Oak Ridge Today

Lady Wildcats defense shines in 42-34 win over Dobyns-Bennett

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Freshman point guard Jada Guinn (24) led Oak Ridge with 13 points during a 42-34 win over Dobyns-Bennett at Wildcat Arena on Friday, Dec. 18, 2015. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

The Lady Wildcats defense played its best game of the year as Oak Ridge beat Dobyns-Bennett 42-34 at home on Friday, Coach Paige Green said.

The Lady Wildcats missed 13 layups and 14 or 15 free throws, Green said. But, “we can fix layups and free throws,” Green said during the two-day Rick McGill Toyota Classic at Wildcat Arena.

The teams exchanged leads in the first half. Oak Ridge trailed 7-8 at the end of the first quarter, and the Lady Wildcats led 18-15 at halftime. Oak Ridge kept a narrow 28-26 lead through the third quarter after Dobyns-Bennett tied it at 24, but the Lady Wildcats outscored the Lady Indians 14-8 in the final quarter.

Freshman point guard Jada Guinn led Oak Ridge (8-2, 5-0 District 3-AAA) with 13 points, and she scored nine of those in the fourth quarter. [Read more…]

Seven Wildcats score from three-point range in 88-36 win over Dobyns-Bennett

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Oak Ridge senior Colton Wade (22) came off the bench to pick up seven rebounds, four assists, and five points (including a three-pointer), earning more playing time during an 88-36 win over Dobyns-Bennett at Wildcat Arena on Friday, Dec. 18, 2015. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 12:30 p.m.

The Oak Ridge Wildcats scored 15 three-point shots on Tuesday at Gibbs. They hit 12 more at home against Dobyns-Bennett on Friday. That’s 27 three-pointers in the last two games.

“We’re shooting well,” Oak Ridge Coach Aaron Green said after Friday night’s 88-36 runaway win over Dobyns-Bennett in the two-day Rick McGill Toyota Classic at Wildcat Arena. It’s the largest win ever over Dobyns-Bennett, said broadcaster David Clary of Prepradio.com.

The game got off to a competitive start, and the Wildcats and Indians were tied 15-15 at the end of the first quarter. But Oak Ridge (13-0, 5-0 District 3-AAA) opened up a large lead in the second quarter, outscoring Dobyns-Bennett 30-11, and the Wildcats were ahead 45-26 at halftime.

The Indians (2-5, 0-1 District 1-AAA) were only able to add 10 points in the final two quarters, while Oak Ridge scored another 43, even after putting in reserves in the final quarter and despite playing with two Wildcats who got into foul trouble early in the second quarter. [Read more…]

Basketball: Eight games in two days at ORHS in Rick McGill Toyota Classic

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Oak Ridge Wildcats Boys Basketball Team Nov. 17, 2015

Members of the Oak Ridge Wildcats boys basketball team are pictured above during an 87-67 season-opening win over Grace Christian at home on Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2015. From left are juniors Tyshawn Young (15), Tajion Jones (3), and E.J. Bush (2), seniors Geevantay Gee (12) and Javien Johnson (11), junior Deandre Gibson (10), and senior Darel Middleton (33). (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

The Rick McGill Toyota Classic will feature eight basketball games in two days at Oak Ridge High School this month.

The classic is December 18-19 at ORHS. The participating teams are high school boys and girls teams from Cleveland, Dobyns Bennett, Oak Ridge, and Science Hill.

Here is the schedule: [Read more…]

Defense, TD passes to Higgins give Wildcats 24-13 win over Clinton

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Oak Ridge Wildcats Jordan Dunbar and Clinton Dragons

Senior quarterback Jordan Dunbar (14) ran for 27 yards on nine carries and six first downs against the Clinton Dragons on Blankenship Field on Friday. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 7:30 p.m. Aug. 22.

Junior receiver Tee Higgins caught two touchdown passes, and the Oak Ridge defense prevented Clinton from scoring in the first half as the Wildcats beat the Dragons 24-13 in the season opener at home on Friday.

Oak Ridge also blocked a Clinton field goal attempt, sacked senior quarterback Tyler Thackerson five times, and scored a defensive touchdown on a high Dragon punt snap that rolled into the end zone. The Wildcats also forced Clinton to turn over the ball twice on downs, and Oak Ridge senior Brandon Nickle kicked a 24-yard field goal about halfway through the third quarter.

