OKCPrepSports

BASKETBALL

Cold shooting P. C. North falls in 6A championship game

Tulsa Memorial won the Class 6A State boys’ basketball tournament the hard way. They beat top-ranked Putnam City on Thursday; the defending champions, No. 4 Midwest City, on Friday; and Saturday they beat the highest scoring team in the state, No. 2 Putnam City North, 55-46.

In the first half, the No. 5 Chargers were more aggressive than the Panthers as Memorial grabbed a 24-16 lead at halftime.

Turnovers, a lack of rebounds and poor shot selection also hurt the sluggish Panthers.

But the start of the second half was a rebirth for the boys from North.

They allowed the Tulsa team a pair of free throws and then started their comeback. A pair of baskets from Brentrell Friday and a three-pointer by Dennon Mitchell cut the difference to three points with five minutes left in the third quarter. The lead was down to two on a free throw by Friday.

But North’s surge was stymied as the teams traded points until there was six minutes left in the game.

Memorial’s Dominick Cornelius tallied a field goal and a pair of free throws to push the lead to six.

The Chargers continued to pressure the Panthers and extended their lead to nine before Donte Jordan scored a field goal for North. The basket was the first points for the P. C. North that did not come from the free throw line in eight minutes of play.

North was hampered by poor shooting. Only twice did North manage to sink a basket from more than five feet all night. The first was the trey by Mitchell. The other was a 15-foot running jumper by Friday with 41 seconds left in the game.

Memorial will be a strong team again next year, but North’s roster was filled with eight seniors – including every starter.