By Scott Hansen
MaxPreps.com
This Week's Top 10
1. Tulsa Union: Defeated Jenks 59-48, Bishop McGuinness 48-38, and Broken Arrow 74-48. In a key victory over Jenks, Tom Becker ripped the nets for 16 points while Justin Glenn added 11. Derrek Lewis scored 21 in another victory over Broken Arrow, while guard T.J. Williams added 16 for the Redskins.
2. Midwest City: Defeated Norman North 65-53, Westmoore 59-51, and Enid 47-38. Xavier Alexander scored 18 points, while Aaron Clanton added 16 points in the victory over Enid.
3. Putnam City: Defeated Edmond North 74-45, Edmond Santa Fe 73-59, and lost to Lawton Eisenhower 70-68 in overtime. Demeatrice Young scored 27 points in the victory over Edmond North.
4. Jenks: Lost to Tulsa Union 59-48, defeated Ponca City 65-22, Muskogee 68-30, and Owasso 60-44. Nick Sidorakis scored 22 in his return from a shoulder injury against Owasso.
5. Bishop McGuinness: Lost to Tulsa Union 48-38 before defeating Carl Albert 55-42, McAlester 54-34, Piedmont 49-35, and Deer Creek 42-37. Survived busy week relatively unscathed despite loss to unbeaten Tulsa Union. Michael Sosanya scored 22 points in the victory over Class 5A contender Carl Albert.
6. Lawton Eisenhower: Defeated Altus 74-52 and Putnam City 70-68. Game against cross-town rival Lawton was called off due to an unfortunate shooting incident across the street from Lawton High School.
7. Tulsa East Central: Defeated Tulsa Memorial 64-61. Junior Ken Holdman scored 23, while Sidney Hadnott paced the Braves with 22 in the victory over Memorial.
8. Broken Arrow: Defeated Sapulpa 65-61 and Bartlesville 77-74 before losing to Tulsa Union, 74-48. In a triple-overtime thriller against Bartlesville, Sahlih Butts scored 21 for the Arrows in the victory.
9. Carl Albert (Midwest City): Defeated Western Heights (OKC) 56-33 before losing to Bishop McGuinness 55-42 and Chickasha, 47-41.
10. Tulsa Edison: Lost to Tulsa McLain 67-64 before defeating Tulsa Rogers 69-49 and Tulsa Hale 72-68. Edison's 6-9 center Will Creekmore averages over 22 points and 16 rebounds per game while shooting over 67 percent from the field for the Eagles.
Lawton Eisenhower Picks Up Benchmark Victory
They say it is tough to beat a team three times in one season. Lawton Eisenhower proved the old adage to be true as five Eagles scored in double figures to give Eisenhower a 70-68 overtime victory over Putnam City.
Blake Harrington scored 16 points to lead the host of Eagles who tallied in double figures. The victory throws 15-2 Eisenhower into the hat as one of the teams that could hoist the coveted gold ball in March. Eisenhower avenged two losses to Putnam City, 67-51 on Nov. 28 and 64-58 on Jan. 31.
Xavier Henry scored 23 for the Pirates, while Demeatrice Young added 21 to pace Putnam City. The defending Class 6A state champions are now searching for answers after suffering their second defeat in four games, including a 69-67 loss to Midwest City on Feb. 3. Putnam City sits at 17-3 on the campaign with Yukon and Putnam City West remaining on the schedule.
Who else could figure in the race in Class 6A? Tulsa Union got a leg up on the teams from the East, as they remained unbeaten with key victories over Jenks (59-48 on Feb. 5) and Bishop McGuiness (48-38 on Feb. 6).
Union might be the toughest matchup for anybody in the state. They have Texas A&M-bound Derrek Lewis, Centenary signee Justin Glenn (6-8), Antonio Ross (6-8), senior point guard T.J. Williams (headed to Missouri Southern), and junior sharp-shooter Tom Becker (6-4).
Midwest City has star power in George Washington signee Xavier Alexander. Alexander averages near 25 per game for the Bombers, but junior Jarrod McDaniel has stepped up big time as of late.
Jenks suffered a key loss as Oklahoma State bound Nick Sidorakis injured a shoulder earlier in the season. He returned and scored 21 points against Owasso on Feb. 11. Don't count Jenks out of the equation.
Blake Griffin Continues Dominance
Against Victory Christian last week, 6-9 senior Blake Griffin had his fifth triple-double of the season when he scored 29 points, grabbed 22 rebounds, and dished out 10 assists in a 73-46 victory for Oklahoma Christian School.
In a 92-74 victory over Oklahoma City Southeast, Griffin scored 41 points.
Griffin, who is ranked as high as the 12th best player in the nation according to some recruiting services, averages over 26 points and 14 rebounds per game for the Saints, who are currently 17-3 and looking to repeat in Class 2A.
Speaking of triple-doubles, another Oklahoma standout that continues to produce eye-popping numbers picked one up on Feb. 9. Verdigris guard Rotnei Clarke scored 41 points, had 10 rebounds, and 10 assists in an 86-64 victory over Nowata.