Sallisaw sweeps rival Poteau in openers

It was as good a start as it could be for the Sallisaw High School basketball teams as they won their season and home openers over NOAA Conference rival Poteau on Friday night at Paul Post Field House.

The Lady Diamonds took the opener 60-30, then the Black Diamonds completed the sweep with a 73-56 victory over the Pirates.

GIRLS

SALLISAW 60, POTEAU 30

New Sallisaw girls coach Greg Pratt won his debut with the Lady Diamonds.

With the game tied at 1-all, the Lady Diamonds (1-0 overall, 1-0 in NOAA Conference play) went on a 7-3 run, capped by a pair of Channing Wilson free throws, to take an 8-4 lead with 2:06 left in the first quarter.

The Lady Pirates scored the final three free throws of the period to cut their deficit to 8-7 going into the second period.

The Lady Diamonds put away the game in the second quarter by outscoring the Lady Pirates 16-0 to take a 24-7 halftime lead, which became a 46-20 advantage after three periods.

“I could tell in the first quarter, we were too jazzed up,” Pratt said. “We committed some silly fouls and put them on the foul line. I thought that was the difference in the second quarter. We can guard offense. Teams will make some shots, and they did. We can’t guard them at the free-throw line. That’s something we talk about all the time — play without fouling. I thought we did a really good job of that in the second quarter. We made the changes we needed to make to be successful.”

For the game, Sallisaw put a quartet of players into double figures, led by Wilson and Hannah Palmer with a game-high 12 points each and Alayna Locust-Trammell and Katelyn Carlton with 11 points. Kaycie Girdner scored seven points, followed by Sydney Weedon with four points, JoLee Curson with two points and Jaycie Cox with a free throw.

“Something we stress every day in practice is to take the right shots,” Pratt said. “In the first quarter, we took the right shots, but we were so amped up. We were shooting lay-ups and free throws, and we couldn’t get anything to fall. We keep stressing, keep taking the right shots, and they’re going to fall — and they did.”

BOYS

SALLISAW 73, POTEAU 56

The Black Diamonds (1-0 overall, 1-0 in NOAA Conference play) scored the game’s first five points en route to a 21-12 lead after the first quarter.

A 8-0 run to begin the second period, capped by a Asa Ulrich basket with 6:38 left before halftime, upped Sallisaw’s advantage to 29-12. The Black Diamonds took a 44-21 lead into the locker rooms at the half.

“I was really proud of how we handled their press,” Sallisaw boys coach Zac Rogers said. “They threw a couple of different defenses at us, and we made good plays for our teammates. We got good shots, and we were working together. That was pretty impressive to see them do that.”

The biggest lead the Black Diamonds enjoyed was a 31-point advantage as a basket by Luke Warner put Sallisaw ahead 71-40 with 6:30 left to play in the game.

“It (the win) feels good,” Rogers said. “I thought our guys worked so hard. That (Poteau) is a very wellcoached team. They play very physical, and I thought we did a good job handling that in trying to match their physicality. They (the Pirates) are extremely talented in that area.”

Rogers believed the win was a true team victory. “I was really proud of our guys’ effort,” he said. Sallisaw put a trio of players into double figures, led by a pair of 16-point outings by Tae Muskrat-Flynn and Brodi Nickell to go with a 12-point performance by Grayson Griffey. Ulrich and Rowdi Nickell scored eight points each, followed by Warner with seven points and Gauge Pack, Elijah Hill and Alex Gregory with two points apiece.