Five Takeaways: Sperry vs Okmulgee
In the second battle between Sperry and Okmulgee, it went down to the buzzer. Sperry scored as the buzzer sounded on a brilliant full court play that ended with an outlet pass right under the basket to Ty Johnson who scored the basket. Okmulgee controlled the game for most of the night, but Sperry behind Jace Pratt mounted a furious comeback. Sperry did not lead at any point in the second half until the buzzer sounded.
Pratt comes up huge on defense
Jace Pratt was excellent in the fourth quarter for Sperry. Down 5 under a minute to play Pratt swiped the ball away twice from Okmulgee in a row cashing in on a layup and then a huge three-pointer to tie the game. Pratt is widely known as a good scorer especially from three-point range. Tonight he displayed that he has more to his game than just offense. He is undersized but has a ton of tools in his game that will make him successful at the next level. Pratt is receiving NCAA Division II and NAIA interest.
Okmulgee is very talented
Devion Nelson leads the talented attack for Okmulgee at the Wing spot. When Nelson is attacking the basket on the offensive end, Okmulgee is tough to beat, which was on full display tonight in the first half. Okmulgee will go as Devion takes them. They have a good core with some decent size around him. The size and length of Okmulgee along with their hot shooting make them a team to watch for a deep run in March.
Shot Selection
Both teams were at their best when they were moving the ball for open shots. Fans got to see Okmulgee do an excellent job of moving the ball in the first half, but they were stagnant in second half switching places with Sperry who did not move the ball well in the first half.
Glue Guys
This game featured several good glue guys on both squads. Jaxon VanCuren is the perfect glue guy for Sperry. He brings it every night and does a great job of playing his role. On Friday VanCuren knocked down several critical three-pointers throughout the game when Sperry was struggling. In the second half Sperry needed VanCuren to distribute the ball and play tough defense, he obliged. He seems to be a player that is all about doing what he can to help Sperry win.
For Okmulgee, the glue guy is their big man Matt Camacho. He does the dirty work inside garnering rebound after rebound. When given opportunities inside Camacho is a player that can finish and be reliable on offense.
What is next?
Sperry moves to 11-5 on the year and will play Perkins-Tryon before matching up again with Okmulgee at the end of January. Okmulgee faces Catoosa next week a top 15 team in Class 4A before playing in their own tournament next weekend. Both of these squads need to finish strong to push for a top 8 ranking in Class 3A.
For more information email Matt@prephoops.com