Oklahoma women's basketball: Breaking down Sooners' roster entering 2022-23 season

Ryan Aber, Oklahoman
·6 min read

NORMAN — OU has one of the most experienced rosters in women’s college basketball.

The Sooners return stalwarts Ana Llanusa, Taylor Robertson and Madi Williams once again, but also have plenty of new faces around the core in Jennie Baranczyk’s second season.

Here’s a look at OU’s roster, heading into the season opener against Oral Roberts at 4 p.m. Monday:

More:Five things to know about OU women's basketball heading into 2022-23 season

Guards

Kayla Cooper, 5-9, Fr.: Cooper was the No. 70 recruit in the nation by BlueStar Basketball and one of the top 10 prospects in Texas by Texas Prep Girls Hoops. The Plano East product missed her senior season with a leg injury.

Aubrey Joens, 5-9, Jr.: A transfer from Iowa State, Joens gives the Sooners another perimeter scoring weapon. Joens, the sister of Iowa State standout Ashley Joens, averaged 6.2 points and 4.7 rebounds in 34 games with 15 starts for the Cyclones a year ago.

Ana Llanusa, 6-0, RSr.*: Llanusa played in just 10 games last season before suffering a season-ending injury. Llanusa has averaged 15.3 points, 4.0 rebounds and 1.5 assists during her career. She scored at least 15 points in every game she played last season.

Kaley Perkins, 6-0, So.: Perkins played in 26 games off the bench a season ago, averaging 2.6 points, 1.0 rebounds and 8.2 minutes per game. She had a season-high nine points against TCU, hitting three 3-pointers.

Taylor Robertson, 6-0, Sr.*: Robertson holds the program and Big 12 career records for 3-pointers made (446) and figures to set the NCAA record this season.She’s also the active NCAA leader in free-throw percentage (.919). Last season, Robertson averaged 17.2 points, 3.6 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game.

Reyna Scott, 5-10, Fr.: The 2019 Adidas All-American averaged 21.1 points, 7.3 rebounds, 5.9 assists and 3.7 steals as a senior at Nazareth High in Brooklyn last season, becoming the only player in school history to finish her career with at least 1,000 points, 500 rebounds, 250 assists and 200 steals.

Nevaeh Tot, 5-3, Jr.: Tot was one of the most improved players around last season, averaging 6.3 points, 3.0 rebounds and 3.3 assists in 33 games (18 starts). Scott was one of 20 sophomores nationally to reach at least 105 assists last season.

Kennedy Tucker, 5-10, Sr.: Tucker started OU’s final 24 games last season, averaging 5.0 points, 2.6 rebounds and 2.2 assists.

Kelbie Washington, 5-7, So.: The Norman product figured to slot in as the Sooners’ backup point guard once again after averaging 6.7 points, 2.2 rebounds and 3.7 assists in 31 games as a freshman. Washington set a program freshman record by posting a plus-40 in the Sooners’ Bedlam win on January 26.

Forwards

Kiersten Johnson, 6-4, Fr.: The Duncanville, Texas, product figures to see immediate playing time and add much-needed size to the Sooners’ roster. She averaged 7.2 points, 6.5 rebounds and 1.5 blocks over her junior and senior seasons in high school.

Jordan Moser, 6-1, Sr.: The daughter of OU men’s coach Porter Moser appeared in six games last season after transferring from Loyola.

Liz Scott, 6-2, Sr.: Scott averaged 6.6 points, 4.5 rebounds and 0.8 blocks in 33 games last season, starting 24 games. She had a career-high 22 points in a Bedlam win on Jan. 26 and scored the game-winning basket to knock off No. 16 Texas three days later. Three days after that, she hit a game-winning basket to knock off No. 14 Baylor.

Skylar Vann, 6-0, Jr.: The reigning Big 12 Sixth Player of the Year, Vann averaged 11.8 points, 5.8 rebounds and 1.5 assists last season, becoming the first Power Five player in nine seasons to average at least 11.5/5.5/1.5 with fewer than two starts in a season. Vann scored 20 or more points three times.

Madi Williams, 6-0, Sr.*: Williams is one of three players since 2009 to average at least 18 points, 7.5 rebounds and 2.5 assists in less than 30 minutes per game in a season. The other two were UConn’s Breanna Stewart and Maya Moore, both of whom won the Naismith Trophy. Williams is 153 points away from 2,000 in her career, likely becoming the eighth player in OU history to reach that mark.

OU's Madi Williams (25) is mobbed by teammates as she is interviewed after the Sooners beat IUPUI 78-72 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Saturday in Norman.
OU's Madi Williams (25) is mobbed by teammates as she is interviewed after the Sooners beat IUPUI 78-72 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Saturday in Norman.

Centers

Beatric Culliton, 6-3, Fr.: A three-time All-State selection in Kansas, Culliton led St. Thomas Aquinas to four Class 5A state titles. She won the DiRenna Award as the best girl’s basketball player in Kansas City. She averaged 15.3 points, 8.9 rebounds and 2.6 assists as a senior. She’s from the same high school that produced former Sooners Lauren Willis and Kelsey Hill.

Emma Svoboda, 6-3, So.: The La Quinta, Calif., product averaged 2.3 points, 1.9 rebounds and 0.3 assists in 23 games off the bench last season. She had season highs in points (14) and rebounds (9) in 20 minutes against Arkansas State last November.

*-Super-senior

Three non-conference games to watch

The No. 15 Sooners’ non-conference schedule features a pair of SEC teams, a two-game swing to Utah to play Utah and Brigham Young — two NCAA Tournament teams from a season ago — and UT Arlington, another tournament team.

The slate kicks off against Oral Roberts at 4 p.m. Monday at Lloyd Noble Center.

Here’s a look at three non-conference games to watch for the Sooners.

Nov. 16 at Utah, 7 p.m.: For the second season in a row, the Sooners will play back-to-back games against BYU and Utah. This time, they’ll be on the road. Last season, an overtime win over BYU was one of the biggest early season signs that the Sooners had progressed significantly under Jennie Baranczyk. This season, it’s the Utes who might be the bigger test. Utah is the first team out of the Associated Press Top 25 and returns Pac-12 Freshman of the Year Gianna Kneepkens.

Dec. 4 vs. Ole Miss, 2 p.m.: The Rebels have just five players returning from last year’s NCAA Tournament squad but still have plenty of firepower. Former SEC Freshman of the Year Madison Scott, now a junior, leads the way for Ole Miss. Scott averaged 9.6 points and 6.9 rebounds per game a season ago. The last time the Sooners and Rebels met was in the 2007 NCAA Tournament.

Dec. 21 vs. Florida in Charlotte, N.C., 8:30 p.m.: A night after the OU men take on Florida at the Spectrum Center, the women will take center stage at the Jumpman Invitational. It’ll be a reunion of sorts. OU assistant coach Michael Neal coached Kelbie Washington, now a sophomore with the Sooners, and Myka Perry, now a freshman at Florida, to a state title at Norman High in 2021.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma Sooners women's basketball roster breakdown 2022-23 season