Oak Ridge Today

Wildcats finish fifth in Arby’s Classic with win over Taylor County, Ky.

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

Oak Ridge senior point guard Geevantay Gee (12) dribbles during a 91-73 win over Taylor County for fifth place in the 2015 Arby’s Classic in Bristol on Thursday, Dec. 31, 2015. (Photo by Allen Greene/TriCitiesSports.com)

 

The Oak Ridge Wildcats finished fifth in the 2015 Arby’s Classic basketball tournament with a 91-73 win over Taylor County, Kentucky, in Bristol on Thursday.

The Wildcats had been bumped into a consolation bracket in this year’s tournament after they lost to David Crockett of Jonesborough, 87-85, in a double-overtime second-round game on Tuesday. They advanced to the fifth-place game with a 56-54 win on Wednesday over North Mecklenburg of North Carolina, the 2014 Arby’s Classic champion.

Oak Ridge junior Anthony Gibson led the Wildcats (17-1, 5-0 District 3-AAA) with 22 points on Thursday and 100 percent shooting from the free throw line. Junior Tee Higgins added 20 points, and he pulled down eight rebounds and had five assists and two steals. He also got the crowd on its feet with two dunks in the second half.

The Wildcats had three other players in double digits: senior forward Javien Johnson with 17 points (seven rebounds, one assist); junior guard E.J. Bush with 13 (six rebounds, two blocks, one assist); and junior guard Tajion Jones with 12 (six rebounds, four assists, one block, and one steal). [Read more…]

Lady Wildcats finish as runner-up in Lenoir City Christmas Tournament

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The Oak Ridge Lady Wildcats finished as runner-up in the 2015 Lenoir City Christmas Tournament, losing 51-40 to Upperman on Wednesday, Dec. 30, 2015. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

The Lady Wildcats finished as runner-up in the 2015 Lenoir City Christmas Tournament, losing to Upperman 51-40 in the championship game on Wednesday.

It’s the first trophy or plaque her players have received, first-year coach Paige Green said.

“That in itself says something,” Green said. “It’s not what we wanted. But it’s progress.”

The Lady Wildcats Oak Ridge (11-3, 5-0 District 3-AAA) can play at a championship level, but they didn’t do it on Wednesday, she said. [Read more…]

Planning Commission to consider re-subdivision for Main Street Oak Ridge on Jan. 7

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Main-Street-Oak-Ridge-Sign-Dec-21-2015

Workers from Masstar Signs of Greenville, S.C., install a new shopping center pylon sign at South Illinois Avenue and East Tulsa Road that announces Main Street Oak Ridge, the planned $80 million redevelopment of the former Oak Ridge Mall. Pictured above on Monday, Dec. 21, 2015, is Will Biggs of Masstar Signs. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

A re-subdivision for Main Street Oak Ridge, the $80 million project to redevelop the former Oak Ridge Mall, will be considered on Thursday, January 7.

Ray Evans, retail consultant for the City of Oak Ridge, has previously said that a subdivision plat has to be approved by the Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission before RealtyLink, the new developer, can close on the 58-acre site in the center of Oak Ridge.

The re-subdivision will be considered by the Planning Commission in a special-called meeting at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, January 7, in the Oak Ridge Municipal Building Training Room. [Read more…]

Wildcats beat 2014 Arby’s Classic champion to play for 5th place on Thursday

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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) hit two free throws with 2.4 seconds remaining to beat North Mecklenburg of North Carolina, 56-54, in the 2015 Arby’s Classic in Bristol on Wednesday, Dec. 30, 2015. (Photo by Allen Greene / TriCitiesSports.com)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 10:25 a.m. Dec. 31.

Oak Ridge lost an Arby’s Classic tournament game on free throws on Tuesday, and then won one on free throws on Wednesday. The Wildcats beat last year’s Arby’s Classic champion on Wednesday to play for fifth place in Bristol on Thursday.

Oak Ridge junior Tee Higgins hit two free throws with 2.4 seconds remaining to beat North Mecklenburg of North Carolina, 56-54, in the 2015 Arby’s Classic. North Mecklenburg was the champion in the 2014 Arby’s Classic.

Higgins, a University of Tennessee football commit who had a one-handed dunk early in the third quarter, finished with 11 points. Junior Tajion Jones, who had a three-pointer in each of the first three quarters, scored 11 for the Wildcats. Higgins pulled down five rebounds and had three assists, while Jones had four rebounds and a block. Senior Geevantay Gee had 10 points, two rebounds, and two assists for Oak Ridge.

