Top Dogs: Huskies solidify top West side Ranking

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>When the latest Class 6A rankings for the West side split came out, there was a predictable school at the top. Edmond North. The defending Class 6A champions with a junior heavy roster have only had one slip against in state competition that came in late December against 4A contender, Crossing Christian. Otherwise, the Huskies have won every game against Oklahoma teams by double digits.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Heading into the season, Westmoore was<a href="https://prephoops.com/2022/10/too-early-class-6a-preview/"> covered as a Dark Horse in Class 6A</a>. The 12 game winning streak the Jaguars were riding going into this game, including tournament titles from the Putnam City Invitational and John Nobles Invitational, have firmly placed them in the State Title conversation. And earned them the second spot in the rankings. With playoff pairings soon to be released for Class 6A, the match up between the Huskies and Jaguars would be pivotal for the top seed on the West side.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>For the first 24 minutes of the game, the superior size, athleticism and depth of Edmond North looked to be too much for the Jaguars. North held a comfortable lead throughout the first half, which they extended out to at times 20 points in the third quarter. But in the final eight minutes, the Jaguars at one point had cut the double digit deficit to only three points. The Huskies showed championship composure as they tighten up their defense, hit free throws and ended up winning 65-55. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1332074"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"Before the game, Mr Double Double was honored for recently reaching 1,000 career points. He added to his assault on the Edmond North record books by imposing his will on the Jaguars. Warlick mixed his prodigious offensive rebounding and post ups, with a couple face up drives from the perimeter that showed his improving all around game.rnrnWarlick was a fun watch on Friday night, because he is an elite producer who is still willing to do the dirty work around the rim that made him a top prospect in the first place. He is also adding to his toolbox, but this game showed his growth without taking away from his natural strengths. Which in this case, it literally is his strength. He's a powerfully built player that plays through contact very well. Earlier this season he looked overly reliant on that strength as he recovered from an ankle injury. In this game he looked fully recovered from that bump in the road, with explosive and more agile finishing. The second half was a great example of this. There were a couple nice dunks, and also a college quality off the dribble move and finish from the top of the key.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_1_player":["1367221"],"_player_evaluations_1_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_1_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_1_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"Barrett is one of the most naturally talented prospects from Oklahoma in recent years.  His jumper wasn't falling on the night, but he sat the tone early on defense and as a creator.  Tasked with guarding one of the top scorers in the state, the junior made Barber's life very difficult. An early snapshot of this was a sequence of his quick hands stripping Barber for a steal. Then a few possessions later he exploded out and blocked a three point attempt. Those were great examples of the natural gifts and mentality that Barrett uses to make himself an elite prospect.rnrnA big step in the development of his game as a future Power 5 player will be understanding he doesn't always need to u0022hit a homerun with every swingu0022. Early in the third quarter, North had him post up on the block and he scored easily over his smaller defender. That was his only post score of the night.  With Westmoore doing a good job of walling him off, he too often settled for jumpers aka swinging for the fences.  Knowing his size and athleticism advantage (plus he can pass out of double teams), the junior should've looked for more singles and doubles with post ups and other options, instead of falling in love with his jumper on an off shooting night.rnrnAn extension of his swing for the fences mentality was also shown in his passing. Barrett's combination of velocity and vision puts him in rarefied air for recent passers from Oklahoma. He's one of the few players in the state who actually pulls off real no look passes that misdirect the defense and setting up teammates with great looks. But he committed a handful too many turnovers by putting a little too much on the pass or a little too careless. Understanding when to make the easier pass instead of always swinging for the jaw dropping, no look type, will help make him a more efficient player. Barrett has top 50 in the country type talent, possibly even higher. Fully understanding his ability to change games as a playmaker will be a big part of him reaching his high ceiling.","_player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_2_player":["1482832"],"_player_evaluations_2_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_2_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_2_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"Edmond North has a lot of size and for a lot of other teams in the state, the junior would be a starter. As is, he embraces his role off the bench and combined with Warlick to beat up the Jaguars on the glass. Potts also shows some good chemistry with the fellow junior, as he's often a recipient of passes after Warlick draws a crowd.","_player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_3_player":["981279"],"_player_evaluations_3_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_3_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_3_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"It's fun to watch great players push through challenges. Barber has sat the state ablaze with his shooting and overall scoring ability for the last 18 months.  He faced his toughest test in Oklahoma with the best defender in the state, Barrett picking him up. There were some early struggles for the Jaguar senior. But as the game progressed he won a couple reps in their individual chess match.rnrnHe was always looking for openings, and was willing to move off the ball to create those openings to get away from the dogged defense. In the second half he even buried two big triples that translate to college. One was a deep look right over Barrett who was sagging just a little bit. The other came during Westmoore's frenzied comeback, where he corralled a long rebound and with ice in his veins drained the open look. Barber pushing through adversity and still finding openings to score was a great sign about his ability to translate his shooting and scoring to the next level.","_player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_4_player":["1139378"],"_player_evaluations_4_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_4_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_4_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_4_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_4_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_4_evaluation":"With Barber often slowed down early, it was Hays that kept the Jaguars head above water. Along with his usual bruising drives and off the ball movement to the rim, he hit big shots in the midrange and from beyond the arc in the first three frames.","_player_evaluations_4_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_5_player":["1585764"],"_player_evaluations_5_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_5_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_5_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_5_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_5_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_5_evaluation":"With a similar defensive task as Barrett had on Barber, Loper accepted and relished his defensive assignment on Barrett himself. Often picking him up the full court, Loper did an outstanding of using his feet and understanding of angles on defense to stay in front of Barrett. He forced him into settling for  jumpers and generally did an outstanding job of keeping the fellow junior slightly off balance all night. It's a good sign to see the competitiveness and fearlessness out of Loper.","_player_evaluations_5_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_6_player":["1536285"],"_player_evaluations_6_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_6_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_6_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_6_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_6_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_6_evaluation":"In a crucial win over Putnam City West last month, it was a the sharpshooting sophomore that hit a couple back breaking threes to seal the victory. Last night it looked like he would be the catalyst to a miraculous comeback.  Seemingly every time he was left open, he would drain the open triple.  When describing the difference between being a good and great shooter, it's important the prospect has the game changing ability to string together makes in a hurry.  This being the second time this season that Loper has changed a game by hitting from downtown, it looks like he has that gene in his DNA. Especially with both times coming against elite competition in high leverage moments.","_player_evaluations_6_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":7,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-63deb1864af17"} /--> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p> </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->