Liv McGill Scores 23 as No. 19 Oklahoma State Rolls Past Northwestern State 94-56

STILLWATER, Okla. The Class at the Court crowd at Gallagher-Iba Arena got a lesson in tempo on Monday morning. Oklahoma State never trailed, never let the game get tied and never really let Northwestern State breathe, rolling to a 94-56 win on Nov. 9.

Liv McGill led the way with 23 points and seven assists. Yuting Deng and Audi Crooks each scored 13, Nene Ndiaye added 12 without missing a shot, and Stailee Heard ran the offense with eight assists and four steals. The Cowgirls, ranked No. 19 in the AP poll released that same day, moved to 3-0. Northwestern State fell to 1-2.

Here is the official box score (opens in a new tab), Oklahoma State's recap (opens in a new tab) and the Cowgirls' postgame notes (opens in a new tab).

A fast start and no looking back

Oklahoma State wasted no time. The Cowgirls opened on a 12-2 run, and Northwestern State burned a timeout only four minutes into the game. McGill scored 10 of her points in the first quarter, and Heard already had four assists by the end of it.

The Lady Demons could not find the basket early. They shot 3 of 16 from the field in the opening quarter and missed all three of their 3-point tries. Oklahoma State was not exactly sharp either, going 2 of 9 from deep in the period, but it turned defense into offense and led 16-7 after one.

Northwestern State's best stretch came in the second quarter. The Lady Demons got hot from outside, making four of seven 3-pointers in the period, and trimmed the deficit to 28-21. That was as close as it got. Northwestern State did not make another field goal before halftime.

Oklahoma State answered with its most efficient quarter of the day. The Cowgirls shot 10 of 14 from the field in the second, including 4 of 6 from 3, and Deng matched McGill's first quarter with a double-digit period. A 28-point quarter sent Oklahoma State to the locker room up 44-23.

Crooks takes the third

The first half belonged to the guards. The third quarter belonged to Crooks.

Oklahoma State's center had one point at the break, then scored 10 in the third quarter as Oklahoma State went inside and stayed there. Crooks finished 7 of 11 at the free throw line, and the Cowgirls as a team went 11 of 17 from the stripe in the third alone, which is what happens when an opponent has no answer for the post. A 17-3 burst pushed the lead to 61-27 midway through the quarter, and Oklahoma State led 67-41 heading to the fourth.

Crooks scored only 13 points on five field goal attempts, a quiet line by her standards. It was still her 101st straight game in double figures, according to Oklahoma State. Her three made field goals also moved her past Madi Williams for eighth on the Big 12's career list, per the school's notes. She added five rebounds and three blocks in 27 minutes.

Ndiaye cannot miss

If there is a stat line from this one to hang on a refrigerator, it belongs to Ndiaye. Ndiaye went 5 of 5 from the field, 2 of 2 from 3, and scored 12 points. Eight of them came in the fourth quarter, including two 3-pointers in the first four minutes, as Oklahoma State refused to coast.

That made Ndiaye 9 for 9 from the field over the last two games, according to the school. Through three games, Ndiaye and Crooks have both scored in double figures every time out.

Oklahoma State's lead peaked at 41 with 3:05 to play. The fourth quarter was the Cowgirls' best shooting period, 10 of 15 from the field, and it ended with a moment for the bench. Addisyn Bollinger hit a late 3 for her first career points, and Zoe Canfield also knocked down a 3 in five minutes of action.

The playmaking was the point

The scoreboard says blowout. The box score says something more useful about this Oklahoma State team: it shares the ball.

The Cowgirls made 31 field goals and assisted on 24 of them. Heard had eight assists and did not commit a turnover in 25 minutes, and McGill added seven assists while turning it over once. LA Sneed chipped in three assists off the bench. Northwestern State had seven assists as a team.

McGill was efficient as the lead scorer, going 7 of 15 from the field, 3 of 6 from 3 and 6 of 8 at the line. It was her second straight 20-point game and the 35th of her career, and her seven field goals pushed her past 500 for her career, according to Oklahoma State.

The defense was just as active. The Cowgirls set a season high with 13 steals. Heard and Sneed had four each, and Sneed's total tied a career best. Oklahoma State forced 18 turnovers and turned them into 20 points while committing only 12 of its own. It also blocked seven shots to none for the Lady Demons.

The other numbers lined up. Oklahoma State shot 56.4 percent from the field and 48 percent from 3 (12 of 25), outrebounded Northwestern State 39-30, scored 38 points in the paint and added 21 fast break points. Northwestern State shot 34.5 percent from the field and 7 of 23 from 3.

Rotation notes and the Lady Demons' bright spots

Coach Jacie Hoyt used 11 players, and nobody logged more than 29 minutes. McGill played 29 and Crooks 27, while the bench scored 25 points.

Sneed was the most productive reserve with nine points on 2 of 3 shooting and 5 of 6 from the line. Talexa Weeter added six points and four rebounds in 13 minutes. Callin Hake scored four and handed out two assists, which extended her streak of games with at least one assist to 40. Ellie Brueggemann also played off the bench.

Deng's morning deserves a second look. Beyond the 13 points on 5 of 8 shooting, the guard led Oklahoma State with seven rebounds, a nice complement to a front line built around Crooks.

For Northwestern State, Parr was the one consistent threat. Parr scored 18 points on 5 of 11 shooting, hit 3 of 4 from deep and went 5 of 6 at the line, adding six rebounds and three assists. Karma Wynn gave the Lady Demons 11 points off the bench on 5 of 6 shooting.

The tougher part of the day belonged to Chloe Donnell. Donnell came into the game averaging 24 points through two games, according to ESPN's season stats, but Oklahoma State held Donnell to three points on 1 of 9 shooting, 1 of 7 from 3, in 20 minutes off the bench. Taking away Northwestern State's top scorer left the Lady Demons without their usual go-to option once the game got away from them.

What it means for Oklahoma State

This was the last of three straight home games to open the season, and Oklahoma State won them by a combined 151 points. The Cowgirls beat Southern 81-39 on Nov. 2 and Morgan State 92-38 on Nov. 6 before this one.

Those are not resume wins, and nobody in Stillwater will pretend otherwise. What the first week did show is a team with a clear identity. McGill and Heard push the pace and find shooters, Crooks remains the matchup problem on the block, and Ndiaye and Deng give Oklahoma State a pair of efficient options when defenses collapse. Crooks and McGill were both named to the Wade Watch List on Nov. 4, and through three games they look the part.

The streaks keep piling up, too. Oklahoma State has now won 30 straight nonconference home games, dating to Dec. 3, 2022, the third-longest such run in program history according to the school. The Cowgirls have also won 11 straight games overall at Gallagher-Iba Arena.

The schedule gets tougher now. Oklahoma State plays its first road game of the season at Tulsa on Thursday, Nov. 12. Northwestern State visits Louisiana Tech the same day.

The takeaway

A 38-point win over a Southland opponent does not tell anyone how far this team can go. It does tell you what the Cowgirls look like when the ball moves: 24 assists, 13 steals, no ties, no lead changes and a 41-point cushion with three minutes left. Against the better teams on the schedule, the shots will be harder and the margins smaller. The habits on display Monday morning should travel.

Sources: Oklahoma State Athletics, ESPN and The Associated Press.

Photo: Oklahoma State Athletics.