NORMAN — Oklahoma just couldn't get separation from Florida Gulf Coast. The Sooners led 64-54 with 4:51 to go, and needed something to spark a run.

Reagan Beers answered the call.

Beers demanded the ball in the paint possession after possession, and the Sooners continued to feed her. The result? Beers scored seven unanswered points in just over a minute, capping off that run with a free throw after capitalizing on an and-one. In the span of 1:17 of game time, the Sooners pushed their lead to 17 points.

That run pushed Beers up to a game-high 25 points, and she added 18 rebounds. That was the biggest difference in the game, as the Sooners eventually cruised to an 81-58 win over Florida Gulf Coast on Saturday at the Lloyd Noble Center.

The win advances the Sooners to the second round of the NCAA Tournament, where they'll face No. 6-seed Iowa on Monday.

"I think going to that fourth quarter especially, we knew we had to pull away and the stretch where it was close it was important that we kept pouring into each other," Beers said. "And (OU coach Jennie Baranczyk) reminded us of that the whole game because when we pure into each other and we are playing with so much joy, it's easier to go on those runs than when we are played frustrated.

"And there was a stretch where I was, and I had my teammates and coaches to pull me out of that obviously."

It's fun basketball but definitely what we needed to do and helped us make a run when we needed to.

The Sooners looked to dominate early, as they led 21-12 at the end of the first quarter. They pushed that lead to 19 points early in the second quarter, but an 11-0 run by FGCU helped cut OU's advantage to 36-26 at halftime.

The Sooners continued to push their lead, and a Skylar Vann and-one increased their advantage to 49-33 midway through the third. But FGCU continued to hang around, and a 10-0 run cut Oklahoma's lead to seven points heading into the fourth quarter.

But Jennie Baranczyk's squad proved to be too much. The Sooners outscored FGCU 26-10 in the fourth quarter and shot 52% from the floor.

"I like the way that our team is responding," Baranczyk said. "Sometimes I want it to be a little faster than it is. Obviously you know coaches want everything yesterday. But I was proud of just our overall response because it was a team response. It wasn't, oh, all of a sudden, Raegan started making shots that. Was a byproduct of our team response."

In addition to Beers' huge night, Vann was steady and consistent throughout the game. The senior chipped in with 24 points and nine rebounds while shooting 9-of-15 from the floor. Payton Verhulst added 13 points, six rebounds and six assists.

The Sooners shot 36% from the floor and committed 16 turnovers. But the defense was solid on the other end, as they held FGCU to just 23% shooting overall and 19% from the 3-point line.

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