Girls Basketball Preview: Teams to Watch
BY MIKE BROWN World Sports Writer
Tuesday, January 08, 2013
Bixby: The second-ranked
Spartans (9-1) haven’t reached
the state tournament since 2007,
but seniors Christina Devers and
Stevi Parker head a veteran group
that coach Melody Stewart says
has “reignited Bixby basketball.”
All but one player is back from a
team that captured the first playoff
win in Bixby’s three years at
the 6A level. The Spartans have
beaten Union, Jenks and 5A No. 1
Shawnee while outscoring opponents
by 17 points per game. The
only loss was to 2A No. 1 OKC
Northeast, rated the state’s best
girls team overall by MaxPreps.
Bartlesville: Shades of Yogi
York. The third-ranked Bruins
(9-0) return all five starters from
last year’s regional championship
team. Now, they are gunning
for the Bartlesville’s first trip to
the state tourney since York led
the Bruins to a runner-up finish
in 1992. Paige Wilson, a Drury
signee, averages 20 points, and
sophomore point guard Gabby
Culver has just 10 turnovers in
nine games. The Bruins allow
36.6 points per game, and all but
two wins were by double-digit
margins.
Fort Gibson: The 4A No. 2
Tigers (9-0) have reloaded —
again. After going undefeated to
the 2011 state title, they finished
runner-up to Anadarko last year
with a 28-2 mark. Coach Jerry
Walker’s current seniors were
in the third grade the last time
the Tigers failed to reach the
state tournament. Senior Brooke
Palmer and sophomore Allie
Glover average 14.1 and 13.2
points, respectively, and junior
point guard Savannah Gray averages
6.4 assists.
Perkins-Tryon: The 3A No. 2
Demons (10-0) are loaded with
veterans and moving down in
class after reaching the 4A semifinals
last year. “Of course there are
tough teams in 3A, but probably
not as many,” head coach Jerry
Burnett said. Burnett recently
notched his 400th win in 21 years
at the Perkins-Tryon helm. Senior
posts Jordan Gorham, who has
signed with Oklahoma Christian
University, and McKenzie
Stanford combine to average 33.2
points — eight more per game
than the Demons allow.
Adair: The 3A No. 5 Warriors
(10-0) have made seven straight
state tourney appearances, last
winning the gold ball in 2009,
and appear to be headed for an
eighth. Four starters return from
last year’s first-round loss to
eventual 3A champion Millwood
in the state tournament. Kylie
Looney is the top returnee after
averaging 10 points per game
as a freshman. The Warriors
are outscoring opponents by 30
points per game.
