NORMAN — Norman North coach Butch Roberts said there wasn’t anyone at the Bishop McGuinness Classic he felt his team couldn’t play with.
After a hard-fought, thrilling game against Edmond North in the semifinals on Friday, the Timberwolves proved their coach right. The only trouble was that it came in a 64-61 loss to the Huskies.
It was a close game from the beginning, with both teams trading baskets in the first half before Edmond North pulled out to a 30-27 halftime lead and holding on late to win by the same margin.
At stake was a berth in the championship game against the host team McGuinness. And both teams looked up to the challenge, with neither team taking a lead of more than five points throughout the contest.
“It was back and forth all the way,” coach Butch Roberts said. “We played well in some areas today, but they just made three or so more plays than we did tonight.”
Lindy Waters turned in one of his best games of the year, putting up 18 points to lead the T-Wolves, while Payton Prince chipped in 13. But critical turnovers late in the game came back to haunt North, as did an uncharacteristically unassertive offense.
“We did a better job rebounding tonight, but we were a little passive on offense,” Roberts said. “We shared the ball pretty well, but we were a little hesitant. We couldn’t string together four or five stops in a row.”
Despite the loss, Roberts said he’s pleased with what he has seen from his team through two days of the tournament, and noted that it’s a step forward for his young team.
“They took a step yesterday and they took another step today,” Roberts said. “I’m disappointed for the kids because it would have been a huge win for them and they could’ve played in the finals. And we were right there.”
North will finish the tournament at 6 tonight against Guthrie.
Corbin HoslerFollow me @Chosler88chosler@normantranscript.com
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