Rush – not Paris – lifts OU

By Associated Press     Mar 11, 2007

Oklahoma center Courtney Paris, left, reacts after scoring against Iowa State. The Sooners defeated the Cyclones, 67-60, Saturday in Oklahoma City for the Big 12 championship. At right is Iowa State guard Megan Ronhovde.

? Leah Rush can emerge from Courtney Paris’ shadow when she has to – especially in tournament time.

The versatile senior forward matched her season high with 18 points, and No. 11 Oklahoma used a series of big runs to surge past a resilient Iowa State team for a 67-60 victory in the Big 12 championship Saturday night.

“That’s the way Leah Rush plays in the postseason,” Oklahoma coach Sherri Coale said. “We’ve become accustomed to that.”

When All-America center Paris and her twin sister stepped on Oklahoma’s campus, it meant Rush had to move over and make room. But when the Sooners needed a boost to win their second straight conference championship, Rush showed she could still come through.

The 6-foot-1 Rush, the team’s leading scorer as a sophomore, kept the

second-seeded Sooners (26-4) going while Paris fought through poor shooting, then put them in position to pull away late.

“I can do that,” Rush said. “I think especially with some of our younger guys, if Courtney’s not scoring, what are we going to do?

“I think it’s just good for the confidence of the team if we can get a bucket. I think everybody on this team is so capable and we know what we’re capable of, and so people have to do what they can do.”

Paris ended up with 23 points and 21 rebounds for her 58th straight double-double, but she missed 11 of her first 15 shots – most of them from right under the basket – as Oklahoma fell behind after an 11-0 start.

“That’s what this team needs from me,” Rush said. “Sometimes I need to score more and sometimes I need to pass more. My role has changed throughout my time here. Every year it’s been completely different.”

One thing that doesn’t change: Rush’s favorite time of year is tournament time. And the NCAAs are up next.

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23901Rush – not Paris – lifts OU