Oak Ridge Today

Wildcats open large lead in third quarter of 85-51 win over Powell

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Junior guard Tajion Jones (3) led Oak Ridge with a game-high 22 points in an 85-51 win over Powell at Wildcat Arena on Thursday, Jan. 29, 2016. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was updated at 3 p.m.

The first half was competitive. The second half wasn’t.

Oak Ridge led Powell by only seven points, 40-33, at halftime at Wildcat Arena on Thursday.

But Oak Ridge (24-2, 12-0 District 3-AAA) quickly opened up a large lead early in the third quarter. Junior guard Tajion Jones knocked down three consecutive three-point shots in the first 90 seconds of the third quarter. Then, about a minute later, he scored a field goal to widen the Oak Ridge lead to 52-33. That was 11 points for Jones in the first 2.5 minutes of the second half.

The Wildcats, undefeated in the district, ended up outscoring the Panthers 28-6 in the third quarter. Powell (13-8, 7-5) never recovered. [Read more…]

In last two games, Wildcats held opposing teams under 25 percent from field

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Oak Ridge senior point guard Geevantay Gee (12) scored 12 points for the Wildcats during a 79-31 win over Anderson County at home on Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2016. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

In their last two games, the Oak Ridge Wildcats have held opposing teams to less than 25 percent shooting from field goal range, Coach Aaron Green said after a 79-31 win over Anderson County on Tuesday.

If a team can hold an opponent to 35 to 38 percent shooting or less, it is defending well, Green said.

He praised the Oak Ridge defense and said the team’s practice habits have been good the past few weeks.

The Wildcats (23-2, 11-0 District 3-AAA) applied a lot of defensive pressure to the Mavericks in the first half, especially in the Anderson County end of the court. Green said Oak Ridge learned a lesson from the previous meeting between the two teams, which Oak Ridge won 78-44 on December 11. The Wildcats’ lead was much smaller in the first half of that game, Green said. [Read more…]

Lady Mavericks keep it close, but Oak Ridge girls prevail, play Powell tonight

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Oak Ridge senior forward Caelyn Thompson (22) dribbles during a 48-40 win over Anderson County at Wildcat Arena on Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2016. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 2:15 p.m.

The Lady Mavericks kept it close, but the Lady Wildcats prevailed in a 48-40 win at home on Tuesday. Oak Ridge will play Powell tonight, also at home at Wildcat Arena.

Oak Ridge and Anderson County were tied 25-25 at halftime on Tuesday. The Lady Wildcats led 37-31 at the end of the third quarter, but the Lady Mavericks were able to narrow the lead to four points in the fourth quarter and keep it there for about a minute in the final 90 seconds.

The Lady Wildcats (17-3, 11-0 District 3-AAA) were able to widen the lead to eight points late in the game on four made free throws by sophomore post Mykia Dowdell and freshman point guard Jada Guinn in the last 34 seconds. Dowdell led Oak Ridge with 16 points during the game, and Guinn had 14.

The Lady Mavericks (8-15, 6-5) were led by freshman Brooklin McCoy, who scored a game-high 20 points. Senior Colebee Sumner added 12 for Anderson County. [Read more…]

Oak Ridge basketball games rescheduled, canceled

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The Oak Ridge junior varsity and varsity basketball games scheduled for tonight (Friday, January 22) against Powell have been rescheduled for Thursday, January 28.

The freshman and junior varsity, or JV, games against Christian Academy of Knoxville on Saturday, January 23, are canceled.

The calendar for next week is below. All games are at home at Oak Ridge High School. [Read more…]

Lady Wildcats hold Central to 11 points, a record low

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The Oak Ridge Lady Wildcats basketball team, pictured above during an earlier game, held Central to 11 points on Tuesday, Jan. 19, 2016. (File photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

The Oak Ridge Lady Wildcats held Central to 11 points on Tuesday in a 64-11 win, a new record for least points allowed.

The previous record for least points allowed was 14, which is what the 1999 team allowed Alcoa, broadcaster David Clary said.

At 10-0, the Lady Wildcats remain undefeated atop District 3-AAA, and they have an overall record of 16-3. Central is last in the district at 0-9 and 2-16 overall.

The Wildcats and Lady Wildcats swept Clinton and Central in the past week. [Read more…]

Lady Wildcats now the only undefeated team in district after win over Cougars

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Oak Ridge freshman point guard Jada Guinn (24) led the Lady Wildcats with a game-high 14 points during a 47-31 win over Campbell County at home on Tuesday, Jan. 12, 2016. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

The Lady Wildcats are now the only undefeated team in District 3-AAA after beating Campbell County, which had also been undefeated, at home on Tuesday. The final score was 47-31.

Campbell County only scored two points in the second quarter, and Oak Ridge (14-3, 8-0) had a 22-9 halftime lead.

But the Lady Cougars outscored Oak Ridge by 14-9 in the third quarter to narrow the lead to eight points.

But the Lady Wildcats then held Campbell County (15-4, 7-1) scoreless for the first several minutes of the fourth quarter to widen the lead. [Read more…]

Wildcats outscore Cougars 33-13 in second quarter to take 75-42 win

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The Oak Ridge Wildcats outscored Campbell County 33-13 in the second quarter on their way to a 75-42 win at Wildcat Arena on Tuesday, Jan. 12, 2016. Junior Tajion Jones (3) tied junior E.J. Bush for the game-high 15 points. Also pictured above is Oak Ridge junior Tee Higgins (5). (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

It started as a low-scoring basketball game, but Oak Ridge outscored Campbell County 33-13 in the second quarter to take a 75-42 win at home on Tuesday.

