Jacorian Martin leads Oakbrook boys to a win in the nightcap.
A dominant second-half performance spurred the Spartanburg Christian girls over Oakbrook Prep on Tuesday night, 66-35.
The Warriors trailed at the half by a point, but made key defensive adjustments after the break.
Already playing well in the first half, the defense went to the next level in switching to straight man-to-man.
Not only did the switch take away the potent 3-point attack Oakbrook displayed in the first half, it created trouble for the Knights inbounding the ball. The pressure to quick points and opened the fast-break option for SCA.
“Our defense was good in the first half and the second half, but I think we picked up our intensity. I think we were more patient waiting for the open look, but still aggressive to the basket,” SCA coach Monica Fain said.
The Knights had their home crowd buzzing in the first half.
Finding success outside the arc, Oakbrook scored the game’s first basket and held on to that lead for most of the half. All five of the Knights' baskets from beyond the arc came in the first half, including a buzzer-beater that gave them a 23-22 lead at the break.
Oakbrook also found success on the defensive end. While the Warriors struggled to string together successful offensive possessions, the Knights didn’t let their size discrepancy deter them from getting rebounds to prevent second-chance points.
“I saw from watching film, (SCA) went on run against Dutch Fork when they went into that trap, the little one-on-one, so I focused on that. We attacked it. I thought we did a pretty good job of it in the first half to get our shooters looks,” Oakbrook coach Jason Haltiwanger said.
The Warriors’ offense came alive in the second half to compliment their defensive effort. Sparked by Meredith Ray’s game-high 23 points and Kayla Camacho’s 17, SCA outscored Oakbrook 44-12 over the entire second half.
Fain reiterated her team’s poise was key in winning an away region game against a rival.
“We knew coming in it would be a tough place to play. It would be loud. It took us a little while to settle down, but I think in the second half we settled down, ran our offense but stayed aggressive,” Fain said.
Abbie Bishop led the Knights with 17 points. Christiana Wayne also finished in double digits with 11.
Boys
Jacorian Martin came up big in the fourth quarter and overtime for Oakbrook in its 69-65 come-from-behind win.
Held to eight total points through three quarters, Martin erupted in the fourth and overtime to finish with a game-high 27. Two big 3s in the fourth kept the game in reach, and two more in overtime helped claim the lead for good.
Martin then iced the game with free throws, going 6 of 8 from the line over the final 33 seconds.
“Tonight just showed Jacorian Martin’s growth. He’s showed up as a young man who could shoot the ball, and he’s really grown into a true team leader. The way he shoots the ball and with his range, he can take shots from anywhere,” Oakbrook coach Clay Keim said.
The Warriors had control of the game for most of regulation, establishing their post game early and slashing inside for high-percentage shots.
A balanced scoring attack saw four Warriors finish in double digits. Palmer Thompson led the team with 16 points. Bryson Bishop finished with 15, while Christian Kincaid and Johnathan Gaminde each contributed 13.
“Christian is a great player for us. He’s scored a lot of points for us. He was requiring a lot of potential on the perimeter. If they take something away, they’ve got to give you something else. I was proud of my guys for taking advantage of they were giving,” SCA coach Chris Arp said.
The Knights' other double-figure scorer was Cal Wooden. He finished with 23, 10 of which came in the fourth quarter when he went 4-for-4 from the line to aid the rally.