Oklahoma: Rotnei Clarke Surpasses 3,000

By Scott Hansen

MaxPreps.com

With 19.2 seconds remaining in the third quarter of a 78-46 victory over Oklahoma Centennial in the Wheat Capital Tournament at Chisholm High School on Friday, Verdigris guard Rotnei Clarke surpassed yet another milestone.

Clarke's old-fashioned three-point play gave him 3,002 career points, making him the fourth player in Oklahoma history to surpass 3,000 points. Clarke finished the game with 30 points, seven rebounds, and seven assists.

Earlier in the season, Clarke moved to fourth all-time in the Oklahoma high school scoring chart, surpassing former Oklahoma State star Bryant Reeves.

Grandfield's Kenneth Johnson, third on the list with 3,191 points, is the next person Clarke is destined to surpass. Clarke wasted no time in his assault on that mark, scoring 53 points in an 83-55 victory over Alva in the Wheat Capital Tournament final on Saturday. That gives Clarke, an Arkansas signee, 3,090 for his career. For the 2007-08 season, Clarke is averaging 39.2 points per game.

Maud's Ty Harman set the all-time record in 1989 with 3,639 points. Second on the list is Victory Christian's Kelenna Azubuike. Azubuike finished his career with 3,526 points before moving on to Kentucky and now, the NBA's Golden State Warriors.

Pawnee guard Keiton Page currently sits at 14th in state history with 2,695 points.

Cascia Hall in Command

Cascia Hall apparently wants to carry its winning habits over onto the hardwood. The Commandoes, Class 2A football champions, blasted Victory Christian 69-40 to win the 2nd Annual Beggs Classic.

The Commandoes moved to 9-3 on the season with the victory. Senior Peter Swiatek led the way with 17 points for Cascia Hall after missing some time due to an ankle injury. Robert Crawford led victory Christian, who fell to 9-2 on the season. The Central Arkansas signing hit for 17 points.

Stringtown Tears through Big Boys

Once again, small-school power Stringtown is proving they are not afraid of the big boys. The Class B school, enrollment 74, split games with Class 6A competition in the East Central Classic in Ada.

Stringtown defeated Class 6A Sapulpa 54-46 to claim third place in the tournament behind 26 points from Washington State-bound James Watson. Watson was held to just four points in a 56-33 semifinal loss to Class 6A Lawton.

Stringtown, who does not have a football team, moved to 15-5 on the season. The Tigers have also defeated Class 5A schools such as Durant and Bixby this season. The 6-9 Watson has added an outside jumper to his already potent repertoire. Junior guard Tyrus McGee also is a standout for the Tigers with his deadly outside shooting touch.

McGuinness Claims Own Classic

In the longest running basketball tournament in Oklahoma, Bishop McGuinness takes on all comers. For only the fourth time in the 48 versions of the McGuinness Classic, the hosts took home the crown with a 58-42 victory over Edmond Santa Fe.

The victory marked the fourth time this season the defending Class 4A champion has downed Class 6A opposition. McGuinness had already defeated Tulsa Union, Jenks, and Norman North in the first round of the McGuinness Classic.

A week after his demolition of a backboard, 6-10 junior Daniel Orton narrowly missed a triple-double in the final, registering 18 points, 15 rebounds, and nine blocked shots. Junior Ryan Randolph added 17 points, while Samford-bound guard Jeff Merritt chipped in with 13.

In the first round against Norman North, Kansas assistant coach Danny Manning and Memphis head coach John Calipari were on hand to witness Orton and his Fighting Irish teammates put on a defensive display against Norman North. The Fighting Irish led the Timberwolves 42-6 after three quarters en route to a 58-20 victory. Merritt scored 15 points to lead the way, while Orton calmly added 11 points, 14 rebounds, and four blocks.

Brewer, Sapulpa Win Westmoore Tourney

Tennessee recruit Alyssia Brewer scored 22 points as top-ranked Sapulpa claimed the Jaguar Classic championship with a 51-45 victory over ninth-ranked Norman.

Brewer was named the Tournament Most Valuable Player as the Lady Chieftains remained unbeaten against in-state competition. Ashley Bruner scored 21 points to lead Norman, who fell to 8-4 on the season.

