Warlick, Lee, Barrett and Huskies win 6th straight

<p>After a narrow defeat to Mustang to start the new year, the Huskies of Edmond North have been on a row. Tonight they traveled south across the metro tonight to take on a scrappy Norman team. The Huskies would lead by double digits in the first frame. Norman would attempt to rally all game, but the Tigers would fall short. As free throw shooting and stellar defense down the stretch would secure the 49-44 win for Edmond North. This is their 6th straight victory, and they have a big weekend ahead at the Titan Classic hosted by Carl Albert. </p> <p>Let’s take a look at the individual standouts.</p> <p><strong>Standouts</strong></p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1332074" first="Dylan" last="Warlick"], 6’6 Forward, Class of 2024, Edmond North</strong></p> <p>Recently ranked second in a strong sophomore class, Warlick backed up that ranking with more of his usual hardworking ways. Even against good size and length for Norman, Warlick was still a monster on the glass. And he was also effective at finishing in crowds thanks to patience, strength and fundamentals.  What was most impressive was his continual improved explosiveness. He showcased that with three slams. One was in transition, but the other two showed improved short area explosiveness as he was in the halfcourt and was able to explode with little build up for the dunks. The consistent productivity level for Warlick as only a sophomore remains an impressive trait.  </p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1367221" first="TO" last="Barrett"], 6’3 Guard, Class of 2024, Edmond North</strong></p> <p>Big and strong but youthful, Barrett is being gifted with a big opportunity to develop into a point guard for Edmond North. The Huskies are living with some growing pains as he continues to refine his decision making and feel for the game. There’s flashes as he has the makings of good court vision. It’s a good longterm plan and it’ll be interesting to see how it works out. The sophomore an amazing combination of size and athletic ability that could see him transform into tall, playmaking game changer. While capable of finishing strongly and athletically at the rim, Barrett is starting to add a floater to his offensive skill package. Which will be crucial at the next level, as the average college defender is noticeable bigger and more athletic than most high school post players in Oklahoma. </p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1164859" first="Cahlese" last="Lee"], 6’2 Guard, Class of 2022, Edmond North</strong></p> <p>What makes Lee jump off the page is literally his jumping ability. He’s slight of frame, but thanks to his explosiveness he finishes strongly around the rim.  A first half drive saw a Norman defender rotating over to meet him at the rim, but Lee while elevated had no problem to avoid the contact and finish with a flush. Lee also caught an oop in the backdoor, and generally played with outstanding energy on defense.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1367222" first="Trashaun" last="Combs-Pierce"], 6’6 Wing, Class of 2024 Norman</strong></p> <p>There’s always a couple plays a game that highlight the extremely high ceiling the Tiger sophomore has. On one drive, he backed into his defender to slow him down, then spun out of the post up to score a pretty layup. At one point Barrett beat him off the dribble but Combs-Pierce had the recovery agility and leaping ability to block his shot at the rim. Then of course he flashes tantalizing upside as a creator for others with good vision.</p> <p>The next step for the young sophomore will be putting together more full games and answering the call more consistently on the defensive end. One of the reasons Combs-Pierce has such great upside is because of his longterm potential on defense. With his combination of size and agility, he’s the prototype for a modern defender that can switch onto guards or bigs on ball screens. Tonight was a bit of a baptism by fire, as he struggled with the strength of Warlick around the rim. Combs-Pierce is obviously still growing, so it’s understandable with him giving up some weight to the more well built Warlick. But the Norman sophomore was often flatfooted around the basket, which negated a lot of his big time athletic ability in the paint. Hopefully tonight was a small bump in the road, as the Tiger has one of the higher defensive ceilings in the Class of 2024.</p>