Anadarko girls beat East Central for Tournament of Champions title
BY MIKE BROWN World Sports Writer
Sunday, December 30, 2012
12/30/12 at 6:23 AM
Lakota Beatty said she and her Anadarko Warriors were tired of losing in the championship game of elite basketball tournaments.
Class 4A's defending state champs lost to 6A No. 1 Santa Fe in the final of the Edmond Open last month and lost to Shawnee in the final of the Mid-America Tournament in Ada last year.
"I think it's taught us a lesson. We have to play harder because it's not gonna come easy for us," Beatty said.
The No. 1 Warriors made up for it Saturday night by whipping 5A No. 2 East Central 62-51 in the girls final of Oklahoma's Tournament of Champions, before about 3,500 at the Mabee Center.
Beatty, a senior, and sister Ashley, a sophomore, combined to score 35 points and contributed in a withering defensive effort that forced 21 Cardinals turnovers.
"We pride ourselves on playing defense. When our offense isn't coming, our defense will make up for it," Lakota Beatty said.
Anadarko (10-1) struggled offensively in the first quarter, but its defense was right on track. The Warriors forced nine first-quarter turnovers, contesting almost every pass, and pushed to a 15-6 lead after eight minutes.
From there, the scrappy Warriors held the taller but less experienced Cards (6-2) at arm's length. East Central got within eight points only once and trailed 46-30 after three quarters.
East Central was gunning for a third straight tourney title, but coach Samy Mack said the Cards' limited court time took a toll.
Because of the school's success in the Class 5A football playoffs, East Central's basketball teams didn't play their season openers until Dec. 11, later than almost any large-school teams.
"It finally caught up with us," Mack said. "We ran into a veteran team and they really played well. They ran and ran and pressed and pressed. In the end, we're gonna be here. We needed this experience. We don't see this kind of pressure in our conference. This will make us better."
Anadarko coach Jeff Zinn said the inability to put together three good games cost the Warriors in their elite tourney losses in Ada and Edmond. But not this time.
"I feel very good about our team after this tournament," he said. "I was very pleased with the way our kids brought it for a third night in a row."
Ashley Beatty had a game-high 19 points to go with four steals and four rebounds. Lakota Beatty, an Oklahoma State signee, had 16 points, seven rebounds, four assists and a steal.
In Saturday's other tournament action, 4A No. 3 Cushing downed Jenks for third place behind Che'Ron Lewis' 28 points and 18 rebounds. Verdigris downed Erick 34-29 for fifth place and Dewar nipped Colbert 65-64 for seventh place.
Cushing 57, Jenks 53: The Trojans (5-5) played without standout senior Jessica Washington, who had flu-like symptoms while scoring 29 points in Friday's semifinal loss to Anadarko.
Washington watched from the bench, but Jenks coach Mandy Nightingale liked how the Trojans rallied to give themselves a chance to win without Washington.
Cushing led 41-28 late in the third quarter, but Taylor Sears hit four fourth-quarter treys to rally her team. However, Sears received a technical foul for swinging her elbow, and that slowed the Trojans' momentum.
Still, Jenks had a chance to win. Sears' fourth 3-pointer made it 56-53 with 51.2 seconds left, and the Trojans missed three shots down the stretch, including two from 3-point range that would have tied the game.
Shaunda Hagler hit a clinching foul shot for the Tigers (12-1) with 8.6 seconds left.
Verdigris 34, Erick 29: The Class 3A No. 4 Cardinals (10-2) did not need a buzzer-beating shot to win the fifth-place consolation title as it did in Friday's game. Verdigris built up a 12-point advantage with four minutes left and then held off a late charge by Class B No. 7 Erick (12-4).
Baileigh O'Dell led Verdigris with 15 points and hit a pair of free throws with 30 seconds left for insurance. Maranda Janz led Erick with 11 points.
Dewar 65, Colbert 64: Cheyenne Been hit two free throws with two seconds left to lift Class A No. 4 Dewar (7-2) over 2A's No. 5 Colbert (10-4) in the seventh-place game.
Been not only hit the winning free throws, but completed a three-point play that gave the Dragons a 63-62 advantage with 30 seconds left. However, Ginavee Mowles hit two free throws for Colbert and recaptured the lead with 10 seconds showing.
Been drove to the basket and was fouled while shooting to set up the game-winning free throws.
Been finished with a game-high 26 points. Teammates Star Simmons and Crystal Nero had 19 and 18 points, respectively.
ANaDARKO 62, EAST CENTRAL 51 (championship)
| Anadarko |
15 |
13 |
18 |
16 |
- |
62 |
| East Central |
6 |
12 |
12 |
21 |
- |
51 |
Anadarko: A. Beatty 19, L. Beatty 16, Pahcoddy 11, King 6, Parker 5, Williams 5.
East Central: Reed 12, Pitts 10, Mack 9, Clark 6, Arnold 4, Williams 4, Brown 4, White 2.
CUSHING 57, JENKS 53 (third place)
| Cushing |
12 |
11 |
18 |
16 |
- |
57 |
| Jenks |
12 |
11 |
7 |
23 |
- |
53 |
Cushing: Lewis 28, Jones 12, Hagler 6, Burris 6, Hagler 6, McCullough 3, Ahrberg 2.
Jenks: Peterson 13, Sears 12, Crase 9, Taylor 7, Prince 5, Luellen 4, Halsmer 3.
VERDIGRIS 34, ERICK 29 (fifth place)
| Verdigris |
12 |
4 |
13 |
5 |
- |
34 |
| Erick |
7 |
6 |
7 |
9 |
- |
29 |
Verdigris: O'Dell 15, Collins 7, Risenhoover 5, Payne 4, Hanslovan 3.
Erick: Maranda Janz 11, Makenzie Janz 7, Millar 6, May 3, Kelly 2.
DEWAR 65, COLBERT 64 (seventh place)
| Colbert |
10 |
17 |
13 |
24 |
- |
64 |
| Dewar |
9 |
18 |
18 |
20 |
- |
65 |
Colbert: Gray 20, Mowles 13, Weger 8, Hair 8, Cummins 6, Bradford 5, Lyons 4.
Dewar: C. Been 26, Simmons 19, Nero 18, Lane 2.
Original Print Headline: Anadarko girls beat East Central for tournament title
Tournament of Champions: Girls
At ORU's Mabee Center
Thursday's Scores
Jenks 54, Verdigris 40
East Central 79, Dewar 44
Cushing 43, Erick 36
Anadarko 63, Colbert 47
Friday's Scores
Erick 62, Dewar 58
Verdigris 50, Colbert 48
East Central 73, Cushing 55
Anadarko 72, Jenks 66
Saturday's Scores
Dewar 65, Colbert 64 (7th)
Verdigris 34, Erick 29 (5th)
Cushing 57, Jenks 53 (3rd)
Anadarko 62, East Central 51 (1st)
Associated Images:
East Central's Sharayla Brown goes up for a shot over Anadarko's Lakota Beatty during the Tournament of Champions final Saturday at the Mabee Center. JAMES GIBBARD/Tulsa World
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