Three Takeaways: Edmond Santa Fe vs Choctaw
Choctaw matched up with Edmond Santa Fe on Friday night in the McGuinness Classic semifinals. Edmond Santa Fe dispatched Choctaw with ease 86-62. Tauriawn Knight led all scorers with 32 points. Brock Schreiner dropped in 26 points to lead Choctaw in the loss.
Is Choctaw for real?
This was a question I have had for most of the year. When you look at the Yellowjackets record it looks really nice until you see they have not played the toughest schedule to this point. They got blown out by Edmond Santa Fe, not due to lack of effort they were just simply outmatched. Brock Schreiner is a good player and they have some solid pieces around him. They can play with teams outside of the top ten, but it does not appear Choctaw is a true contender for the state tournament. With that said the effort and toughness of Choctaw make them a team you can no longer just sleepwalk over.
Schreiner and Knight have big games
Schreiner scored the ball well going to his left with a pull-up jumper from the outside. He is limited in some ways due to his size, but you can always count on him scoring the basketball. NCAA Division II programs are showing strong interest in Schreiner. It appears Knight has found his comfort zone at Edmond Santa Fe. The pressure of where he is going to play next year is off of his shoulders as he signed to South Dakota in the early signing period.
Knight found his shooting stroke early in the game and continued to go to his smooth pull up jumper. The improvement in Knight’s jumper appears to steam from a lot of hard work that has translated into great confidence. Knight is a guy that relishes a challenge. He made sure everyone left the gym on Friday well aware of his talents.
How far can Santa Fe go?
Edmond Santa Fe has all of the pieces of a state championship team. Three key senior leaders in Tauriawn Knight, Kamden Gipson, and Tyus Jeffries. Talented young players in Jaylen O’Conner, Ben Smith, and Donovan Vickers. Plus a lot of players off the bench that can come in the game and give the Wolves what they need at that particular time. The question for me that remains unanswered about Edmond Santa Fe is how will they respond when adversity strikes in a game? If they can learn to respond well by continuing to fight then lookout this might be a state championship team. My guess is Edmond Santa Fe clicks at the right time and makes state. They are a team that could surprise some people in March.
For more information email Matt@prephoops.com