Oak Ridge will play for fifth place in this year’s Arby’s Classic against the winner of a Wednesday afternoon game between Urspring, Germany, and Taylor County, Kentucky. (Thursday, December 31 update: Oak Ridge will play Taylor County.) The fifth-place game starts at 2:30 p.m. Thursday, December 31. [Read more…]

New contractor operating Transuranic Waste Processing Center

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Transuranic Waste Processing Center

The Transuranic Waste Processing Center in west Oak Ridge, south of Bethel Valley Road on Highway 95, is pictured above. (Photo courtesy of U.S. Department of Energy/Oak Ridge Office)

 

Information from Oak Ridge Today and the January 2016 issue of “Advocate,” a publication of the Oak Ridge Site Specific Advisory Board

North Wind Solutions took over the operation of the Transuranic Waste Processing Center in west Oak Ridge in December. The Idaho-based company was awarded the $123 million contract to operate the facility in June.

North Wind replaces Wastren Advantage Inc., which had operated the center since 2010. The Transuranic Waste Processing Center, or TRU Waste Processing Center, is off State Route 95 in southwest Oak Ridge, south of Bethel Valley Road and west of Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

North Wind will continue to process and store transuranic waste at the site until the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant, or WIPP, reopens in New Mexico. WIPP is the only facility in the U.S. that permanently disposes of transuranic waste, or TRU waste. [Read more…]

Lady Wildcats play for championship in Lenoir City tournament on Wednesday

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The Oak Ridge Lady Wildcats basketball team will play for the championship in the Lenoir City Christmas Tournament on Wednesday, December 30, 2015. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

The Oak Ridge Lady Wildcats will play for the championship in the Lenoir City Christmas Tournament on Wednesday.

The Lady Wildcats advanced to the championship with a 50-37 win over Lenoir City (7-7, 1-3 District 4-AAA) on Tuesday.

The tournament championship game starts at 6 p.m. Wednesday, December 30, at Lenoir City High School. Oak Ridge (11-2, 5-0 District 3-AAA) will play Upperman of Baxter, Tennessee (14-2, 4-0 District 8-AA). [Read more…]

Wildcats lose to Pioneers in double-overtime game that features 30 three-pointers

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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) scored 25 points for the Wildcats in a double-overtime 87-85 quarterfinal loss to David Crockett in the 2015 Arby’s Classic basketball tournament in Bristol on Tuesday, Dec. 29, 2015. (Photo by Allen Greene / TriCitiesSports.com)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 11:40 a.m. Dec. 30.

The Oak Ridge Wildcats lost their first basketball game of the season in a thrilling quarterfinal game that went into double overtime in the Arby’s Classic tournament in Bristol on Tuesday. It featured a combined 30 successful three-point shots. The final score was 87-85 in favor of the David Crockett Pioneers.

Oak Ridge junior Tajion Jones had a game-high 28 points and was credited with seven three-pointers, while junior Tee Higgins had 25 points and hit six three-pointers. Jones hit four of his seven three-point shots in the first quarter. The 6-foot-4 guard also finished with seven rebounds and one assist, and the 6-foot-5 Higgins had five rebounds and two steals.

It was a personal best for Jones, both in terms of total points scored and made three-pointers.

The Wildcats (15-1, 5-0 District 3-AAA) had 14 three-point shots total, while David Crockett (12-2, 2-0 District 1-AAA) had 16. That tied the single-game record of 16 set by Memphis White Station in 2003. The 15-0 start for Oak Ridge was the best in school history.

Oak Ridge and David Crockett, two top Class AAA teams that received a standing ovation at halftime after a flurry of three-pointers, made 21 three-point shots in the first half alone and shot an incredible 68 percent from beyond the arc (21 of 31). In comparison, the two teams shot 60 percent or less from two-point range in the first half. [Read more…]

DOE launches K-25 Virtual Museum, helps preserve history of Manhattan Project site

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Making-History-K-25-Timeline

Photo from K-25 Virtual Museum/U.S. Department of Energy

 

Information from the January 2016 issue of “Advocate,” a publication of the Oak Ridge Site Specific Advisory Board

A new virtual museum helps preserve the history of the former K-25 site, which was built in west Oak Ridge to enrich uranium for atomic bombs during World War II and once had the world’s largest building under one roof.

