was on line; it felt good when it left my hand. It didn’t go in.” -- Pledger on his final miss.

“We talked about not losing and never letting them take the lead. That's a sign of a good team. I think once they made runs, we executed when we needed to make a shot." -- Missouri coach Frank Haith on his team responding to OU runs.

“I had seen the shot clock going down and we hadn't scored in a couple of possessions, and I knew that we needed to get a basket. I was fortunate enough to make the shot." -- guard Marcus Denmon on his key shot late in the game.

Up Next: OU travels to Lubbock, Texas where they will face Texas Tech on Saturday at 7 p.m. CT.

Keller Central's Zach Sanchez was one of the few athletes not playing quarterback or running back who could take over a game by himself.

Now Sanchez will try to do the same in the Big 12.

The receiver/defensive back signed a national letter of intent to play for Oklahoma on Wednesday, finishing a career that may leave him as the best player in Central's short history.

Sanchez caught 45 balls for 994 yards and 13 touchdowns in addition to his work on the defensive side of the ball, where he was one of the most feared DBs in the area.

The senior's defining performance came against Denton Guyer. He caught two touchdown passes and returned an interception 85 yards for a touchdown in Central's 21-14 win.

That win went a long way toward solidifying Central's first playoff berth in school history. Central beat Coppell in Week 10 in what amounted to a playoff play-in game, and the Chargers put a scare into top-ranked Allen in bi-district before losing 30-17 at Cowboys Stadium.

Sanchez was originally committed to Baylor but switched late in the process.

Central offensive lineman Simon Goines also signed on Wednesday. He joins Jim Mora's first class at UCLA.

Cornerback De’Vante Harris (Mesquite, Texas/Horn), who has been committed to Oklahoma since the spring, announced on Twitter that he has decommitted from the Sooners on Saturday and confirmed with a text message that the decommitment was true.

Harris, a four-star prospect ranked No. 14 at cornerback, had been one of the biggest recruiters for the Sooners since committing. He had made several unofficial visits and an official visit and had coaches for in-home visits recently. There were rumors two weeks ago of Harris looking at Texas, but Harris quickly shot those down.

Reports have also surfaced of OU defensive backs coach Willie Martinez being considered for other jobs. He has been reported as a defensive coordinator candidate at both Kansas and Illinois in the last 24 hours. Martinez has been the primary recruiter for Harris.

The news wasn’t just a shock to OU fans, but also to Mesquite Horn coach Rodney Webb.

“Really? I have no knowledge of that,” Webb said about Harris decommitting. “I was with him in Orlando this week, and he was doing his thing.

“I saw him briefly after the game. Nothing seemed wrong. He seemed like himself, like he always is with his personality. I’m kind of at a loss because he has been such a solid commitment.”

Harris was in Florida all week for the Under Armour All-America game and returned home Friday still talking up the Sooners. Calls to Harris’ cell phone were not returned though he did text the confirmation so there would be no speculation about his Twitter account being hacked.

Harris had also developed a good bond with the secondary, including sophomore Tony Jefferson. When a fan tweeted Jefferson that the Cali Trio needed to bring back Harris, Jefferson replied: “if he wanna go let EM. Gotta go where his best for him. No hard feelings.”

Harris, in his first tweet after the announcement, tweeted back: “Thanks Tony.”

Future teammates were also unaware of Harris’ departure. Cornerback commit Kevin Peterson (Wagoner, Okla./Wagoner) said he found out via a text message from Wagoner coach Dale Condict.

“It’s a big shock. Coach Condict texted me like two minutes before you called,” Peterson said. “I have no idea what happened.”

Peterson said he has not heard from Martinez in more than a week, fueling the speculation about the future of Martinez. During the dead period, it was Bob Stoops that called Peterson.

Harris was OU’s top-ranked defensive prospect for the 2012 class.

There's been plenty of great quarterback play in the Big 12 this season, but which signal caller do you think has been the best of the bunch. Watch the video to see the top candidates in action, then make your pick. Want to argue about it? Use the conversation section.

College football analyst Kirk Herbstreit breaks down the keys to Saturday's matchup as No. 1 Oklahoma visits No. 5 Florida State.

Landry Jones throws for 380 yards and four touchdowns as No. 10 Oklahoma routed No. 17 Florida State, 47-17. The rematch is this Saturday night in Tallahassee on ABC.

OK, folks. College football is finally here and that means our weekly crystal ball series. We'll pick some key games here on ESPNDallas.com and then we want you to pick the games in the comment section and we'll be sure to note those who picked the most games right each Friday. So let's get going:

TCU at Baylor, 7 p.m. Friday, ESPN: TCU has a new quarterback, a revamped offensive line and even some questions on defense. That's what happens when so many players are seniors on an undefeated team. Baylor has had this game circled since losing last year and they've got the Frogs at home. I think this will be a fantastic game, but the TCU defense will find a way to make a big stop late and Casey Pachall will do enough for the Frogs to slip out of Waco with a 7-point win. Prediction: TCU 24, Baylor 17

Louisiana-Lafayette at OSU, 6 p.m., Saturday: The Cowboys come into the season with a top-10 preseason ranking and will look to continue to put up points in their high-octane offense. That shouldn't be a problem against the Ragin' Cajuns. The Cowboys have Arizona coming to Stillwater less than a week later, too. Prediction: OSU 45, Louisiana-Lafayette 20

Oklahoma vs. Tulsa, 7 p.m., FX, Saturday: The top-ranked Sooners should score a bunch of points against Tulsa, but may give up some too. I'll be interested to see Landry Jones, who should be a Heisman Trophy contender this season. He'll have a good game. Prediction: OU 52, Tulsa 21

Texas vs. Rice, 6 p.m., Longhorn Network, Saturday: The Longhorns want to start to put last year behind them and will do so debuting on their new network. Texas takes care of business. Prediction: Texas 38, Rice 14

Texas A&M vs. SMU, 6:30 p.m., Sunday: Warning to the Aggies: Don't overlook June Jones and the Mustangs. SMU continues to improve as Jones gets more recruiting classes and his players get more experience within in his system. Kyle Padron is maturing as a quarterback and will be a challenge for the Aggie defense. SMU isn't quite ready to beat A&M in College Station, but they'll keep this close. Prediction: Texas A&M 31, SMU 24

Other big games:

LSU vs. Oregon, Cowboys Stadium, 7 p.m., ABC, Saturday: What a matchup in Arlington. Oregon returns most of the starters that appeared in the BCS Championship Game in January and LSU, while dealing with the distractions of the past week, still has plenty of talent. The winner sends a signal for inclusion in the national championship picture. The LSU defense will face a challenge in stopping Oregon, but I think they'll be able to get it done in crunch time. Prediction: LSU 24, Oregon 20

Boise State at Georgia, 7 p.m., ESPN, Saturday: There's lots of talk about Kellen Moore, and not much about the receivers that he no longer has at his disposal. Georgia is motivated and will have their passionate fan base ready. But Boise State has had a lot of time to get ready for this game and Chris Petersen knows how to prepare a team for a game like this. I'll take the Broncos...barely. Prediction: Boise State 31, Georgia 28