OU football: UConn women’s streak eerily mimics Wilkinson’s

The Connecticut women’s basketball winning streak ended at 90 games Thursday night. UConn lost at Stanford, the last team to beat the Huskies before Thursday night.

The UCLA men’s basketball streak reached 88 games in January 1974 before a loss at Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish, in January 1971, were the last team to beat the Bruins before the winning streak.

And in November 1957, Oklahoma football’s 47-game winning streak ended with a 7-0 loss to Notre Dame. You guessed it. The previous opponent to beat the Sooners was, yep, Notre Dame, in 1953.

Amazing. Three of the most epic winning streaks in sports history, and all share a common trait. The same opponent stood as conqueror on each end of all three streaks.

I wondered how far we could take this. The longest win streak in NBA history is 33 by the 1971-72 Lakers. But those Lakers lost to the Warriors just before the streak, and the Bucks ended the streak.

The longest win streak in NFL history is 21, by the 2003-04 Patriots. Those Patriots lost to Washington just before the streak and the Steelers just after the streak. The longest win streak in baseball history is 26 games, by the 1916 Giants. Those Giants lost to the Dodgers just before the streak, and the Braves ended the streak.

One difference between OU and the basketball streaks is that after that 1953 loss to Notre Dame, the Sooners actually tied Pittsburgh, then began the 47-game streak. No ties in basketball.