Class B girls basketball: Dover, Hammon, Lomega, Lookeba-Sickles advance to semifinals
The Class B girls basketball state tournament started Wednesday at State Fair Arena. Here's a look at what happened in the quarterfinals:
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Lookeba-Sickles 49, Arnett 43
Lance Scales had to alter Lookeba-Sickles’ lineup in the midst of a postseason run.
Sophomore starter Aspen Courtney suffered a knee injury in the area finals, so Lookeba-Sickles entered the state tournament without the person Scales, the head coach, described as the team's “best athlete.”
They couldn’t replace her, but they made their new situation work.
Fifth-ranked Lookeba-Sickles defeated No. 8 Arnett 49-43 on Wednesday in the Class B girls basketball state quarterfinals at State Fair Arena. Kamden Stocking stepped into the starting lineup, while senior leader Ellie Willard took on a larger defensive responsibility.
Willard also powered the Panthers’ offense with a game-high 30 points, accounting for more than half of their scoring.
Arnett tried to claw back into the game, but Lookeba-Sickles (28-3) kept feeding the ball to Willard, who shot 7 for 10 from 2-point range and grabbed four rebounds.
“She’s a machine,” Scales said. “... She handles the ball. She scores and facilitates, gets everybody involved and also is clutch at the free-throw line.”
Landry Bayless led Arnett with 21 points, while Harley Shoaf followed with nine.
In the fourth quarter, 5-foot-2 guard Shoaf made a layup that trimmed Lookeba-Sickles’ lead to 44-43, but the Panthers shut out Arnett (27-6) for the final two minutes. Aubree Geisler gave Lookeba-Sickles a cushion at the free-throw line, and Willard capped the victory at the stripe.
“We didn’t expect to win by 10 or 15,” Scales said. “(Arnett) made a run, and we made some plays down the stretch and figured out how to get to the foul line and make some free throws.”
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Dover 62, Turner 51
Katelyn Harviston said people call it “twin telepathy.”
She and her twin sister, Karlee Harviston, operate on the same wavelength when they’re playing basketball. One fires a quick pass to the other. Both use their speed to separate themselves from defenders.
“It’s just like an instinct that happens,” Karlee said, “and we just go with it.”
The senior duo’s connection boosted top-ranked Dover in its state quarterfinal victory over Turner. Katelyn stockpiled 21 points, while Karlee provided 16 to fend off the No. 15 Falcons. Each sister also had three assists.
After exiting the regional tournament for two straight years and losing at area as juniors, the Harvistons are finally experiencing the thrill of competing in State Fair Arena. Dover, a former girls basketball powerhouse that fell into a massive losing streak, is returning to prominence with third-year coach Matt Peck.
With Dover (28-2) on everyone’s radar as the top-ranked contender, Turner made a valiant effort to play spoiler.
Turner led, 16-12, at the end of the first quarter. Dover eventually went up, 41-29, but Turner (28-5) wouldn’t disappear, cutting that advantage to only three points in the fourth quarter.
“There were multiple times in the game where we probably could have just gave up,” Peck said. “But they didn’t. Early in the season, we may have gave up, but later on, we’ve shown a lot of growth and maturity, a lot of toughness.”
The Harvistons threw their best strategy at Turner: running in transition and seeing if the Falcons could keep up. As the Longhorns dialed up the offensive pace, they also locked in on defense, holding Turner to only 10 fourth-quarter points.
Rylee Buck played a key role in the victory with 17 points, while Joi Caldwell had a game-high six rebounds.
“Losing some hard games, we’ve learned from those games,” Katelyn said. “We know how to handle ourselves when we’re in hard situations, and (we’re) just aging, really.”
Lomega 52, Kiowa 41
Lomega is tired of second place.
After finishing as Class B runners-up for the past two seasons, Lomega entered this year’s state tournament on a mission for revenge. A quarterfinal victory over Kiowa brought it one step closer to its goal, and head coach Kevin Lewallen isn’t settling for less than greatness as they chase the gold ball.
“They didn’t like that taste in their mouth the last two years,” Lewallen said. “I didn’t think we played our best today. We didn’t play bad, but I didn’t think we played our best today.”
Lewallen pointed to turnovers as an issue that turned a comfortable advantage into a fourth-quarter wake-up call. Second-ranked Lomega once led by 15 points, but No. 11 Kiowa regrouped, outscoring Lomega 18-15 in the third quarter.
Then with 2:21 left, Emma Roberts made a free throw that narrowed Lomega’s lead to 46-41.
Senior guard Abby Swart kept Lomega (28-2) in front. She sank four free throws in the final minute, finishing with a game-high 19 points.
“She’s started for us for four years, so she’s been there,” Lewallen said. “She’s definitely one that we want with the basketball at the end of the game whenever the game is on the line.”
Hadley Ott led Lomega with 10 rebounds to go with eight points, while Chloe Meier added nine points, shooting 3 for 5 from 3-point range.
Kiowa (24-9) had a trio of double-digit scorers in Paige Igou (12), Emma Roberts (11) and Ella Roberts (11), but Lomega fended off the comeback attempt.
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Hammon 47, Mountain View-Gotebo 42
Henley West has worked to expand her game since winning state a year ago.
The 6-foot-4 junior center can make easy layups over defenders, but with opponents on a mission to topple the defending Class B champion, she has to find ways to keep them guessing.
West’s multidimensional skill set propelled fourth-ranked Hammon to a victory over No. 3 Mountain View-Gotebo in the Class B girls basketball state quarterfinals Wednesday at State Fair Arena.
She poured in 25 points, 16 rebounds, five blocks, three steals and an assist, catalyzing the 10-0 run that allowed Hammon to break away in the fourth quarter.
“I told her, ‘We got to develop some moves,’” said Clay Conley, Hammon’s first-year coach. “I think she’s took that to heart and done a little bit more than just shooting over the top of somebody like we’ve kind of seen in the past.”
West added 10 points in the first quarter alone, but Mountain View-Gotebo (27-2) adjusted, sandwiching her near the basket to slow Hammon's offense.
While 6-foot senior Hallie Carney limited West’s space in the paint, guards Rowyn Fite and Makiah Quoetone challenged Hammon with high-pressure defense. The duo combined for 11 steals, and Quoetone capitalized, leading the way with 17 points.
Mountain View-Gotebo clung to a 35-34 lead at the end of the third quarter, but when Hammon (25-5) cut down on turnovers, everything clicked. West dished the ball inside to senior Edwina Pewo for a layup that tied the game at 37, and Hammon’s star center followed with six straight points to build a fourth-quarter lead.
Hammon gained a significant advantage from the free-throw line, making 20 of 23 attempts. West shot 9 for 10 at the stripe, while Pewo went 8 for 9, finishing with 10 points.
“We had to take care of the ball,” West said. “Wait for things to come open and throw (the ball) at the right time. Don’t just panic and throw the ball away, so we just kept calm and played our game.”
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OSSAA Class B girls basketball state tournament quarterfinal scores
