Takeaways from early 6A-5A regional basketball
After numerous postponements because of winter weather, the Class 6A-5A boys basketball regionals kicked off Monday across the state, starting a busy week that could see some teams playing four games in six days to get to the state tournament next week.
Here's a roundup of games from across the Oklahoma City area on Monday:
Norman 51, Southmoore 40
Throughout the course of the season, Norman coach Cory Cole has seen his team grow tremendously.
That's why during the course of Monday's regional matchup against Southmoore, he wasn't surprised to see his team settle in and overcome adversity.
The Tigers topped the SaberCats 5140 in the opening round of Class 6A regionals, advancing to Wednesday's final at 7 p.m. at Edmond North. Norman trailed after the first quarter but settled in defensively, not allowing Southmoore to score more than 10 points in any of the final three quarters.
“The guys have believed from day one and been patient,” Cole said. “It's cliche, but they've been bought in since the beginning.”
Caison Cole, Cory's son, paced Norman (10-12 overall) with 14 points while Lendy Holmes added 12. The duo scored nine combined points in the fourth quarter.
Southmoore (10-13) narrowed the gap to 38-36 in the fourth quarter before Norman was able to pull away.
A combination of Caison, Holmes and Conner Goodson combined to hit 10 free throws in the final quarter, plenty of them coming in the final couple minutes.
Norman's defense was really on display in the third quarter, when it didn't allow Southmoore to score until there was 1:30 left in the period.
Yet Ethan Clark, who led Southmoore with 14 points, scored a quick five on a 3-pointer and pair of free throws to make the deficit 36-30 heading to the final quarter.
Southmoore seemed to capitalize on that momentum, but Norman was able to finish strong defensively.
“We're a team that really takes pride in guarding our opponent,” Cole said. “First quarter, they came out and hit us right in the head. Second quarter, we defended and everything else came to us.”
Edmond North 95, Capitol Hill 31
T.O. Barrett picked up the ball in the open court with no one in front of him.
Edmond North's sophomore guard dribbled twice before rising up for a powerful slam. It was shortly before the halftime buzzer, and it was a cap on a dominant first half.
The Huskies topped Capitol Hill 95-31 in the regional opener and will face Norman on Wednesday. Edmond North used strong performances from Barrett, Dylan Warlick and others to advance.
Warlick scored 19 points while T.O. Barrett added 13. Thirteen players scored for the Huskies.
Jacob Valentin led Capitol Hill with 13 points.
Deer Creek 57, Mustang 56
Camden Laskie hit a shot he won't soon forget.
The senior forward at Deer Creek caught the ball on the wing, took a dribble before spinning off his defender and pouring in a basket with 3 seconds left.
Mustang took a timeout, but Deer Creek's bench started the celebration.
The Broncos weren't able to put in a late shot, giving the Antlers a 57-56 victory in the Moore regional opener.
Only seconds before, Mustang star junior Jacobe Johnson drove the lane and scored a go-ahead bucket of his own, but Laskie had an answer.
Yet Deer Creek (12-11) was able to pull the upset and advance to the regional final on Wednesday.
El Reno 61, Lawton Eisenhower 41
El Reno is hoping for another shot at an upset.
The Indians topped Lawton Eisenhower 61-41 in a Class 5A regional at Carl Albert, and now will set its sights on postaking down the Titans for the second time in as many weeks.
On Feb. 11, El Reno beat Carl Albert 49-47 on the road. They'll get another chance to do that Wednesday in the regional final.
The Indians (14-10) got out to a quick start, as James Reveles scored 11 points in the first quarter. He finished with 19. Freshman Carter Roman Nose added 17 points, continuing his stellar season.
The Indians led by 21 at halftime and were able to cruise to victory.
Other highlights
• Edmond Santa Fe held off a late rally from Northwest Classen to top the Knights, 53-52. The Wolves will face Tulsa Booker T. Washington in the regional final.
• Norman North used 24 points from Kevin Overton and 21 from Jeremiah Johnson to top Lawton 83-53. The Timberwolves play Putnam North on Wednesday for the regional title.
• Choctaw started slow but recovered and dominated its way to a 59-47 win against Westmoore.
• On the east side, there were a couple of upsets. Tahlequah topped Bartlesville in the Putnam West regional while Muskogee beat Tulsa Union at Jenks.
• Guthrie beat Noble 46-38 and will face Del City in the regional final on Wednesday.