Class 3A boys basketball: Millwood, Crooked Oak, Metro Christian, Prague advance to semifinals

The Class 3A boys basketball state tournament started Thursday at State Fair Arena. Here's a look at what happened:

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Millwood 63, Lindsay 51

The names and faces may change, but the consistency remains remarkable.

Since 1984, the Millwood boys' basketball team has played in 26 quarterfinal-round games at the state tournament.

The Falcons have prevailed and advanced all 26 times.

"(Former Millwood Coach) Varryl Franklin left a legacy and I am just trying to do what I can to keep the legacy going," fifth-year Millwood Coach Michael Jeffries said after the second-ranked Falcons defeated No. 10, Lindsay, 63-51. "We are just blessed to be able to have solid athletes and guys that buy into what we are doing and stay focused with what they are doing. They are good kids that trust in us and trust in each other."

Millwood's overall record in state quarterfinal games is an astounding 34-1. Its lone loss in the opening round was against Idabel in 1984. The Falcons will play No. 8 Crooked Oak (25-3) in a 3A state semifinal Friday at 9 a.m. at the State Fairgrounds.

"It is going to take dedication, overcoming adversity and staying connected as a team," Millwood sophomore Jaden Nickens said. "Right now, we are staying at our school inside our facility so we can be together. ... We are staying together, trying to stay around each other. It's a brotherhood. It is all we need."

Nickens was sensational in a second quarter that allowed the Falcons to separate from Lindsay. The multisport standout – who already holds football scholarship offers from schools like Arkansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Texas A&M, Texas Tech and Tulsa – scored a whopping 18 of his game-high 20 points in a second frame that saw the Millwood lead balloon from two points to 34-19 at halftime.

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"My mindset going into that second quarter was just, 'Time to take over,'" Nickens said. "I knew my team needed me to score at that moment, so when I got hot, I got hot and got going."

Robert Wilson grabbed eight rebounds and Chance Davis posted 10 points for Millwood, which led by as many as 20 points in the third quarter at 49-29 before Lindsay (23-7) made a last-gasp push. Behind 19 points from senior point guard Mitchell Henson and 14 from senior forward Ryein Kennedy, the Leopards got as close as nine points on three separate occasions in the fourth quarter.

"We worked on these situations in practice," said Millwood sophomore Zyhir Fisher, who chipped in 14 points. "Adversity. We practiced adversity in practice so it can be easy for us in the game. Coach Jeffries pushes us in practice to our limits so it can become easy for us in the game, no matter what. Just keep it together."

"Keep it together" would be an appropriate motto for a team that has endured a lot to get to this point. The Falcons have endured a grueling schedule, lineup changes, a shooting at their January game at Del City and a weather-related flood at their home gymnasium.

Through it all, the team and its terrific tradition of success has prevailed with another trip to the semifinals.

"Get in the gym, get some free throws up because they didn't go down today," Fisher said. "Get ready for tomorrow. We've got to go."

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Crooked Oak 62, Roland 46

If a rousing halftime speech made the difference, Chace McCaskill is not providing specifics.

After all, there's another game to be won on Friday.

"I'm not going to give you any secrets, I'm going to use them tomorrow," McCaskill said with a laugh. "Whatever secrets we've got, we're going to use them."

If the talent and abilities of the Crooked Oak boys' basketball team was a secret to anyone at all, it's out now after the eighth-ranked Ruf-Nex – just four years removed from a 3-18 season – won a state tournament game for the first time since 1975 by vanquishing No. 4 Roland, 62-46.

"I am still shell-shocked right now, to be honest," McCaskill said as he gestured towards seniors Ty Adkins-Freeman and Daevion Hill. "These guys, especially these two guys right here, their freshmen year was my first year. They might not be the biggest, they might not be the strongest, but they have got more grit than any group of boys I have ever seen. Out of all the teams in the state tournament, I would take this group over any of them."

Early on, Crooked Oak looked like a bunch that had not been to the state tournament in a decade. Roland sprinted out with six of the game's first eight points and pushed its lead to five on four occasions in the second quarter before the Ruf-Nex got within two by halftime at 28-26.

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Cue the fiery halftime pep talk? Maybe. Or perhaps it was the defensive pressure applied to Roland standout Peyton Whisenant, who burned the Ruf-Nex for 14 first-half points.

"I feel like we wanted it more," Hill said. "Our coach put in a game plan and we executed it really well. Stop No. 3 because he had 14 in the first half. Got him shut down and it showed."