The K-25 Virtual Museum was launched in November by the U.S. Department of Energy Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management (OREM) as part of a memorandum of agreement for the interpretation of the historic site now known as East Tennessee Technology Park, or ETTP.

The debut of the online museum coincided with the November 10 signing of an agreement between the Department of Energy and the Department of Interior establishing the Manhattan Project National Historical Park. The Manhattan Project was a top-secret federal effort to build the world’s first atomic weapons during World War II.

The K-25 Virtual Museum can be viewed at http://www.k-25virtualmuseum.org/.

[Read more…]

Four Oak Ridge students competing in Bijou Awards in January

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Jacob Moreno

Jacob Moreno

Four Oak Ridge students will compete in the Bijou Awards in January.

The Fourth Annual Bijou Awards will showcase the talent of high school students in and around Knoxville. The 2016 Bijou Awards Gala is on January 16 at the Bijou Theatre in downtown Knoxville.

Oak Ridge High School seniors Treston Henderson and Jacob Moreno will both compete in the male singing category.

Sarah Hepler, an eight-grader at Robertsville Middle School, and Marian Vacaliuc, a seventh-grader at Jefferson Middle School, will compete in the rising star category. [Read more…]

With win over Sequoyah, Lady Wildcats advance to semifinals in Lenoir City Christmas Tournament

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Oak Ridge sophomore post Mykia Dowdell (34) had 15 points for the Lady Wildcats during a first-round quarterfinal game in the Lenoir City Christmas Tournament on Monday, Dec. 28, 2015. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

LENOIR CITY—The Oak Ridge Lady Wildcats advanced to a semifinal game in the Lenoir City Christmas Tournament with a 49-29 win over Sequoyah on Monday.

Sophomore Mykia Dowdell led Oak Ridge (10-2, 5-0 District 3-AAA) with 15 points. Senior Caelyn Thompson scored eight, and junior Courtney Ellison and freshman Jada Guinn each added six. Nine players scored for the Lady Wildcats, who got off to an 8-0 start in the first quarter and never trailed.

Madi Haymes scored 10 for Sequoyah, a 6-8 Class AA team from Madisonville, and Bailee Lane and Haley Isbell had six each.

Oak Ridge will play Lenoir City (7-6, 1-3 District 4-AAA) in a seminal game in Lenoir City at 6 p.m. Tuesday, December 29. The winner of that game will play the winner of the Upperman-Stone Memorial game in a championship game at 6 p.m. Wednesday, December 30. [Read more…]

Man charged with kidnapping, aggravated robbery after allegedly using gun to steal from ex-girlfriend

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Dmantiz-Bowser

Dmantiz Bowser

An Oak Ridge man was charged with kidnapping and aggravated robbery after he allegedly held a gun to the back of his ex-girlfriend’s head before stealing her cell phones and $1,200 in cash, authorities said.

The robbery was reported at about 9:16 a.m. Friday, December 11, at a home on Northwestern Avenue.

The ex-girlfriend told Oak Ridge Police Department Officer Kevin Merritt that she awoke to a loud noise and found Dmantiz A. Bowser, 21, in the back bedroom. She asked him what he was doing, according to warrants filed in Anderson County General Sessions Court.

“She said the defendant then pulled a small black gun out of his front pocket, grabbed her by her right arm and twisted it behind her back,” the warrants said. “She said he then shoved her face down in the couch, putting his knee on her back, and putting the pistol to the back of her head. [Read more…]

Man, 27, accused of attacking, robbing grandfather, 81

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Trenton-Johnson

Trenton Johnson

The day after he was found unresponsive in a bathroom, with a syringe on the floor and suspected heroin in his jacket pocket, a 27-year-old Oak Ridge man allegedly attacked his 81-year-old grandfather, pushed him down, and stole his wallet, authorities said.

Trenton Johnson of Briarwood Drive was found on his back and unresponsive on a bathroom floor, lying between a toilet and bathtub, at the Briarwood Drive home on Saturday, December 19, Oak Ridge Police Department Officer Kevin M. Merritt said.

A syringe was on the floor next to Johnson, Merritt said. On the edge of the bathtub, there was a pack of cigarettes, lighter, and metal spoon, the officer said. [Read more…]