Oak Ridge senior Courtney Ellison (10) made three three-point shots during a 71-42 win over Hardin Valley in the Region 2-AAA championship at Wildcat Arena on Wednesday, March 1, 2017. She is defended here by Hardin Valley junior Abbey Cornelius (25). (Photo by Luther Simmons)
The Oak Ridge Lady Wildcats won the Region 2-AAA championship for the second year in a row on Wednesday, crushing Hardin Valley 71-42 in their best overall game. Here are photos by Luther Simmons. [Read more…]
Playing their best game, the Oak Ridge Lady Wildcats won the Region 2-AAA championship for the second year in a row, crushing Hardin Valley 71-42 at Wildcat Arena on Wednesday, March 1, 2017. (Photo by Luther Simmons)
Note: This story was updated at 10:15 a.m.
The Oak Ridge Lady Wildcats won the Region 2-AAA championship for the second year in a row on Wednesday, crushing Hardin Valley 71-42. Oak Ridge Coach Paige Redman said it was the best overall game she’s seen the girls play.
“This game showed me a lot about them from start to finish on both ends of the court,” Redman said. “We played really, really well.”
The Lady Wildcats (29-3) had at least 15 steals, and they scored on eight of those. Oak Ridge had 25 points off of turnovers, including steals. Some of those turnovers led to three-point shots, some to layups, and still others to two-point plays converted into three-point plays because of Hardin Valley fouls.
Oak Ridge also had at least a half-dozen feeds in the paint for a basket, sometimes from one player standing near the free throw line to another cutting inside toward the basket when Hardin Valley guards came out too far.
“Tonight they played basketball,” Redman said of her team. “It was the best overall game I’ve seen them play.” [Read more…]
Two steals, a layup, and a free throw in the final minute helped Oak Ridge beat William Blount by one point, 48-47, in a Region 2-AAA semifinal game that came down to the final few seconds on Monday, Feb. 27, 2017. Pictured above are Oak Ridge juniors Jaymi Golden (32) and Destiny Kassner (30). (Photo by Luther Simmons)
Two steals, a layup, and a free throw in the final minute helped Oak Ridge beat William Blount by one point, 48-47, in a regional semifinal game that came down to the final few seconds on Monday.
The Lady Governors led by two points late in the Region 2-AAA semifinal elimination game, Oak Ridge Coach Paige Redman said. But a steal by Lady Wildcats senior Courtney Ellison led to a tying layup by junior Mykia Dowdell.
Then, another Oak Ridge steal led to a William Blount foul and two free throws by Lady Wildcats sophomore Jada Guinn. She missed the first one but hit the second, Redman said. That gave the Lady Wildcats (28-3) a one-point lead with about half a minute remaining.
With just over two seconds to go, Oak Ridge got the basketball. But the Lady Wildcats turned it over with about 1.3 seconds remaining. When the Lady Governors threw it in, Dowdell knocked it out of bounds. The clock ticked down to 0.3 seconds. That wasn’t enough time for William Blount (21-11) to get the ball in bounds and possibly make a game-winning basket. After being nervous—the Lady Governors led 47-45 with 2:14 remaining—Oak Ridge fans were jubilant.
“Wow!” said Stephanie Thompson, Oak Ridge High School assistant principal. “What a win for the Oak Ridge Lady Wildcats!” [Read more…]
Oak Ridge junior Courtney Ellison (10) scored a career-high 21 points for the Lady Wildcats during a 64-53 Region 2-AAA semifinal win over William Blount at Bearden on Monday, Feb. 29, 2016. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)
Note: This story was last updated at 2:25 a.m.
KNOXVILLE—The Oak Ridge Lady Wildcats battled back from an eight-point deficit in the second quarter of a Region 2 semifinal win against William Blount on Monday and kept their composure against a swarming defense to advance to the regional championship against Bearden on Wednesday.
The Lady Wildcats (26-4) permanently seized the lead about halfway through the second quarter behind the 10 first-half points of junior Courtney Ellison. They widened the lead to as many as 16 points in the second half before finishing ahead 64-53 in the Region 2-AAA elimination semifinal at Bearden High School.
Ellison led Oak Ridge with 21 points, a career high. Late in the third quarter, she made a three-point shot and a field goal within about 45 seconds to help open up a 44-31 lead. She added two more field goals from the left and right baseline late in the fourth quarter to maintain an Oak Ridge margin of about 10 points.
“I was really into it tonight,” Ellison said. “I was really wanting the win, and it was there.”
It’s the first time the Lady Wildcats have made it to the regional championship since 2010, the last year Jill Prudden coached Oak Ridge. [Read more…]