Oak Ridge Coach Joe Gaddis said the Wildcats played well on defense, especially in the first half, but the offense made some mistakes, particularly in the first half, that have to be corrected before next week’s game against Dobyns-Bennett in Kingsport. [Read more…]

ORHS ranked No. 11 most challenging high school in Tenn.

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Oak Ridge High School

The main entrance at Oak Ridge High School is pictured above. (Photo courtesy Oak Ridge Schools)

 

Oak Ridge High School was ranked number 11 on a list of the most challenging high schools in Tennessee, according to a ranking published by The Washington Post.

Other East Tennessee high schools on the list are West High School in Knoxville (#6), Farragut High School in Knoxville (#7), Morristown West in Morristown (#10), and Dobyns-Bennett High School in Kingsport (#12).

The top five high schools are all in the Nashville area: Hume-Fogg Magnet in Nashville (#1), Martin Luther King Magnet in Nashville (#2), Brentwood in Brentwood (#3), Hillsboro in Nashville (#4), and Ravenwood in Brentwood (#5). [Read more…]

Wildcats advance to state tournament on late free throws by Higgins, block by Johnson

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Oak Ridge Wildcats Javien Johnson Geevantay Gee and Science Hill

Juniors Javien Johnson (11) and Geevantay Gee (12) of the Oak Ridge Wildcats defend against the Science Hill Hilltoppers during a 55-53 win in a Class AAA sectional game in Johnson City on Tuesday. Johnson blocked a shot by Malik McGue, who scored five of his eight points in the fourth quarter of his final game for Science Hill, with 0.8 seconds to play to help win the game. (Photo courtesy Trey Williams/Johnson City Press)

 

JOHNSON CITY—The Oak Ridge Wildcats are heading back to the state tournament in Murfreesboro next week after their comeback 55-53 win against a hungry Science Hill group at Tuesday night’s Class AAA Sectional game. Two free throws by sophomore Tee Higgins with 5.1 seconds left and a defensive block by junior Javien Johnson with 0.8 seconds left helped the Wildcats pull away with the victory.

It seemed that Science Hill (23-15) couldn’t miss from the floor in the first half. The Hilltoppers hit six three-pointers in the first half—four in the first quarter alone. One of those four included a buzzer-beating three at the end of the first quarter. With the buzzer-beater, the Hilltoppers had a 16-12 lead on the Wildcats.

In the second quarter, Oak Ridge (29-3) fell behind quickly. At one point, the Wildcats were down 24-14. However, thanks to two three-pointers by sophomore DeAndre Gibson, the Wildcats were able to gather themselves and go on a 13-6 run to end the quarter. With one half in the books, Oak Ridge was trailing 30-27.

The second quarter was the only quarter of the game that didn’t have a tie or a lead change. Oak Ridge had three three-pointers in the first half, all of them courtesy of Gibson (2) and sophomore Tajion Jones (1).

The Hilltoppers battled back in the second half. After Oak Ridge jumped out to a 34-30 lead, the Hilltoppers rattled off seven straight points to take the 37-34 lead. Oak Ridge pulled within a point of taking the lead back, and Science Hill drained a three. There actually was a span of 30 seconds in the third that had four consecutive combined threes hit by both teams. However, the Wildcats scored late in the third to give themselves a 44-43 lead with one quarter left to decide who went to the state tournament and who stayed home. [Read more…]

Blackmon, 3-pointers give Maryville a 60-56 edge over Wildcats in Region 2 final

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Oak Ridge Wildcats Javien Johnson at Region 2 Championship 2015

Junior forward Javien Johnson (11) was the leading scorer for the Wildcats with 16 points. T.D. Blackmon of Maryville (33), who led all scorers with 23, is pictured at lower left. Senior post Bryce Miller (32), partially obscured at center, added 15 for the Rebels.

 

Note: This story was last updated at 9 p.m.

Sophomore guard T.D. Blackmon hit three three-pointers in the first half and knocked down 10 of 11 free throws in the second to give Maryville a 60-56 edge over Oak Ridge in the Region 2-AAA Championship at Wildcat Arena on Sunday.

