Get 25% off your subscription by entering Knight25 in the coupon code area. Enjoy! Holland Hall was handed their first two losses of the season two weeks ago in the Bruce Grey tournament in Edmond after suffering an overtime loss…
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Holland Hall was handed their first two losses of the season two weeks ago in the Bruce Grey tournament in Edmond after suffering an overtime loss to Edmond Memorial and a two-point loss to Bishop McGuinness. The Dutch bounced back with a big week last week. They would first beat Victory Christian handily with a 58-41 win. They would go on to beat 3A’s #1 Metro Christian and hand the Patriots their first loss of the season with an 80-56 statement win. We were in the house for that win over Metro Christian and the Dutch were impressive from start to finish as they continue to make a claim to be the top team on the east side in Class 5A. But as we get closer to the playoffs, we need to keep a close eye on the Dutch.
There’s a big cloud hanging over Holland Hall and the 5A regional round right now and it is a cloud that hasn’t really been discussed by media yet. The Dutch are currently ranked as the #2 seed on the east side in Class 5A behind defending state champion Memorial and ahead of Edison and Nathan Hale, who are each tied for the #3 seed. The final east/west rankings will be released on Monday and we’ll know the regional pairings for the playoffs beginning in late February. If Holland Hall remains in the top four, which seems like a lock at this point, they would be one of the four regional hosts. But they won’t host.
While covering one of Holland Hall’s games last week, we were told about an OSSAA rule which states that a school cannot host a basketball regional event if their home gym doesn’t have seating on both sides of their gym. And Holland Hall’s gym features seating only on one side. Despite making four straight trips to the 4A state tournament, the Dutch never hosted a regional in Class 4A. In this scenario of Holland Hall being the #2 seed, the host for that “Holland Hall regional” would actually be the #7 seed. As if Holland Hall needed another chip on their shoulder, they got another one if they earn a right to host a 5A regional but have to go on the road.
In January, it was announced that a mistake by the OSSAA back in the fall resulted in Holland Hall being placed in the wrong class. They played nearly the first half of their season in Class 4A and were then placed in Class 5A after the mistake was recognized and corrected. It was an unprecedented move to have a team move up a class after the season already begun. The Dutch just continue to stack chips up on their shoulders as we go down the home stretch of the regular season.
Below, we take a look at four players that have stood out to us in one way or another so far this season for the Dutch.
We’ve known for a while now that Holland Hall junior Carter Benton Carter Benton 6'3″ Holland Hall | 2024 OK is one of the top shooters in the Tulsa area and he’s quickly becoming one of the top 2024 shooters in the state. But watching his performance against Metro Christian in person was something else. Benton would finish with 24 points and all of his scoring from the field was from beyond the arc as he knocked down seven three-pointers. He also went 3-4 from the charity stripe. One of the other things that really impresses me about Benton is his length and size along the perimeter. He’s not a 5’10 shooter and that’s all he can do. Benton has some size and even though shooting was the main thing he did in the win over Metro, there’s definitely room for Benton to become a more complete player moving forward. It will be very interesting to see how he looks at this time next year.
Holland Hall senior
Jadon Cool
Jadon
Cool
6'3″ | CG
Holland Hall | 2023
State
OK
was just a few points away from 1,000 career points as they went into their clash with Metro Christian last week. Cool wasted no time reaching the milestone as he exploded for 12 first quarter points and reached the mark immediately. He would finish with 27 points on the night and was dominant from start to finish. Cool had just about everything in his game working for him on Thursday night. He was knocking down shots from the perimeter. He drove to the basket and finished against contact and even showcased a lethal step back jumper. Cool’s performance on Thursday night was one of the more impressive offensive outputs that I’ve seen in person this season and it’s because of how efficient and complete it was. Cool will definitely be one of the top players to watch in the Class 5A playoffs.
Next week we begin our prospect ranking updates throughout the site and that will include our first ranking of the 2026 class. One of those prospects that definitely has our eye already is Holland Hall freshman
Julius Wilson
Julius
Wilson
6'3″ | SF
Holland Hall | 2026
State
OK
after a strong start to his career. I first got a chance to see Wilson at our Freshman Showcase back in August and he was one of the top players in attendance. And this season with the Dutch, Wilson has continued to earn more and more playing time on a Holland Hall team that has plenty of state tournament experience. Despite being a freshman, Wilson has cracked the starting lineup and continues to get better and better every time he steps on the floor. Wilson is in a unique spot where he can continue to develop around other outstanding scorers like Benton and Cool and he doesn’t have to rush it.
And our final Holland Hall player to watch is their senior forward
Nate Mullendore
Nate
Mullendore
6'3″ | PF
Holland Hall | 2023
OK
as the ultimate role player in the post for the Dutch. Mullendore is your prototypical undersized post player that has a strong background in football and he plays like that in the post. Against Metro Christian, Mullendore was undersized against Metro Christian’s length in their front court but Mullendore’s strength and gritty play in the paint made up for the lack of height. Whenever teams make runs to the state tournament and ultimately contend for state championships, you have players like this that not only understand their role within the team but they play it incredibly well. When you look at the elite teams in Class 5A, most have a big man who can dominate the game. So Mullendore will be incredibly important when March rolls around.
