How Choctaw girls basketball is out to prove 'last year was just a fluke'
MOORE — Ryan Maloney admits that his girls are really ticked off.
The Choctaw girls basketball coach has five seniors on his roster, and each one has brought an extraordinary level of energy and commitment to their final varsity season.
Why? Because none of them want to duplicate 2023, which was just the second season in the past 10 that the Yellowjackets failed to reach the state tournament.
“I think the ultimate goal is not just to get there, but to compete in it,” Maloney said after Choctaw defeated Midwest City, 61-47, on the second day of the John Nobles Invitational Tournament Friday at Moore High School. “Because it is not something that we like to do is miss out on the finals, so yes, that definitely fueled their fire quite a bit.”
No Choctaw player exemplifies that commitment more than Kate Davis, Choctaw’s terrific combination guard that led all scorers with 22 points against the Bombers, including 13 after halftime.
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“That is the first time in my four years we have missed state,” Davis said. “It hurt real bad last year. … We want to do it this year for ourselves and prove to everyone that last year was just a fluke. That’s not who we are. So this offseason we have been grinding, working harder than ever, hitting the weight room and it is showing in our game this year.”
Indeed it is. Friday’s victory over Midwest City (11-3) improved Choctaw’s record to a perfect 13-0 this season, which matches its unblemished start from two years ago. To hear Davis explain it, this edition of the Yellowjackets is thriving on chemistry and cohesion.
“We’re just close as a team,” Davis said. “We trust each other. There is no drama, no feud. It’s just all team basketball and that is just what is working for us.”
After leading early in the third quarter, 35-32, Choctaw exploded for 12 unanswered points, capped by back-to-back 3-point baskets by Davis, who finished with three overall.
Davis has signed to play college ball at Oklahoma Baptist University.
“She is just so smart and gifted,” Maloney said. “The game is so slow for her. She does not get rattled. People can pressure her and it does not bother her one bit. She is patient, she has basketball IQ through the roof. She’s just a bucket. She can score. I love watching her play. It has been such a gift to have a kid like Kate.”
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Fellow senior Alaura Pruitt – who missed her junior season due to injury – scored 13 points off the bench for Choctaw, while junior Adison Kraeer added 10. More valuable experience appears to be on the way as senior post player Shelbie Pherigo is expected back from injury on Tuesday after missing the past month.
“We’ve got five good, solid seniors that contribute,” Maloney said. “When you’ve got that type of experience and that type of leadership and that type of passion, that really goes a long way. Because we’re not the biggest, we’re not the fastest, but these kids really know how to play basketball. They’re smart, they roll with the punches, they don’t get rattled.”
Choctaw opened the tournament Thursday with a 14-point win over 3A No. 16 Millwood and already owns wins this season over fellow Class 6A powers Broken Arrow and Bixby, plus ranked 4A schools in No. 16 Duncan and No. 14 Weatherford. True to their coach’s word, the Yellowjackets refused to be rattled when the Bixby and Duncan contests needed overtime to be decided.
“This is the best tournament we have been in this year,” Davis said. “We just came here ready to win. Don’t want to get a loss this year. We’ve got the heart.”
Sierra Martin scored 15 points, while De’Yanna Douglas added 14 for Midwest City.
It remains to be determined which team Choctaw will face on Saturday. Both Bixby and Owasso have also won its first two tournament games. Since Bixby is a district foe for Choctaw, Maloney would prefer Owasso.
“I’ve got to ask around, because I don’t really know,” Maloney said.
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Boys: Moore 63, Millwood 59
The Moore boys’ basketball team is becoming adept at stringing together points.
After rallying from a 24-point deficit to defeat Piedmont in overtime on Tuesday and opening the John Nobles Invitational with a rout of Destiny Christian two days later, the Lions jumped all over Millwood with the game’s first 15 points.
“Execute on offense and get stops,” said Moore junior Tristan Hankins, who led all scorers with 22 points as the Lions held off the Falcons, 63-59, in a tournament semifinal game at the Lions’ home gymnasium. “Knock down shots. Get to the free throw line. Play basketball.”
Millwood (11-5) got within five points at halftime at 25-20, but Moore charged out of the halftime locker room with another dominating flurry of points. The Lions opened the third frame with a 24-8 explosion that gave them their largest lead of the night at 49-28.
“Early we played well and took care of the basketball,” Moore coach Gregg Hardin said. “We were really sharing the basketball. I thought that was the key. Millwood, as you can see in that last quarter, they were going to fight. They have always been like that for years. I take my hat off to them. … The kids are finishing games and playing hard. I’m really proud of them for it. We’re back in the championship game. We haven’t been there in two years. It would be nice to get this next one, too.”
The “next one” will be Saturday night at 8:30 against Carl Albert (12-3) for the tournament title.
Harding University recruit Darian Grant added 12 points, while fellow senior Ebi Bortey added 10 for the Moore (9-5), which has won five games in a row after a 4-5 start to the season.
“We’re finally coming together,” Hankins said. “Playing smarter as a group. We’ve still got to fix some things. We’re not playing all four quarters.”
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Boys: Carl Albert 63, Westmoore 54
It would be hard to envision a better start to a game than the one Jayden Hopkins produced on Friday night.
The Carl Albert sophomore guard shot over and sprinted past the Westmoore Jaguars for 17 of his team’s first 21 points as the Titans won a semifinal game in the John Nobles Invitational, 63-54, at Moore High School.
“The people from Westmoore were talking, so it got me fired up,” Hopkins said. “I really wanted to go out there and show that I could go get a bucket.”
Hopkins got plenty of them. Using a lethal inside-outside game bolstered by terrific speed and quick slashes, Hopkins led all scorers with 24 points.
“I have got to work on shooting right now,” Hopkins said. “That is one of my biggest things. Getting to the rim is very easy and then my shot was pretty good today.”
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The win was the ninth in a row for Carl Albert (12-3), which arrived amidst some roster upheaval as Carl Albert coach Jay Price confirmed after the game that standout senior Jayden Mott – a Northern Illinois recruit – has withdrawn from school and is no longer part of the team.
“I thought we executed pretty well offensively,” Price said. “Early on in the game, we got to the rim pretty good. Jayden (Hopkins) did a great job getting us started and getting things going for us, so I was really proud of that. We had talked about our defense and that is one of the things that in the past we have tried to lean on. I can’t say that we have been great at it, but we are trying to improve and I thought we did a really good job defensively tonight.”
OU football commit Marcus James – who has only been with the basketball team since winter break – will take Mott’s place in the starting lineup for Carl Albert.
Jayden Hopkins’ older brother, Quincy Hopkins, added 15 points for the Titans, which will face Moore (9-5) Saturday night at 8:30 for the tournament title.
Garrett Loper paced Westmoore (7-4) with 20 points.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Choctaw girls basketball is out to prove 'last year was just a fluke'
