NORMAN — Norman High got a look at the No. 3 team in the state on Tuesday, and the Bombers showed the Tigers how far they have to go in a lopsided, 73-38, game.
“Their pressure hurt us a lot,” coach Matt Thornton said. “It was just the little things, turning it over and not blocking out. They’re a really good team.”
Sam Blodgett led the Tigers with 11 points and Jay Finley added eight, but the Tigers couldn’t slow the Bombers’ high-powered offense and up-tempo style.
We played a little timid and didn’t do what we needed to do to get it done, but you really can’t take anything negative from this,” Thornton said. “These are things we’ve got to work on.”
Midwest City girls 49, Norman High 32: The Tigers took a step forward on the defensive end of the floor Tuesday night, slowing the Bombers prolific offense and keeping them in the game. Unfortunately, NHS took a step backward on the offensive end, and as a result Midwest City was able to pull away.
“It was another night of 23 percent shooting from the field,” coach Nichole Copeland said. “Most of our shots were inside the paint, but we couldn’t hit any and we didn’t hit a three-point shot all night.”
Bethany Cox led the Tigers with 20 points, but she was the only one who was able to get it going. Midwest City took a 16-point lead into halftime and was able to withstand a furious rally by NHS that brought the Tigers to within a possession early in the fourth quarter.
“We played hard and we fought, and at times we played good enough defensively to be in the game,” Copeland said. “But until we can put the ball in the hole it’s going to be a struggle.”
Things don’t get any easier for NHS, with top-ranked Edmond Memorial coming to town on Friday.
Norman North girls 64, Moore 47: Norman North cruised to a big win Tuesday night behind a balanced effort and a big advantage on the boards. The T-Wolves out-rebounded Moore 33-19 in a blowout victory over Moore that wasn’t as close as the final score.
Bri Kuestersteffen led a group effort from the T-Wolves with 17 points and five assists, and it was her passing that opened the game up early. North fed Julian Mougell inside where she was able to finish enough plays to force Moore to collapse. That opened up the outside for the shooters, and along with North’s full-court press allowed the T-Wolves to build up a sizable lead.
“”We played a great first half, and it was a total team effort,” coach Jeff Blough said. “We shared the ball really well tonight.”
Blough was especially impressed with the way sophomore guard Paige Canty, who finished with 10 points and a pair of assists.
“She’s come leaps and bounds just from last weekend,” he said. “She was aggressive, she attacked the rim and competed the entire game.”
Caitlyn Hall led Moore with 16 points, while Amanda Patterson added 14 points and five assists.
Plainview girls 57, Community Christian 36: CCS held Plainview to just 17 second-half points but the damage had already been done at Royal Fieldhouse. Behind 16 first-half points from freshman guard Megan Shelton, Plainview (4-2) led 40-24 at the half. The rest of the way the Royals were never any closer than 16 points
Shelton finished with 21 points and seven rebounds and freshman post Rebecca Wright added 13. The Royals (2-4) were led by Abby White’s 14 points and six rebounds. Katee Boyles added 13 points.
Westmoore boys 66, Southmoore 51: Tripp Fuller scored 21 points to lead the Jaguars (3-2) in a comeback victory over the SaberCats at WMH.
Despite playing on the road, it was Southmoore (3-2) who started the game full of adrenaline and excitement. Braydon Powell was able to get deep post position and have his way early with the Jaguars front line as the Cats led 18-8 in the first quarter.
But the second quarter on belonged to Westmoore's trio of Dillion Thompson, Fuller and Trey Ayala as they turned the game around as they continued to attack the SaberCats defense.
This was punctuated midway through the fourth when Ayala got loose for a fastbreak opportunity and hammered down a dunk on Dominique Caster that caused the WMH fans to erupt and put the contest out of reach.
Powell led the Cats with 11 points. Logan Smith added 10.
Thompson scored 16 and Ayala posted 15 in the winning effort.
Southmoore girls 51, Westmoore 34: In one of her final games against the Jaguars, senior Kayla Tucker spearheaded a first quarter blitz that saw Southmoore run out to a quick 17-2 advantage. By the time the period ended Westmoore found itself trailing by 22 points and never recovered.
Victoria Loy paced the Jaguars (2-3) with 10 points. Kaci Richardson added 8.
Four players scored in double figures for the SaberCats (5-1), led by Kye Gilbert, who had 14. Serithia Hawkins chipped in with 13. Tucker scored 12 and thought the team's overall performance sent a message.
"It feels really good," Tucker said. "They were really underestimating us this year. The rankings came out today. And they didn't put us in a place we liked. So we had something to prove today and I liked how my team responded to it."
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