Takeaways from first day of PCI
Jayla Constant didn’t pretend to love everything about the win.
The Putnam West girls basketball team opened Putnam City Invitational play with a 51-40 victory over school-district rival Putnam North on Thursday night at Putnam City High School.
In the big picture, the Patriots (8-0) had a solid night. They preserved their perfect record and increased their chances of a PCI championship, which is determined by win percentage on the girls’ side.
But in the midst of the game, sophomore guard Constant and her team noticed some concerns.
For an undefeated squad with hopes of a state title, it’s necessary to pick at the details.
“I feel like we’re doing OK,” said Constant, who led Putnam West with 16 points. “We’re not with each other right now. I feel like the chemistry, we’re trying to put it together right now. We’re doing good for right now, but (the current chemistry is) not gonna be good enough for the end of the year.”
Head coach Ja’Ron Jefferson also mentioned communication as a focal point, saying he plans to run drills that require the Patriots to constantly talk as they’re practicing. The communication breakdowns haven’t always been an issue for his team, but he theorized that the rivalry element disrupted Putnam West’s typical flow.
“In a rival game, everybody goes out all tense, and it’s just a basketball game,” Jefferson said. “We just played really uptight and tense the first three quarters.”
Putnam North has recently taken Putnam West down to the wire. Last February, the Patriots relied on a buzzer-beater from Constant to slip past the Panthers, 48-46. Although their next meeting wasn’t as close, the Panthers (9-3) took advantage of Putnam West’s defensive slip-ups Thursday night, making enough shots to keep the Patriots uncomfortable.
On the offensive end, Putnam West consistently answered. Oklahoma signee Caya Smith totaled 11 points, and sophomore guard Kiana Gray added nine with a trio of 3-pointers.
Nykaiya Dillard and Alaysia Burrough led Putnam North with 12 points each. Early in the fourth quarter, Dillard drove to the basket to narrow Putnam West’s lead to 37-31, but Gray hit a 3 to keep the Patriots in front.
“Of course, you’re gonna take a win,” Jefferson said. “Of course, you take a win over a loss. But the way we won, I didn’t like.”
Here are more takeaways from the first day of Putnam City Invitational play:
Boys basketball: Midwest City 74, Putnam West 68
Kaidon Rayfield’s multifaceted game was no mystery to first-year Midwest City coach Torey Noel.
Noel had coached the four-star Putnam West forward in AAU basketball, so he knew what to expect when the Bombers and Patriots collided in the first round of the Putnam City Invitational.
Matching up with Rayfield, a 6-foot-8 junior, would be a monumental challenge, but the Bombers could do it with collective effort.
Midwest City pushed past Putnam West, 74-68, to reach a PCI semifinal matchup with Tulsa Union. It’s a clear sign of the Bombers’ improvement since last year’s 6-18 season. Noel has discussed visions of a turnaround, and now, results are surfacing.
“Just seeing everybody behind me, really, it means a lot,” Noel said. “I went (to school at Midwest City), obviously, so it’s a great feeling. I think we got something special cooking.”
In the final seconds against Putnam West (5-6), Mark Jackson stole the ball, spun around and dished it to Roy Henderson, who floated to the basket for a layup at the buzzer. Senior guard Henderson led Midwest City with 17 points, while Oklahoma State commit Carlsheon Young added 12 with OSU director of player development Keiton Page in the building.
Rayfield, whose array of offers includes OU and OSU, did everything he could to keep the Patriots in the game, pouring in 25 points.
He dunked. He Eurostepped. He controlled the glass.
But Midwest City (6-2) used the little things to gain an advantage.
The game was tied at 68 with 1:13 left, and the Bombers took the lead with four consecutive free throws. Young made two, and Bryan Williams followed with a pair of foul shots. Then the Jackson-toHenderson connection sealed the win.
Girls basketball: Sand Springs 59, Norman North 52
Olivia Watkins drained a 3-pointer from the right wing as Norman North fans reacted with a collective “ooh.”
The junior guard gave the Timberwolves a sudden lead to start the fourth quarter, but it didn’t last long. Sand Springs relied on balance to overpower Norman North, 59-52.
After Watkins put Norman North ahead, 43-41, Sand Springs freshman Tianna Butler immediately responded with her own 3-pointer from the top of the key. That extinguished the Timberwolves’ spark, and the Sandites (6-1) effectively distributed the ball to seal the win.
Although Norman North point guard Seleh Harmon led all scorers with 19 points and Watkins followed with 15, Sand Springs did enough to defeat the dynamic duo. Butler, Taiona Morris, Hope Bump and Sakauri Wilson each finished with 12 points.
Butler wasn’t the only freshman making major contributions. Aaliyah Simone added six points down the stretch, following a steal with a layup that extended the Sandites’ lead to 51-47.
Girls basketball: Douglass 77, Putnam City 26
Brianna Jones provided a game-high 23 points as Douglass cruised past host Putnam City, 77-26, on Thursday afternoon to open Putnam City Invitational play.
As the sole Class 4A team among 6A contenders in the girls bracket, Douglass (6-2) made an early statement. The Trojans opened the game on a 12-0 run, and that set the tone for their resounding victory.
Four Douglass starters reached double figures.
Kiara Smith scored 18 points, Jordyn Anderson added 16 and N’Kiyah Burge had 14.
Paishintz Booker led the Pirates with 12 points.
Boys basketball: Putnam City 43, Putnam North 37
Ben Thompson accounted for more than half of Putnam City’s points in a 4337 victory over Putnam North to reach the PCI semifinals.
The senior forward tallied 26 points as the Pirates secured the win with a second-half push. Putnam North led, 17-16, heading into halftime, but Putnam City turned the tide. In the third quarter, the Pirates outscored the Panthers, 11-4.
Thompson kept scoring down the stretch, driving into the paint and adding 11 of his points in the fourth quarter to ward off a Putnam North comeback. Khai Brown led the Panthers with 15 points, but they couldn’t stop Thompson.
Boys basketball: Norman North 48, Northwest Classen 39
In a rematch of last season’s firstround regional game, Norman North again defeated Northwest Classen.
The Timberwolves rolled past the Knights, 48-39, as Hezekiah Green tallied a game-high 15 points.
Heading into the fourth quarter, Norman North was clinging to a 40-34 lead. But the Timberwolves created a cushion with a 6-0 run featuring back-to-back buckets from Green.
Quency McVay finished with a teambest 13 points for Northwest Classen.