All three of the Lopers brothers had their moments throughout a contest, that featured the tough shot making ability of the trio. Let’s focus on senior Gavin, in his final high school game. He was super efficient in his scoring, never forcing a bad look as he went 6-7 from the field on the way to 13 points. The senior guard had his trademark one legged turnaround going, and had some great strong finishing through contact throughout.  Loper had a strong senior campaign, and should be appealing to regional colleges due to his ability to play on and off the ball.

Loper has been “Mr Dependable” for the Jaguars all year.  He’s really mastered his nice, one legged fadeway. Which he goes to with regularity as a great counter move on drives.  At the rim, he’s a crafty finisher who takes contact very well and those two combinations make him one of the more underrated scoring threats in Oklahoma’s senior class.  The senior will also get after it on the defensive end, as quality on the ball defender who plays smartly by moving his feet.

Loper had a good all around game, with his biggest moment coming to close the second quarter with a pair of great transition takes.  He went coast to coast in the closing seconds with a big score that capped Westmoore’s dominating first half.  Outside of that, he was rock solid, rarely making any mistakes. Playing quality and disciplined, “move your feet” defense. A key part of that, is he plays stronger than he looks with his physicality and balance.  Those traits also appear on the offensive end with drives and creating space to hit in the mid-range.

It wasn’t the best start for the Westmoore senior leader. While he had moments of good activity and production on the defensive end, he struggled to score in the halfcourt. Even though on one first half possession, he gained good separation on a behind the back pull up but couldn’t get the jumper to fall. When the Jaguars did make a late push, it was Loper at the forefront. He mixed some creation with a pair of tough three pointers in the final frame. For Westmoore to be competitive in a rugged district, complete games from the senior will be crucial.

This past Saturday was a showcase for Loper’s improving offensive game. He particularly went to work off the dribble with a combination of patient finishing or setting up defenders to gain separation on mid-range fadeaways. In past viewings, Loper had profiled as an all around, “jack of all trades, master of none” type guard. His defensive pride and solid positional size as an active defender are still there but this performance indicated he is developing more to his scoring bag. And the lefty could be set for a huge winter this year with a bigger scoring role for Westmoore.

Loper has steadily become a quality defender. He has a good frame for his size, uses a blend of strength and lateral movement to stay in front of defenders. In the opening contest when tasked with covering one of the more psychical, dynamic drivers from Tulsa (Powell), Loper won multiple match ups early by staying in front of him and forcing difficult shots. Even ripping him one time for a steal.

Offensively Loper is solid across the board, a true modern combo guard. But the pride he plays on defense, first noticed last winter during a match up with now Missouri bound TO Barrett, continues to add another dimension to his game that is sure to endear him to college coaches.

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.

Junior guard Gavin Loper Gavin Loper 6'3" | PG Westmoore | 2024 State OK is definitely a prospect to keep an eye on as we are now a few months away from the offseason and grassroots basketball kicking up in full swing. Loper is having an outstanding junior season with the Jaguars and has been a big part of why Westmoore is in contention for the top seed on the west side. While Westmoore’s standout seniors will get the majority of the headlines, don’t overlook what Loper has been able to do so far this season. He’s been wildly efficient on the offensive end of the floor. He had a game earlier in January where he was perfect from the floor, scoring nearly 20 points in a road win over a top ten team. He’s also made multiple All Tournament teams in tournaments that had some very talented players. If Westmoore truly contends for a state championship in March, don’t be surprised when Loper is making some big plays on their road to a gold ball.

The emergence of the junior as a creator and table setter for the Jaguars has elevated their offense. He has great floor vision, and is a key component of their halfcourt offense. Many times in the title game, he hit cutting teammates with picture perfect passes for easy assists.  Loper’s shooting, and growing ability to score off the bounce is starting to give Westmoore a reliable third offensive leader next to seniors Barber and Hays.