Boys, girls go 2-1 at Latta

Purcell’s boys and girls both finished 2-1 in last weekend’s Latta Tournament.

Coach Roger Raper’s boys knocked off Storm North in the first round, 45-32 before coming up short in the semifinals against Kiowa, 56-47.

The Dragons bounced back to defeat Washington for the third place crown, 40-30.

Mojo Browning led the scoring in the three games scoring 35 points.

The Dragons welcomed back senior Gavin Nation in the Kiowa game when he responded with 18 points including four treys.

Nation nailed 10 free throws in the Washington game to tie with Browning for game high honors.

Nate Willis knocked down 23 points in the three games.“Finishing the tournament on a win was a nice feeling,” Raper said. “I thought our defense really improved throughout the tournament.

“Offensively, though we didn’t shoot the ball very well in any of the games. That is something we had done very well the first two games. Some of it is shot selection and some was a lack of confidence after a few didn’t go in.

“We need to be better in that regard and I think we will. We are winning and still have room for improvement and that is a good sign.

David Sikes’ Dragons opened the tournament against a juggernaut in Comanche who posted a 73-36 victory over Purcell.

Comanche’s pressure was more than the Dragons were counting on jumping out to a 28-3 margin in the first period.

“We weren’t ready for their pressure,” Sikes admitted. “Once we settled down we played much better.”

The Dragons gathered themselves and eased by Madill’s Junior Varsity, 67-17 fueled by three players in double figures.

Alicia Baker had 18 of her 46 tournament points. Jaiden Avila chipped in 12 and Emily Madden finished with 10.

“My girls played hard,” Sikes said. “It was nice to see us play at our level and to finish the game out the way we did. And, it’s always great for everyone to get to play.”

Kora Keith led the scoring in the 46-21 victory over Holdenville for the consolation trophy. Baker had a baker’s dozen in the contest.

“I was extremely proud of my girls,” Sikes said. 

“We were down two starters (Chelsea Spain and Sandra Del Toro) due to illness. Even though we were short handed we were able to limit them to seven points in the second half. The biggest improvement so far this year over last year is our turnovers.

“I attribute it to maturity,” Sikes continued. “We have cut our turnovers in half compared to last season.”

Davis

Junior Mojo Browning and sophomore Nate Willis combined for 57 points taking up the slack for the injured senior point guard Gavin Nation in a 72-65 Dragon victory.

“Great win against Davis as we had two young players score 31 and 26 points,” Raper said. “Mojo Browning and Nate Willis had big games for us.

“We were without senior and starting point guard Gavin Nation and those two really picked up the slack in scoring.”

Misael Duque added 10 points for the third player in double figures.

Nation will be out for an extended amount of time due to injury so it is important that each player step up their play during his absence,” Raper concluded.

After a quick Dragon start, Davis drew within 19-17 at the end of the first quarter. The Wolves eventually led 31-20 at intermission but Purcell pulled away in the final half.

For the girls, Alicia Baker and Kora Keith both cut the cords for 17 points apiece. Chelsea Spain joined them in double digits with 10.

Baker had a double-double grabbing 14 rebounds.

Purcell was hot right out of the starting blocks ripping the strings for 23 first quarter points and eventually taking a 31-18 lead into the halftime locker room.

The two teams played almost even in the second half.

Purcell will close out the pre-holiday portion of the 2019-20 cage season tonight (Thursday) when they host Pauls Valley.