The Wildcats were led by junior guards Tajion Jones and E.J. Bush, who each had 15 points. Senior forward Javien Johnson had a game-high seven rebounds. And junior guard DeAndre Gibson hit four more three-point shots.

The Wildcats (20-2, 8-0 District 3-AAA) are undefeated in the district, and they play another district game at Clinton on Friday, January 15. Oak Ridge beat Clinton (11-6, 3-4) by 85-51 in their first meeting on December 1.

Bush opened the scoring early in the first quarter on Tuesday, giving Oak Ridge a 2-0 lead at 7:40 in the first quarter. No one scored again until halfway through the quarter, when Johnson hit two free throws, giving the Wildcats a 4-0 lead at 4:21. [Read more…]

High school hoops round-up Jan. 8, 9

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Information from WYSH Radio

It was another busy weekend of local high school basketball.

On Friday at Clinton, the Anderson County Lady Mavericks pulled away from Clinton to win 45-29 in round one of the girls’ edition of the Crosstown Showdown.

Anderson County (5-12, 4-3 District 3-AAA) was led by Klarissa Roberts, who scored 11 points, and Brooklin McCoy, who tallied nine points and nine rebounds. [Read more…]

Higgins scores 26 as Wildcats fall to Cordova in National Hoopfest

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This photo is property of Allen Greene. Unauthorized use of this photo is not permitted without consent.

Oak Ridge junior Tee Higgins (5) is pictured above in the 2015 Arby’s Classic basketball tournament in Bristol on Tuesday, Dec. 29, 2015. (File photo by Allen Greene/TriCitiesSports.com)

 

Oak Ridge junior guard Tee Higgins scored 26 points, but the Wildcats fell to Cordova 72-59 in the National Hoopfest in west Tennessee on Saturday. It’s only the second loss of the year for Oak Ridge.

The basketball game was tied 44-44 at the end of the third quarter, but Oak Ridge struggled with turnovers in the fourth. The Wolves didn’t hesitate to take advantage and convert those turnovers into points, according to Oak Ridge Wildcats.

Oak Ridge (19-2, 7-0 District 3-AAA) was at a height disadvantage. One of Cordova’s players is 6-foot-9 and headed to Murray State.

Still, Oak Ridge led by six points, 17-11, at the end of the first quarter at Arlington High School in Memphis, and they trailed by only three, 31-28, at halftime after a buzzer-beater by Tyler Harris of Cordova. [Read more…]

Wildcats, Lady Wildcats remain undefeated in district

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This photo is property of Allen Greene. Unauthorized use of this photo is not permitted without consent.

Oak Ridge Wildcats Coach Aaron Green is pictured above in the 2015 Arby’s Classic basketball tournament in Bristol on Tuesday, Dec. 29, 2015. (File photo by Allen Greene/TriCitiesSports.com)

 

The Oak Ridge Wildcats and Lady Wildcats both remain undefeated in the district after wins over Halls on Thursday, but both basketball teams have tough games coming up.

The Lady Wildcats (13-3, 7-0 District 3-AAA) beat Halls 37-28 at home on Tuesday in a low-scoring game that had been narrowed to a two-point lead early in the fourth quarter.

After the girls played, the boys went on to beat the Red Devils by 30 points in a blowout, 84-54.

The Lady Wildcats held the Lady Red Devils scoreless in the first quarter and had an 18-10 halftime lead. Oak Ridge led by four, 25-21, at the end of the third quarter, when Halls outscored the Lady Wildcats 11-7, and Oak Ridge played great defense in the fourth quarter. Junior Courtney Ellison made two free throws to clinch the win for the Lady Wildcats with 20 seconds left in the game, and freshman Jada Guinn and sophomore Mykia Dowdell also added from the free throw line. [Read more…]

High school basketball scores from Tuesday

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Information from WYSH Radio

Tuesday night, regular season high school basketball play resumed after the Winter Break, and here is an update on how some area teams fared.

Powell girls 41, Clinton 28: After a sluggish start by both teams, Powell woke up first in the second quarter and built a large lead that they were able to protect down the stretch. Clinton fell to 2-16 and 1-5 in District 3-AAA despite 14 points and 14 rebounds from Kelley Wandell and five points and 10 boards from fellow senior Katie Starnes.

Powell boys 57, Clinton 54: The Dragons’ fourth-quarter rally came up short on the road, and they fell to 11-6 and 2-4 in District 3-AAA. Tyler Thackerson and J’Quan Thomas each tallied 13 points to lead Clinton, which was once again victimized by poor free-throw shooting. [Read more…]

Wildcats escape with 72-68 win at Karns

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Oak Ridge junior Tee Higgins (5) scored a game-high 18 points during a 72-68 win at Karns on Tuesday, Jan. 5, 2016. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

KARNS—Karns threatened to tie the game in the final minute and possibly upset the fourth-ranked Wildcats, but Oak Ridge escaped with a 72-68 win over the Beavers on Tuesday.

Oak Ridge led by as many as 16 points with more than six minutes left in the fourth quarter, but Karns whittled the lead down to two points, 70-68, with 1:04 remaining. Quincey Sibley of Karns, who finished with 11 points total, scored 10 of them in that 20-6 run, which lasted five minutes.

After a timeout with 45.7 seconds left, Oak Ridge (18-1, 6-0 District 3-AAA) had the ball with the two-point lead. But the Wildcats turned it over with 35.9 remaining.

That gave the Beavers, who were most productive in their 23-point fourth quarter, a chance to tie the game and possibly even take the lead. [Read more…]