Kansas City, Mo. — In what could have been her last game as Oklahoma State women's basketball coach, her team trailing behind Jim Littel didn't speak for the X and O.
There was some not-so-planned adjustment that unlocked the secret to victory for the Cowgirls.
It was both more and less than that.
"We challenged our kids," Littel said. "We didn't talk too much about offense or defense. We talked about the heart."
OSU's emotional week, which began with Monday's announcement that Littel would not return next season, will continue after the Cowgirls' 73-58 win over Texas Tech in the Big 12 tournament at the Municipal Auditorium on Thursday.
OSU put out the Red Raiders 45-24 in the second half, dominating the opening half of both quarters to give Littel the 204th win of his career at OSU and the Cowgirls at 1:30 p.m. to top seed and fourth place. Shipped in the quarter-finals against the living Baylor. Friday.
The feelings were clear during and after the game.
The Cowgirls scored the first 10 points of the game, with OSU's bench standing and celebrating each bucket.
Then in the fourth quarter, a steal from Lauren Fields and a transition 3-pointer extended the Cowgirls' lead to 17, with Littel nearing her side after Texas Tech's Krista Gerlich called a timeout to try to stem the tide. Gave an exaggerated fist pump.
Fields had a 3-pointer next-to-last basket, eventually running 15–0 to start the fourth quarter, taking the Cowgirls to 20 after only three late leads in the third quarter.
Then the feelings became clear after the game, when Littel was seen wiping tears from his eyes before the start of his press conference.
"Emotions have been everywhere," said OSU's Lexy Keys. "Shocked, you have to collect yourself, then you go to play."
Fields led the Cowgirls with 22 points, including five 3-pointers.
He also drew the primary defensive assignment on former OSU star Vivian Gray, an effort Littel described as "extraordinary".
Gray scored 20 points to lead Texas Tech, but outside the second quarter where she scored six consecutive Raiders baskets, she struggled to find a rhythm.
Fields scored his 14 points in the second half. Keys still scored 14 of his 19 points after the break. Tylen Collins added 14 points for the Cowgirls (9-18).
After shooting just 31.4% in the first half, OSU shot 57.7% (15 out of 26) in the second half, including 7 out of 8 from beyond the arc.
Baylor overtook the Cowgirls this season, winning 67–49 at Waco on January 19 and 65–58 at Stillwater on February 23.
That second meeting, Fields said, gives OSU something to grab onto when the Cowgirls cut their 14-point third-quarter lead to a little over five minutes before Baylor held on in fourth.
"Just come on with confidence," Fields said. "We played them really well at home."
The emotions that bubbled up just below the surface during Thursday's game, sometimes spilling over, are not ready to go against Baylor.
Littel will soon drop out of the Final 11 as head coach, after 17 seasons at OSU, but he is not one to go out of his way to do anything but swing.
"Like these kids, I'm a competitor," Littel said. "I'm going to fight. These kids are going to fight too. I thought they showed a tremendous, tremendous heart.
"(I) wanted it and these kids wanted it. I'm so proud of them."