The Battle in Jenks: Memorial/Nathan Hale, Tahlequah/ Glenpool

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>As time went on and we advanced farther and farther into the playoffs, we have finally gotten to where it is time for neutral locations. This led to there being a battle between the #1 and #5 ranked teams in class 5A in Oklahoma battling it out in Jenks. Memorial carried the #1 ranking going into the matchup against #5 Nathan Hale, with the winner going to state. After there were two close games earlier in the season between the two teams, many anticipated that this would be the same. Two top seniors in the state vs a high-powered top-notch junior sounded like must-watch. It was for a lot of the game. It started off back and forth, with both teams being tied at 10 apiece. Memorial went on a 6-0 run to close out the first quarter, taking a 16-10 lead going into the second quarter. At halftime, Memorial had expanded their lead more to 29-18. After that, [player_tooltip player_id='967378' first='Seth' last='Pratt'] took over in the 3rd quarter, helping Memorial carry a 21 point lead going into the fourth quarter. They ended up winning 62-31, which helped them clinch an 11th straight birth into the state tournament. As for the second game of the night, it was Tahlequah vs Glenpool. Tahlequah came out firing, leading 18-6 at the end of the first quarter. They continued the barrage, as they extended it to 44-21 going into halftime. They continued to dominate in the second half, with them winning 85-39. This leads to a matchup between Nathan Hale vs Tahlequah, with the winner advancing to state.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["967378"],"_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":"[player_tooltip player_id='967378' first='Seth' last='Pratt'] showed off the great shooting ability that helped him receive college interest all season long, but also showed the finishing ability of getting to the rim and finishing through contact. To start off the game, he had five points in the first quarter. The third quarter for him was big, because he went on a rampage with 17 points in the quarter. Part of this was him showing his dominance by scoring 11 straight points. He led the game in scoring and did not play the last few minutes of the game, because of his team being ahead by so much. This is a player that has increased his scoring every year in high school, with him averaging 15.1 points per game this season. That average has increased even further in the playoffs, as he is averaging over 20 points per game, with games over: 21 points, 18 points, and 22 points. What is impressive about this is that his team dominated so much that he didn't play most of the fourth quarters, if any. That 22 points was against the fifth ranked team in the state. Pratt's impact goes beyond his scoring, as he attacks the glass ruthlessly, grabbing several rebounds. This has happened all season, with him averaging 6.1 rebounds per game. He is able to playmake, as he had a couple of assist to [player_tooltip player_id='1068565' first='Jarreth' last='Ingram'] and some to other teammates in this one. Lastly, he gives 100% effort on the defensive end. He was deflecting balls out of bounds, clamping up on the perimeter, and coming up with steals. This is evident when you look at his steals average for the season, which is 1.5 steals per game. His impact on both ends of the court is a key piece as to why Tulsa Memorial finished as the #1 team in 5A basketball in Oklahoma.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_1_player":["1068565"],"_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":"[player_tooltip player_id='1068565' first='Jarreth' last='Ingram'] has been at the top of most of the statistical categories for Memorial this season, which has led to him being ranked in the top 5-10 of all seniors just about all season long. He has several colleges courting him, but he is focused on living in the moment of this season and the playoff run. This is showing as he continues to be effective on both ends of the court. Coming up with steals, blocks, and playing great perimeter defense. He is disciplined when he contests shots, which all of these things showed true again against Nathan Hale. He averaged over 17 points per game this season, but came away with only 13 points. His team did not need him to score with how dominant they were in this game and with how well [player_tooltip player_id='967378' first='Seth' last='Pratt'] was shooting the ball. Ingram took a step back and acted more as a playmaker and rebounder in this one. He ranked up multiple assists: utilizing great outlet passes, bounce passes, and chest passes. He was in-sync with all of his teammates and it showed on the court. This is a player that has shown that he is versatile and can do whatever is asked of him. Between him and [player_tooltip player_id='967378' first='Seth' last='Pratt'], it is hard to imagine a better one-two punch in 5A. There is a reason that Memorial is the number one team in 5A this season.","_player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_2_player":["1482830"],"_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":"[player_tooltip player_id='1482830' first='Kabron' last='Lewis'] is a high-powered scoring machine that has a taken charge and led Nathan Hale into the playoffs as a top four team in class 5A in Oklahoma. Averaging over 20 points per game, he can shoot the ball at will, but also get to the rim. After dominating all season long, he was held to a u0022quietu0022 game for him with 14 points. He had four points at the end of the first quarter, 10 points at halftime, and then 14 at the end of the third quarter. He ended with 14 points, but still showed flashes of his shooting and scoring ability, hitting some tough threes and getting to the rim with a fairly explosive first step. This is a player that saw himself fly up the rankings this season, currently setting at #8 in what is a really good class that features [player_tooltip player_id='1367213' first='David' last='Castillo'], [player_tooltip player_id='1367221' first='TO' last='Barrett'], and [player_tooltip player_id='1367217' first='Dayton' last='Forsythe']. If he can continue to climb the rankings to get near them, several division one college will be knocking at his door. He has shown the scoring ability to do it, so it will be interesting to monitor his defensive improvement going into next season. If everything clicks, he has the capability of climbing the charts even more.","_player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_3_player":["1665873"],"_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":"[player_tooltip player_id='1665873' first='Damario' last='Adams'] did not have quite as good of a performance as the one I saw earlier this season, but he still had a solid performance. In this game, he dominated the glass, grabbing one rebound after another. It felt like a battle between him vs [player_tooltip player_id='967378' first='Seth' last='Pratt'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1068565' first='Jarreth' last='Ingram'] on the boards. Outside of his rebounding, he had an and-one, where he scored inside. He also scored a couple of other times. It was a fairly quiet scoring performance, but his dominance on the glass is what helped him land on this list.","_player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_4_player":["1495342"],"_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":"[player_tooltip player_id='1495342' first='Hayden' last='Smith'] put on a show in this one. He came out of the gates dominating the glass and scoring inside. At halftime, he had 14 points and nine rebounds. That dominant performance continued into the second half, where no one could keep him off of the glass. There were multiple possession where he would grab two or three offensive rebounds before scoring. Not only was he scoring off of his offensive rebounds, he was muscling his way through the defenders with his 6'8 frame or getting assists. Multiple times he grabbed a rebound and threw a good outlet pass. He also came away with a steal and block in this game. It was an impressive performance and one that showed dominance to help his team advance.","_player_evaluations_4_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_5_player":["1780098"],"_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":"Anthony (Ace) Gilliam Jr. was one of the few bright spots for his team. He is a freshman and arguably the best player on the team. He put on a great performance when I saw him earlier this season. He showed flashes of that in this one, as he scored in a variety of ways. He knocked down multiple three pointers, fooled the defense with a half-spin to knock down an open mid-range jumper, and scored at the rim. He came away with a couple of steals and had a great double-team near half-court to force the other team to call a timeout. He grabbed a rebound, as well. For a player this young, being a freshman, already leading a team into a playoff game is impressive. It should give Glenpool hope and a bright light moving forwards.","_player_evaluations_5_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":6,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-64065abd42579"} /--> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p> </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->