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A dream deferred: Lady Bulldogs' title hopes derailed by Red Oak
By Richard C. White, rwhite@starlocalnews.com
SACHSE -- Despite a dramatic fourth quarter comeback, the No. 8 state-ranked McKinney North girls basketball team saw its record-setting season come to a close Friday night with a 47-41 area playoff loss to Red Oak.
"I'm going to tell my players that failure is never fatal and we're going to be back next year, and the ones that are moving on will have great success wherever they're going to," said Michael Oldham, North head coach. "I'm disappointed for the seniors. They had their heart set on going to Austin. They rest of them have a chance still to go in the coming seasons, but the seniors don't."
Red Oak (27-9, 11-3) finished third in District 15-4A.
The Lady Bulldogs also set a new program record with 30 wins this season. In the end though, a 12-point second-half deficit proved too large to overcome.
"There was a lot of good, it's just a shame it gets overshadowed by one bad night, but that's what the playoffs are, so it is what it is," Oldham said. "When you get that far down, it's hard to get over the hump. This is definitely a disappointment."
Senior Alexis Mason led North with 14 points, followed by sophomore Chanterria Jackson's 13 and junior Mikaehla Connor's seven.
Red Oak shutdown North's high-powered offense through the first three quarters.
North had surpassed 65 in a game more than a dozen times this season and more than 20 points in a quarter several dozen times this year, yet the Lady Bulldogs only mustered 26 points heading into the fourth.
"We didn't rebound well, we didn't shoot free throws well and we didn't shoot well from the perimeter," Oldham said. "All of that is a recipe for disaster. It was just one of those nights."
North struggled throughout the first quarter. Although they never fell behind by more than two possessions, the Lady Bulldogs hardly looked like their state-ranked dominant selves in the opening frame. North's early troubles weren't so much what it was doing wrong, but what was Red Oak was doing right. The Lady Hawks' defensive presence frequently pressured the Lady Bulldogs, forcing them out of their rhythm.
North regained its balance as freshmen Jocelyn Scott made a corner 3-pointer in the final seconds to cut the deficit to 13-11 heading into the second.
Things were more hotly contested in the second as hard charges, turnovers and hurried shots were scattered throughout the quarter. The Lady Bulldogs did an admirable job rebounding as they often had multiple looks at the basket. Their shots, however, wouldn't fall as the Lady Hawks managed to take a 25-17 lead into the half.
"We missed shots that we usually make and we couldn't get our transition game going," Oldham said. "It just wasn't going."
Red Oak came out strong in the third, quickly increasing its lead to 11 on a corner three. The Lady Hawks continued to control the tempo in the highly aggressive, chaotic affair as the Lady Bulldogs never regained their footing.
The Lady Bulldogs did manage to get to the charity stripe repeatedly in the third, but to mixed results, which did little to cut into the Lady Hawk's double-digit lead.
North, which trailed 37-26 heading into the fourth, came alive in the final frame, scoring the first five points. Moments later they traded baskets to maintain the six-point margin. This included a pair of free throws and a jumper from junior Amy Kleynhans.
"We had intensity and did what we know we've done the other 33 games of the year," Oldham said. "We got steals and got easy baskets and knocked down our shots when we got to the free throw line."
The North surge continued as a pair of Jackson free throws made it 39-35 halfway through the fourth. North then cut its deficit to three on a Mason free throw.
Later, with less than one minute remaining and Red Oak clinging to a three-point lead, the Lady Hawks sank a timely layup, which was quickly followed by a turnover and another basket for the now suddenly seven-point lead.
North split two free throws with 21 seconds remaining, but Red Oak made its free throws in the waning seconds for a 47-41 upset win over North.
"There are five games a year your team shows up and they're not going to get beat no matter what happens," Oldham said. "And five other games a year you show up and no matter what you do you're going to lose and 20-some-odd games the rest of the year that's your team. Tonight one of those five that we weren't going to win no matter what showed up."
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