Homecoming king Lowe leads Owasso over Jenks
BY BARRY LEWIS World Sports Writer
Saturday, February 02, 2013
2/02/13 at 5:52 AM
OWASSO - Owasso senior guard Jaylen Lowe came up with two big victories on the basketball court Friday night.
Lowe scored 23 and Shake Milton had 25 points to lead the Class 6A No. 7 Rams past fourth-ranked 6A Jenks 72-63.
"Beating Jenks is the best thing ever; the second is beating Union," Lowe said. "I hadn't beaten Jenks in anything since ninth grade."
That was Lowe's second win in less than an hour. During halftime, he was named basketball homecoming king.
"I was nervous about putting the crown on (homecoming queen) Taylor (Koelsch), but that was all," Lowe said.
Koelsch also had a big night as she scored 23 points in a 71-70 upset win over Jenks in the girls game.
Lowe wasn't distracted at all by the long halftime as he scored 16 points in the second half for the Rams, whose 36-23 intermission lead was never seriously threatened. Avery Culbertson added 13 points for Owasso.
"Jaylen just made play after play after play," Owasso coach Mark Vancuren said. "Shake was great. Avery (Culbertson) had ice water in his veins. Our players made plays. They knew what was on the line."
The Rams (14-3) moved into a first-place tie with Jenks (14-5) in the Frontier Valley Conference standings at 8-2. It also was a key game because it was the final one the teams will play before playoff seedings are determined. The teams split their season series.
"It's a huge confidence booster for our program," Vancuren said.
Culbertson's tiebreaking 3-pointer at the end of the first period gave Owasso a 13-10 lead. The game was tied at 18 before Owasso went on a 6-0 run and was never caught as the Rams outscored Jenks 18-5 in the half's final five minutes.
"We came together in the second quarter and our defense was real good," said Lowe, a University of Tulsa football commit. "We knew it was going to be a physical game because Jenks always plays us physical."
Owasso's lead was 59-53 before Milton sank a 3-pointer with 5:12 remaining. Lowe scored 10 in the fourth quarter as the Rams didn't allow Jenks to get closer than six points during the final period.
Luke Phillips paced Jenks with 14 points and Steven Parker scored 13.
Owasso 71, Jenks 70 (girls): Dru Clark made 1-of-2 free throws with 17 seconds left and that proved to be the difference as Owasso survived 6A No. 9 Jenks' rally from a 52-23 deficit in the final 10 minutes. Jenks outscored Owasso 37-16 in the fourth quarter.
"It was the best three quarters we've played all year combined with one of the worst," Owasso coach Matt Sweeney said. "But our girls hung in there and pulled it out. We've been really working on our defense. I think in the fourth quarter we were tired a little bit, but we did step up and finish the game."
Koelsch led Owasso (7-10, 4-6) as she had five treys. Clark scored 14 points and made 8-of-11 free throws in the second half. North Carolina signee Jessica Washington led Jenks (11-8, 6-4) with 24 points before fouling out with 3:30 left and Owasso leading 62-54. Washington fueled Jenks' comeback with 13 points in a six-minute span.
"I knew Washington could go off at any time and she did, she got really hot in the fourth quarter," Sweeney said. "We were on her but she made some great plays. She's a great athlete. Our lead dwindled fast."
Ashley Taylor's trey cut Owasso's lead to 70-67 with 20 seconds remaining. After Clark split her free throws, Harper Peterson's trey made it a one-point game just before time expired.
The victory could help Owasso when playoff seedings are announced next week.
"I wish we could have made it look a little better, but we'll take it," Sweeney said.
OWASSO 72, JENKS 63 (boys)
| Jenks |
13 |
10 |
21 |
19 |
- |
63 |
| Owasso |
13 |
23 |
17 |
19 |
- |
72 |
Jenks (14-5): Phillips 14, Parker 13, Jones 10, Seidel 10, Clark 7, Fling 4, Houston 3, Gillom 2, Hissong 2.
Owasso (14-3): Milton 25, Lowe 23, Culbertson 13, Neph 4, Burd 3, Ellis 2, Russell 2.
OWASSO 71, JENKS 70 (girls)
| Jenks |
11 |
10 |
12 |
37 |
- |
70 |
| Owasso |
17 |
19 |
19 |
16 |
- |
71 |
Jenks (11-8): Washington 24, Peterson 13, Taylor 10, Halsmer 7, Sears 5, Crase 4, Peterson 3, Luellen 2, Nissley 2.
Owasso (7-10: Koelsch 23, Clark 14, O'Dell 12, Bevan 7, Waters 6, Penning 6, Ball 3.
Original Print Headline: Owasso's 'King' Lowe leads win over Jenks
Barry Lewis 918-581-8393
barry.lewis@tulsaworld.com
Associated Images:
Owasso's Adrian Ellis (center) goes up for a shot against Jenks during Friday's game. Owasso won 72-63. CORY YOUNG/Tulsa World
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