The strategy paid off. Whisenant was held scoreless after halftime as Crooked Oak charged out of the locker room with a 25-9 explosion that flipped the deficit to a 51-37 lead for the Ruf-Nex midway through the fourth quarter.

"We kept our head up," said Ty Adkins-Freeman, who added 18 points to what is already the school record for career points at over 2,400. "They were killing on offensive rebounds. We had to get offensive rebounds and limit them to one shot."

Hill – who will play college football at Central Oklahoma – led all players with 22 points and 12 rebounds, while sophomore Elijah Garcia added 13 points.

Davohn Hall contributed 11 points for Roland (24-3).

Crooked Oak has no time to celebrate its first win at state in 50 years. The Ruf-Nex will play defending 3A state champion Millwood (16-10) Friday at 9 a.m.

"I think it is going to take a great deal of luck," McCaskill said. "I think Millwood is the best team in the tournament. ... They are a force to be reckoned with. We're going to take as much luck and grit as we can get and roll the ball out there and see who wins. All we have to do is beat them once."

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Tulsa Metro Christian 66, Hugo 34

Mario Darrington jumped on the offensive player's hip as he stormed down the floor.

If only for a second, Darrington was looking to slow the Hugo ball carrier down long enough for his teammates to get back.

To his relief, it worked.

Four Metro Christian players jumped to contest Hugo’s running floater that bounced off of the rim. Brady Cox grabbed the rebound and the Patriots were off running again as Hugo’s Jamarion Brown could only roll his eyes in frustration.

Hugo wasn’t being forced into turnovers. The Buffaloes only recorded six on the night. But nearly every shot was contested and that kept them uncomfortable, and out of the game.

Tulsa Metro Christian used its stout defense to rout Hugo 66-34 in the state quarterfinals.

Metro Christian only allowed at most 10 points in a quarter as Hugo shot just 24% (12-of-50) from the field. The 34 points are the lowest Hugo (18-9) scored all season.

Darrington put in nine points in the first half for Metro Christian while Hugo’s Brown put in nine of his own, finishing the game with 15. But the biggest difference was the second quarter where Metro Christian held Hugo to just four points and Metro Christian entered halftime with a 15-point lead.

From there, Metro Christian’s (24-2) offense just kept improving. Darrington weaved his way through traffic making a euro-step layup. Wyatt Powell converted an and-1 after spinning his way to the lane and Jackson Sowards consistently scored at the rim. Metro Christian scored more points in each of the quarters.

Darrington led the way with 13 points, Sowards finished with a double-double of 12 points and 11 rebounds and Brady Cox tallied 10 points in the win.

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Prague 63, Sequoyah Claremore 45

Blestin Miller just stood in the moment with a smirk on his face.

The star guard from Prague had just knocked down another 3-pointer, which led to a Sequoyah Claremore timeout. At that point, he just knew he couldn’t be stopped.

In the final minutes of the second quarter, Miller had led Prague on a 9-0 run to break away from Sequoyah Claremore. It proved to be a big momentum swing in the game.

The big second-quarter push helped Prague best Sequoyah Claremore 63-45 in the state quarterfinals on Thursday. Miller led the way with 19 points and eight rebounds to lead Prague to its second state tournament win in school history. Prague's last tournament win came in 1995 when the Red Devils took down Calera 73-67 in the Class 2A quarterfinals.

“We had so much to prove this year,” Miller said. “We had one of our main guys go a different way on us. So, we’ve had players fill the roles. I just stepped us as a big-time leader and I feel like now it’s just my time to shine, get my squad to where it needs to be.”

Prague (24-2) came into the game ranked just below Sequoyah Claremore (25-3). But it was no secret Prague felt like it should’ve been ranked ahead. It had its chance to prove itself on the floor and at first, the teams looked as even as they were in the standings.

After the first quarter, the teams were tied at eight. But Prague looked like a different team in the second, as all of the shots that weren’t going it before, started to fall. Prague outscored Sequoyah Claremore 20-7 in the second quarter to earn a sizeable advantage.

Although Sequoyah Claremore only scored in double-figures in the final quarter, the Eagles had a balanced attack with Judah Gibson knocking down 3-pointers, Eestyn Prater scoring in the paint and Karson Bickle cutting to the lane.

Behind Miller, Cameron Hightower finished with 10 points, Joe Fixico and Peyton Ezell each had nine and Trevor McGinnis turned in eight for Prague, which is seeking its first title.

“We’re going to bring back the gold ball,” Miller said.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OSSAA Class 3A boys basketball state tournament quarterfinal scores