GREENVILLE, S.C. (AP) — Raegan Beers had 18 points and seven rebounds, Aaliyah Chavez added 17 points and No. 7 Oklahoma used a dominant third quarter to rout Florida 82-64 on Thursday and advance to the Southeastern Conference Tournament quarterfinals.
Zya Vann scored 14 points and Brooklyn Stewart chipped in with 12 for the Sooners (24-6), who have won seven straight.
Liv McGill had 28 points on 13-of-17 shooting from the foul line to lead Florida (18-15), which defeated Mississippi State 86-68 in the first round.
Oklahoma will face No. 6 LSU in the quarterfinals on Friday at the Bon Secours Wellness Arena.
Despite their top-10 ranking, the Sooners need to win four games in four days to capture their first SEC title after finishing fifth in the conference and failing to claim a double bye in a loaded conference that features five teams ranked in the top seven in the country.
But the Sooners, who forced 24 turnovers and held Florida to 36% shooting from the field, are off to a good start.
Oklahoma was clinging to a 40-38 lead at halftime after Beers sat out the entire second quarter with foul trouble.
She returned in the third quarter and the Sooners immediately began to pull away, opening the half with a 14-2 run. Oklahoma outscored Florida 27-7 in the pivotal third with Vann providing a spark with eight points.
Oklahoma pushed the lead to 25 in the fourth with Beers drawing wide smiles and cheers from her teammates when the center, who typically does her damage in the paint, stepped out and drained a 3-pointer from the top of the key. Beers surpassed 2,000 points for her career in the win.
Up next
Florida: Awaits its NCAA Tournament fate.
Oklahoma: Will play No. 6 LSU, the tournament's fourth seed, on Friday.
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