Area high school basketball teams rev up for postseason runs
Nine…eight…seven…
The final countdown is about to begin for the 2023-24 high school basketball season.
Other than Bartlesville, all other area teams have started, or will start, the playoffs this weekend.
In the case of Bartlesville — which competes in Class 6A — the regionals begin next week. For Class 2A-4A teams, this weekend opens the district tournaments.
The Class A-Class B postseason began last weekend, with a few area teams still alive going into this week’s regionals.
Following is a closer look at the postseason status of the 10 area schools.
BARTLESVILLE (6A)
The Bruins (3-19) and Lady Bruins (11-10) close out the regular season Tuesday night at Sand Springs. Due to last year’s historic decision by the OSSAA, this year’s 6A playoff format will be decided by district standings and not arbitrary seeding. The girls districts began on Feb. 20, followed by the boys’ first round on Feb. 22.
DEWEY (4A)
Dewey ends the regular season with games Tuesday at Caney Valley (Kan.).
Two days later, Dewey opens the districts with a win-or-done showdown against Vinita, at the neutral site of Catoosa High. The girls’ contest is 6 p.m., followed by the boys’ scrap. Thursday’s winners advance to Friday’s district championship games.
In their most recent game, the Dewey boys outlasted Oklahoma Union, 50-43 — which earned Dewey a perfect conference record (8-0). Ryder Muninger scored 11 to lead the balanced scoring attack, followed by Zaiden Masters and Jace Williams with 10 apiece. Kooper Crawford and Karson Johnson kanned seven and six points, respectively. Zane Griggs came off the bench to make a powerful contribution on the boards and defense, Dewey head coach Lance Knight said.
The Dewey girls knocked off Oklahoma Union, 48-23, for their second biggest margin of victory of the season.
CANEY VALLEY (2A)
With both teams coming off strong regular seasons, Caney Valley is one of just two area teams to host their district playoffs, which will be against KIPP Tulsa.
The games will be on Friday, with the girls battling at 6 p.m. and the boys’ colliding at 7:30 p.m. Win or lose, both teams will advance to the regionals.
WESLEYAN CHRISTIAN (B)
The Lady Mustangs (4-17) saw their season end last weekend against Shidler. But, this year was just a warmup for WCS — there were no seniors on the team.
The Mustangs (21-3) appear to be the area team with the biggest upside going into the next round of the playoffs. They open the regionals at Covington-Douglas at 7:30 p.m. Thursday against Timberlake. The Mustangs won their district title and are on a seven-game winning streak.
During an historic weekend in which it hosted an OSSAA district tournament for the first time, Wesleyan Christian School wrestled out the district title. The Mustangs knocked off Welch, 55-21.
Tyrel Cloud canned 16 points, followed by Cooper Holley and Trey White with 10 points each to lead the Mustangs.
“We shot pretty poorly from the three-point line overall, but we found a way to get it done everywhere else,” third-year Mustang head coach Steven Cooks said. “Our defense played pretty well.”
Next up, WCS will look to pass another milestone by reaching the area playoffs. The Mustangs were just one away a few seasons ago to getting into area.
COPAN (B)
Copan boys saw their strong season hit a wall last weekend with a district playoff loss to Welch, 42-40. Copan ended at 16-7 and is set to return a huge chunk of its team for next year.
But, the Copan girls (7-16) still have life, thanks to a 40-33 district win against Welch. They will play a regional elimination game at 1 p.m. Thursday against Timberlake, hosted by Covington-Douglas. From here on out, Copan will have to keep winning in order to keep its postseason alive.
NOWATA (2A)
Both Nowata teams displayed plenty of life during rebuilding campaigns. They finish up the regular season Tuesday at Chelsea and then play in their district playoffs this weekend at Colcord.
The Nowata Lady Ironmen (11-11) play at 6 p.m. Friday, followed by the Ironmen (9-13) taking the court at 7:30 p.m. to face Colcord.
All four teams, win or lose Friday, will advance to the regionals.
OKLAHOMA UNION (2A)
It’s been a brutally tough year for the Lady Cougars (0-23) and Cougars (4-18). They wrap up the regular season by playing host Tuesday to Commerce.
Oklahoma Union will jump into the district playoffs Saturday by traveling to Oktaha. The girls meet at 6 p.m., followed by the guys’ bash at 7:30 p.m. Win or lose, all the teams will play in the regionals.
BARNSDALL (A)
The Panthers (9-13) and Lady Panthers (11-11) both have played their final game.
Each lost in last week’s district playoffs to Woodland — Woodland boys won an overtime thriller, 61-55, and Woodland girls barely scraped past Barnsdall, 49-47.
PAWHUSKA (2A)
The Lady Huskies (16-6) and Huskies (10-10) are ending the season strong — both with three-game winning streaks going into Tuesday’s regular-season finale against visiting Pawnee.
Pawhuska then will travel Friday to Tonkawa for district championship games at 6 p.m. (girls) and 7:30 p.m. (boys). All four teams will advance to the regionals.
This article originally appeared on Bartlesville Examiner-Enterprise: Area high school basketball teams rev up for postseason runs