But the playoff run isn’t over for the Wildcats (28-3). As Region 2 Runner-Up, they’ll travel to Johnson City to play Science Hill, the Region 1 Champion, in a sectional game at 7 p.m. Tuesday.

Blackmon led all scorers with 23 points in the regional final on Sunday.

“He got to the foul line. He got to the basket,” Oak Ridge Coach Aaron Green said. “We didn’t do a good job of guarding him.”

Oak Ridge Wildcats Geevantay Gee at Region 2 Championship 2015

Never afraid to drive to the rim through traffic, junior point guard Geevantay Gee (12) scored 15 points for the Oak Ridge Wildcats in the Region 2-AAA Championship against Maryville on Sunday. (Photo by Melissa Livesey)

 

The Rebels (25-6) hit seven three-pointers against the Wildcats on Sunday, including five in the first quarter alone. That gave them a 29-26 lead at halftime, with 18 of those points coming from three-point shots. [Read more…]

Steal helps save OT win for Wildcats, who play for Region 2 championship Sunday

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Oak Ridge Wildcats Student Section at Region 2-AAA Semifinal 2015

The Region 2-AAA semifinal basketball game between Oak Ridge and Heritage came down to the wire at home on Saturday. Above the Oak Ridge student section watches the match, which wasn’t decided until the final seconds. (Photo by Terri Blair)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 12:54 a.m. March 1.

A steal by senior Ted Mitchell late in the game helped save an overtime win for the Oak Ridge Wildcats in a regional tournament semifinal game against Heritage on Saturday.

The Wildcats (28-2) were also helped by a big basket by sophomore Tee Higgins late in overtime, when Oak Ridge was down by one. Higgins’ shot off the glass gave the Wildcats a one-point 44-43 lead with about 1:10 to play. A free throw by junior Geevantay Gee after Mitchell’s steal widened the margin to two.

Heritage (23-12) missed their final two back-to-back shots with about seven seconds left, and the final score at Wildcat Arena was 45-43.

Oak Ridge moves on to play Maryville (24-6) in the Region 2-AAA championship at home at 3:30 p.m. Sunday. [Read more…]

Weather: Schools, courts, offices closed; Wildcats sectional game now on Tuesday

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Note: This story was last updated at 1:20 p.m.

Schools in Anderson County, Clinton, and Knox and Morgan counties are closed today (Monday) because of weather conditions and possible icing. And the Wildcats boys’ basketball sectional game in Kingsport, featuring Oak Ridge and Dobyns-Bennett, has been postponed to 7 p.m. Tuesday.

Roane State Community College is closing its Campbell, Cumberland, Morgan, Scott, and Fentress county campuses due to icy roads. The campuses in Oak Ridge and Loudon, Knox, and Roane counties are open, but classes at the Clinton facility have been canceled.

The afternoon docket for the Anderson County General Sessions Court in Clinton has been canceled starting at 1 p.m. The afternoon docket for Anderson County Juvenile Court has also been canceled. And the Anderson County Courthouse closed at 1 p.m.

Tennessee officials said state offices will be closed the remainder of the day statewide, but mission-critical state employees will report to work as usual. [Read more…]

Déja vu with twist: This time, in Region 2 final, Wildcats fall

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Geevantay Gee and Oak Ridge Wildcats

Sophomore guard Geevantay Gee had seven points during a Region 2 championship game against Powell on Thursday.

Note: This story was last updated at 9:30 a.m. Feb. 28.

For a few minutes, it looked like Oak Ridge might repeat its comeback overtime win against Powell.

Down by eight points in the third quarter on Thursday, the Wildcats tied the game 59-59 with less than one minute to play with a flurry of baskets by seniors Jaylin Henderson, Isaac Merian, and Kevin Steen.

But this time, with a Region 2-AAA championship on the line, Oak Ridge was unable to muster a miracle in overtime. Led by the six points of senior Dallas Fields, Powell pulled away from the Wildcats just enough to win. The final score was 72-70, and Powell was named Region 2 champions for the first time since 2006.

But the Wildcats (29-7) aren’t out of the playoffs. They travel to Kingsport on Monday to play Dobyns-Bennett (21-8) at 7 p.m. in a Class AAA sectional for a chance to go to the state tournament in Murfreesboro in March. [Read more…]