Bixby Team Preview
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The calendar has flipped to November and it’s time to start talking high school basketball in Oklahoma! Over the last month, we’ve sent out questionnaires to all of the top teams across the state, to get as much information for our month-long preview series as possible to get you ready for this season. Who are the top players, who could have a break out year, who will be the top contenders when March rolls around and we’re all “gold ball chasing”? We have those answers and plenty more with our team by team previews! Stay tuned to Prep Hoops Oklahoma throughout the month for more individual team previews and more preview content that is on the way!
BIXBY SPARTANS
OVERVIEW
There isn’t too much to frown about when you return the leading scorer in your class.
Parker Friedrichsen Parker Friedrichsen 6'4" | SG Bixby | 2023 State #165 Nation OK returns to the Spartans after point a class-high 27.9 points-per-contest in his sophomore season.
Coach Lance Kight, who takes over the head job after spending two seasons as an assistant at Bixby, inherits Friedrichsen, but not much after that; The Spartans will be a young team, returning only two starters from 2021.
Speaking of the 10-6 2021 Spartans, Bixby started hot last season, winning 10 of its first 11 before closing out the season with five consecutive losses. Its postseason dreams weren’t realized as the Spartans lost in the first round to No. 14 Muskogee.
Kight said one tournament, the Tahlequah Tournament, which Bixby claimed last season, will be a crucial point on the Spartans’ schedule.
With Jenks, McAlester, and — yep — Muskogee competing in the early-season tournament, the Spartans will consider a December weekend in Tahlequah to be their first major test.
KEY RETURNERING PLAYERS
Parker Friedrichsen Parker Friedrichsen 6'4" | SG Bixby | 2023 State #165 Nation OK — Jr. G
- 2021: 27.9p, 4.8a, 4.2r
The fulcrum of the team will be the aforementioned junior sharpshooter, Friedrichsen, who returns after leading 6A in scoring as a sophomore.
The lanky 6-foot-4-inch wing scorer has rapidly improved his game over the past two seasons, but especially in the summer of ’21, when Friedrichsen blossomed into an even better scorer than he was before — versatile, bouncy, powerful, and oozing with confidence, Friedrichsen is set for a big junior campaign.
Tristan Madden — Sr. F
- 2021: 7.1p, 6.5r
Friedrichsen isn’t the only returning producer for the spartans. Six-foot-3-inch forward Tristan Madden returns after a strong junior season, when he averaged 7.1 points-a-game and cleaned up the boards for Bixby.
Madden is also a notably talented defender who made a number of impressive stops for the Spartans last season. He has sticky fingers and good hand-work and has been known for disrupting the handle and looking down-floor to make the full-court swing. His two-way contributions will be pivotal for the Spartans to win those elusive last few matches.
Sam McCormick Sam McCormick 6'4" | SG Bixby | 2024 OK — So. F
- 6.6p, 6.2r
It takes an impressive athlete to make an impact as a freshman, in this conference, against this schedule, but alas, McCormick isn’t the average athlete.
The sophomore returns after a very promising debut year for the Spartans, scoring 6-and-a-half points-a-contest. The 6-foot-4-inch lefty finishes well at the rim, even through contact, has a quick first step, can move well through the interior, and likes to knock down shots from the corner pocket.
KEY NEWCOMERS
- Jr. Devin Isham, 6’3″ G
- After an explosive summer, Kight called Isham “the best defender on the team.”
NOTABLE
Included in Bixby’s five-game losing streak were two losses against Muskogee, who the Spartans beat handedly in the Tahlequah Tournament. Though assumptions should be made judiciously, it was possible Bixby suffered from late-season burnout, ultimately leading to a premature exit.
Due to the fickle structure of the 6A playoff system, it’s of paramount importance to draw a preferable foe on the first night, when the field is cut in half. After that, teams can breathe a sigh of relief, as they have a loss to give during the remainder of the playoff.
Half of the teams that make it out of night one alive will advance to the state bracket, and as has been proven year-after-year, it’s anybody’s ball-game in that final eight.
The danger for Bixby, especially in its tough schedule, is drawing one of those teams with quarterfinal aspirations — or higher — on the first night. To avoid an unnecessary challenge and premature departure, the Spartans will need to learn from last year and lock in after winter break — to perform with the same consistency, spark and fervor in the second half as they did in the first.