Rams, tough luck, too much for Tigers' big effort
Writer’s note: My journey covering this team in the Class 6A playoffs ended Wednesday afternoon at Lloyd Noble Center at the state tournament. I always say I love writing great stuff about great stuff and state tourneys are certainly that. Give me that over any regular season game at any level, Thunder and Sooner football included, any time. Being the end of a season, as a writer, I think I owe it to readers, given the stage, a detailed story that really explains what happened and why it happened; also, sympathy for a season-ending loss is required, too, as is a small look toward next season. That’s what you’re trying to do with a story like this, which is not really a column, yet more than a simple game story (or even a very good game story). If you’re so inclined, please enjoy. Perhaps I pulled it off.
NORMAN — If luck has a way of evening out over time, you’ve got to love Norman High’s chances when it returns to the Class 6A state tournament.
Given the state of coach Cory Cole’s roster, it’s a state of affairs that could play out as soon as next season.
Of course, a lot of good that does the Tigers now, after everything that could have gone wrong seemed to Wednesday afternoon inside Lloyd Noble Center in the first round of this year’s state tourney.
Owasso left with a 60-48 victory that may have been a tribute to NHS’ resilience given every call the Tigers didn’t get, the foul trouble and free-throw disparity those calls created, as well as what appeared to be a an upper-right-leg injury suffered by Trashaun Combs-Pierce about a minute into the contest that left him out of the game for stretches and compromised every time he returned to the court.
“The season is always ups and downs,” Cole said. “Trashaun going down, our guys getting in foul trouble early … I liked our response.”
Combs-Pierce missed the rest of the first quarter, leaving NHS nearly bereft of size, leaving no Tiger to demand double teams as Combs Pierce typically does.
Playing the entirety of the second quarter, he was still limited to two points and no rebounds by the half and eight points and one rebound by the time he fouled out with 2:37 remaining.
“His impact is felt on both ends of the floor,” Cole said. “We had to play for the first time this year [seven] full minutes without Trashaun on either end. It was a growing up for a lot of guys.
“I loved their response, but you see the impact of Trashaun. He demands a triple-team, he can guard two guys at one time defensively.”
NHS was hit with 26 fouls, total, leading to 34 Owasso free throws, of which the Rams canned 27.
The Tigers were the recipients of 19 fouls called against the Rams and, though NHS made 16 of 25 free throws, it canned just 4 of 10 in the second quarter, helping to stake Owasso to a 27-17 halftime advantage.
The calls made things generally tough on NHS, and specifically, too, leaving Beau Billingsley to miss the last 3 1/2 minutes of the second quarter with three fouls.
It was Billingsley who wound up leading the Tigers with 16 points. Combs-Pierce’s eight was next, followed by B.J. Randle’s five to go with a team-high seven rebounds.
With Combs-Pierce missing or playing hurt, it was left to the Tiger backcourt to penetrate. It did, but hardly ever came up with points when it did, thanks to the inside presence of Ram center Jax Kerr, who finished with three blocks, changed or stopped many other shots, and grabbed seven rebounds.
Owasso’s Jalen Montanati, perhaps Oklahoma’s No. 1 Class of ’26 prospect, led the Rams with 20 points and 11 rebounds. He only made five shots, but went 10 of 12 from the free-throw line.
Kerr was next with 16 points.
Despite the misfortune, NHS was almost always within 10 points and would have been right back in the game if they could have taken advantage of several great-look 3-point attempts in the third quarter.
Billingsley hit one to begin the frame and Randle hit one near the end. In between, the Tigers missed five.
In the fourth quarter, Combs-Pierce had a top-of-the-key 3-point look that would have made it a three-point game — 45-42 — had it dropped, It didn’t and the Rams’ edge reached 10 points by the time the two-minute mark arrived.
Fouled shooting a 3, Billingsley made every free throw, bringing the Tigers within 55-48 with 1:55 remaining, yet the free throws would up being NHS’ final points of the game.
The Tigers closed their season with a 21-6 record, their most wins since 2000 when coach Doug Tolin skippered a team led by the great Ian Boylan.
Cole believes his program’s still rising.
“I love where our culture is at … We’re going to bring back a lot and we’re going to develop, develop, develop,” he said.
“The best thing about it, these guys are hungry to get to the next level.”
It’s not far away.