NORMAN, Okla. — As easy as it was to envision Iowa women’s basketball delivering another magical March moment inside Lloyd Noble Center, doing so Monday would require a near-flawless outing to match Oklahoma’s firepower.

After an early glimmer of hope, reality soon set in for Jan Jensen’s Hawkeyes.

Too much offensive inconsistency mixed with ample defensive holes saw No. 6 seed Iowa playing catch-up for basically all of this NCAA Tournament second-round affair. No. 3 seed Oklahoma soon left the Hawkeyes in the dust and rarely let up en route to a dominant 96-62 win.

The victory propels Jennie Baranczyk’s Sooners to their first Sweet 16 since 2010, while denying Iowa’s chance to reach that round three straight years for the first time since 1987-89. As much pressure as the Sooners faced while trying to end this stretch of second-round frustration, Oklahoma quickly made it clear who’d be in charge on this day.

“When it goes south on you, there’s just a different mentality when you’re in a one-and-done tournament,” Jensen said. “In the timeouts, you’re trying to reel it back vin. As a coach, you’re trying to slow the tension and so forth.

“But I think it was just the fact that Oklahoma’s defense was really good, but then we missed some wide-open looks too. There were some shots. We missed some layups. That’s a credit. It’s the mental greatness of the defense.”

Despite Iowa’s swift start with 10 points in the opening three minutes, it didn’t take long for warning signs to illuminate. Choppy offensive flow soon materialized without defensive stability to offset it.

The Hawkeyes didn’t have another first-quarter field goal after their initial surge, as Oklahoma zoomed ahead for an early 20-11 advantage. Possessions died without warning if it wasn’t Lucy Olsen hitting. Over the first half’s final 16 minutes, Iowa mustered just one field goal from someone other than the senior point guard.

Slowly but effectively, Oklahoma chiseled away at Iowa’s font line before completely taking over on the glass. Overall, the Sooners finished with a robust 64-33 rebounding edge that included a staggering 24 offensive boards.

“I think going into the game, that was definitely something we knew was going to be a key asset to the game,” Iowa guard Kylie Feuerbach said. “They definitely got a majority of their second-chance points. That was from the rebounds, obviously.

“They did a great job at positioning. We probably could have done a little better. But we knew going into the game their box-outs and rebounds would be really important.”

An Olsen trey right before halftime provided a small spark Iowa could potentially build on, only to watch Oklahoma keep the intensity pumping while expanding its advantage. Iowa didn’t climb within single digits after the third quarter’s 8:52 mark. It spent the final 10 minutes looking up at a grotesque deficit.

Olsen finished with 20 points in her final collegiate game, while picking up double-digit scoring assistance from Kylie Feuerbach (14) and Hannah Stuelke (10). But the Oklahoma box score had too much potency even with minimal offensive contributions from all-SEC post Raegan Beers (11 points on 2-for-6 shooting). Four other Sooners reached double figures, with Waterloo West Sahara Williams (13 points) and Skylar Vann (17 points) spearheading the attack.

“I think we practice pretty physical,” Olsen said. “Our guys got us ready for it. I think we could have stepped up a little better. But, yeah, they’re a strong team. I think we just should have rebounded better.”

After stacking Saturday’s opening-round win over Murray State on top of a strong February and decent Big Ten Tournament showing, Iowa entered Monday’s affair with confidence it could endure a heftier challenge. Regular-season evidence suggested as much.

This team’s wiggle room, though, was always small. It didn’t need a miracle against Oklahoma, but it did need a quality showing with a chance to bring late pressure into play. Iowa never generated anything close to that.

“We aren’t going to let one game define our season,” junior Taylor McCabe said. “At the end of the day, only one team really gets to end on a win. Things happen, and credit to Oklahoma. They played a good game and made a lot of shots. I’m just really proud of this team, and I love these girls.”

Dargan Southard is a sports trending reporter and covers Iowa athletics for the Des Moines Register and HawkCentral.com. Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter at @Dargan_Southard.