Class 5A girls basketball: 'Resilient' Tulsa Rogers stuns Carl Albert in state quarterfinals

NORMAN — Tulsa Rogers was on the verge of being doubled up.

Midway through the third quarter of a Class 5A girls' basketball state quarterfinal, the Ropers trailed West No. 1 Carl Albert, 27-14, and appeared to be staring at the end of their season.

It took a stunning reversal of fortune to extend the Ropers' season another day.

"This is a resilient group," Tulsa Rogers Coach Carlin Adkism said after the East sixth-ranked Ropers scored 35 of the final 45 points and stunned Carl Albert, 49-37, Thursday night at Norman North High School. "We have been going through adversity all year. And I think early on, with our schedule being tough the way it is, it has made us probably play hard like that. They just don't give up."

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Tulsa Rogers (17-8) has won 14 of 18 games since a 3-4 start to its season. The Ropers will play a state semifinal Friday at 7:30 against McAlester (20-5) at Lloyd Noble Center.

"It means so much to us because we work so hard in the gym," Tulsa Rogers junior Raegan McQuarters said. "Every day, bringing it. ... It is why we made it here this far."

The Carl Albert advantage was 11 points at 30-19 when Rogers made its decisive charge. The Ropers scored the final 13 points of the third quarter for its first lead of the game at 32-30 and never yielded it.

McQuarters got the better of the point guard showdown against Carl Albert senior and Seminole State signee Azya Poole. McQuarters led all scorers with 21 points, while teammate Saniyah Morrison added 10.

Saliyah Landon scored 14 points for Carl Albert (23-3), which managed just seven points as a team over the final quarter and a half.

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Sapulpa 54, Lawton MacArthur 50

The quest for a repeat began with a bit of a grinder.

But when the Sapulpa girls' basketball team needed some breathing room, Stailee Heard delivered.

The junior standout guard led all scorers with 24 points and corralled 15 rebounds as the Class 5A East top-ranked Chieftains held off West No. 4 Lawton MacArthur, 54-50, in a state quarterfinal Thursday at Norman North High School.

"I thought we were pressing a little bit the first half," Sapulpa coach Darlean Calip said. "I thought they did a much better job, especially offensively, at least trying to execute some things because I didn't think we did a very good job of that in the first half."

The defending 5A state champions trailed for nearly the entire first half until a bucket in the paint from Heard gave Sapulpa (20-6) its first lead at 22-21 with 32 seconds left in the half.

Heard continued to flex her considerable offensive game after halftime with seven of her team's 18 third-quarter points, including a step-back 3-point basket that beat the third quarter horn and pushed the Sapulpa lead to 41-34.

"That was big," said Heard, a two-time honorable mention all-state selection by The Oklahoman who holds several Division-I scholarship offers. "We have to score to win the game."

The Chieftains led by as many as 11 points at 47-36 before Lawton MacArthur made its last-gasp charge. The Highlanders used a 12-4 surge to get within three points at 51-48 with less than two minutes to go, but could get no closer.

Sapulpa will face El Reno (23-4) in a state semifinal Friday at 4:30 at Lloyd Noble Center.

Azariah Jackson had 21 points for Lawton MacArthur, which ends its season at 19-8.

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El Reno 50, Grove 26

After a back-and-forth opening quarter, El Reno found its footing in a big way.

The West No. 2 Indians used a 27-6 explosion over the second and third quarters and routed East No. 3 Grove, 50-26, in a Class 5A girls' basketball state quarterfinal Thursday at Norman North High School.

 "At the very beginning, we were getting the shots that we wanted, we just weren't putting the ball in the hole," El Reno Coach Jennifer Douglas said. "So it was just a matter of relaxing, quit worrying about missing it or quit worrying about whether you are going to get fouled and just focus on putting the ball in the hole."

A week after a 41-point performance in the area final victory over Midwest City, El Reno senior guard Ashlyn Evans-Thompson had another standout offensive performance with a game-high 17 points. All in the first three quarters.

"Just moving the ball and not depending on one person to do something," said Evans-Thompson, an East Central recruit. "Moving the ball and always looking for the open person. Not just keeping your head down. We are really good at playing team ball."

Sophomore forward Pauline Black-Harmon added 11 points for El Reno (23-4), which has won 12 of its last 13 games. The Indians will face defending state champion Sapulpa (20-6) in a state semifinal Friday at 4:30 at Lloyd Noble Center. El Reno was eliminated by Sapulpa in a state semifinal last season, but managed a token of revenge with a two-point victory over the Chieftains on Jan. 21.

Anna Bacon scored eight points for Grove, which bowed out at 21-6.

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McAlester 42, Midwest City 39

It had been 10 years since McAlester last played in the girls' basketball state tournament.

With a sharpshooter like senior Stevie Stinchcomb, the Buffaloes look right at home.

"I thought Stevie came out aggressive," fifth-year McAlester Coach Jarrod Owen said after Stinchcomb scored 24 points and the Buffaloes edged Midwest City, 42-39, in a Class 5A state quarterfinal Thursday night at Norman North High School.

"That is what we have really been talking about all week in practices and everything. She came out aggressive. That is what we need her to be. She is our leader. She is our point guard. She is a tough-minded kid. I am really proud of them handling the pressure, the ups and downs of a state tournament game."

One year ago, McAlester (20-5) was sitting at home watching the state tournament after posting a 7-10 record. Now, it has an opportunity to reach the state championship game for the first time since winning it all in 2010.

"We kind of gathered together before the game and we talked about, 'Hey, we're the underdogs here,'" said Stinchcomb, an Emporia State recruit and an all-state selection by The Oklahoman last year. "'No one expected us to come in here. We have nothing to lose. Go out there and give it your all, really.' That is really just how we went about it."

The Buffaloes will tussle with upstart Tulsa Rogers (17-8) in a state semifinal Friday at 7:30 at Lloyd Noble Center.

McAlester never trailed after the first quarter and led by as many as 10 points on two occasions. Midwest City (16-10) got within a point at 29-28 late in the third stanza, but Stinchcomb drilled her third three-point basket of the game, sparked an 11-2 surge and gave the Buffaloes a 40-30 lead with 2:42 to go.

Taniya Looney led the Bombers with 12 points.