Boys All Class Top 10 (Previous)

1. Putnam City, 14-1 (1)

2. Tulsa Washington, 7-0 (2) *Class 5A

3. Tulsa East Central, 8-2 (3) *Class 5A

4. Bishop McGuinness, 12-3 (4) *Class 4A

5. Putnam City North, 8-2 (5)

6. Tulsa Union, 6-2 (6)

7. Jenks, 8-1 (9)

8. Edmond Santa Fe, 7-2 (7)

9. Midwest City, 8-2 (8)

10. OKC Capitol Hill, 10-1 (NR) *Class 5A

Dropped Out: Lawton Eisenhower, 7-3 (10)

Girls All Class Top 10

1. Sapulpa, 12-1 (1)

2. Sequoyah-Tahlequah, 10-2 (3) *Class 3A

3. Tulsa Union, 8-0 (4)

4. Midwest City, 10-0 (5)

5. Del City, 11-1 (8)

6. Tulsa Washington, 12-2 (2) *Class 5A

7. Carl Albert, 9-0 (6) *Class 5A

8. Mustang, 8-2 (9)

9. Norman, 8-4 (10)

10. Coweta, 9-2 (7) *Class 5A

Dropped Out: None

Boys Top 10 by Class (records as of January 14)

Class 6A

1. Putnam City, 14-1

2. Putnam City North, 8-2

3. Tulsa Union, 6-2

4. Jenks, 8-1

5. Edmond Santa Fe, 7-2

6. Midwest City, 8-2

7. Tulsa Memorial, 7-3

8. Lawton, 6-3

9. Del City, 6-3

10. Owasso, 7-3

Class 5A

1. Tulsa Washington, 7-0

2. Tulsa East Central, 8-2

3. OKC Capitol Hill, 10-1

4. Guthrie, 7-0

5. Tulsa Bishop Kelley, 9-1

6. Harrah, 10-0

7. Tulsa Edison, 9-4

8. Lawton MacArthur, 6-2

9. Carl Albert, 5-4

10. Pryor, 9-2

Class 4A

1. Bishop McGuinness, 12-3

2. OKC Star Spencer, 10-0

3. OKC Southeast, 5-2

4. Vinita, 12-0

5. OKC Douglass, 5-2

6. Cascia Hall, 9-3

7. Victory Christian, 9-2

8. Woodward, 9-1

9. Wagoner, 8-1

10. Fort Gibson, 6-4

Class 3A

1. Verdigris, 12-3

2. Sequoyah-Tahlequah, 5-6

3. Adair, 12-1

4. Heritage Hall, 8-4

5. Morris, 10-0

6. Plainview, 7-3

7. OKC Millwood, 5-6

8. OKC John Marshall, 4-6

9. Keys, 10-1

10. Kingfisher, 6-3

Class 2A

1. Pawnee, 5-2

2. Crescent, 10-3

3. Christian Heritage, 13-1

4. Oklahoma Bible, 9-2

5. Snyder, 10-1

6. Rush Springs, 11-2

7. Oklahoma Christian, 6-5

8. Apache, 9-3

9. Walters, 12-2

10. Oktaha, 12-4

Class A

1. Howe, 15-0

2. Garber, 13-1

3. Laverne, 13-0

4. Thomas, 11-1

5. Agra, 11-1

6. Okarche, 11-3

7. Frontier, 11-3

8. Clayton, 16-3

9. Verden, 17-1

10. Ripley, 12-3

Class B

1. Stringtown, 15-5

2. Fargo, 14-0

3. Chattanooga, 16-0

4. Coyle, 12-1

5. Red Oak, 15-1

6. Calumet, 15-1

7. Roff, 12-4

8. Grandfield, 14-1

9. Mill Creek, 16-3

10. Tupelo, 16-1

Girls Top 5 by Class

5A: 1) Tulsa Washington, 2) Carl Albert, 3) Coweta, 4) Harrah, 5) Tulsa East Central.

4A: 1) Fort Gibson, 2) Cache, 3) OKC Star Spencer, 4) Bethany, 5) Elgin.

3A: 1) Seq-Tahlequah, 2) Washington, 3) OKC Millwood, 4) Adair, 5) Kansas.

2A: 1) Dale, 2) Konawa, 3) Pawnee, 4) Oktaha, 5) Walters.

A: 1) Fort Cobb-Broxton, 2) Preston, 3) Howe, 4) Beaver, 5) Garber.

B: 1) Kiowa, 2) Lomega, 3) Deer Creek-Lamont, 4) Red Oak, 5) Seiling.

Note: Top 10 for Girls classes debuts next week

Scott Hansen: maxprepsok@sbcglobal.net