The Dewar varsity basketball program traveled to Strother High School in Shawnee Tuesday evening for its final regular-season contest of the 2022-2023 campaign.
The Dewar varsity basketball program traveled to Strother High School in Shawnee Tuesday evening for its final regular-season contest of the 2022-2023 campaign.
The Dewar cage squads came away with a split decision in Tuesday’s regular-season finale with the Lady Dragons falling to the Class A No. 17 Strother Lady Yellowjackets by a 5116 decision and the Dragons snapping their two-game losing streak in the nightcap with a hard-fought 56-53 victory.
Prior to Tuesday’s journey to Strother High School, the Dewar squads hosted the Canadian Cougars and Lady Cougars Monday evening in the regular-season home finale with the visitors coming away with both decisions. The Lady Cougars took the opening contest by a 52-46 margin, while the Cougars held on for a 59-52 decision in the nightcap.
The Dewar roundball teams will begin postseason play Friday evening at Wetumka High School, battling the Weleetka Outlaws and Lady Outlaws in an elimination game in the Class A, Area II, District 3 tournament. Friday’s playoff action will kick off with the girls elimination game at 6 p.m. followed by the boys elimination contest at approximately 7:30 p.m.
Wins over Weleetka Friday will put the Dewar squads into Saturday’s district title games against Wetumka at 6 and 7:30 p.m., respectively, while losses on Friday will bring a close to the 2022-2023 basketball seasons for the Dragons and Lady Dragons.
In Monday’s girls game against Canadian, the Lady Dragons came out of the opening frame with a narrow 14-12 advantage, then edged the Lady Cougars 13-10 in the second stanza for a 27-22 lead at the intermission.
The Dewar ladies increased their lead to nine, 39-30, with eight minutes remaining in regulation after outscoring the visitors 12-8 in the third quarter.
The Lady Dragons were unable to keep their lead in the final stanza, as Canadian took the period by a 22-7 margin to hand the Dewar ladies the 52-46 setback.
Ally Burney led Dewar in scoring with 17 points, followed by Bre Harvell with 15. Other Lady Dragon scorers on Monday were Maikya Carter with six, Melanie Burney and Victoria Hill three each, and Sommer Bess two.
In Monday’s boys meeting with Canadian, the Dragons trailed 19-10 after one quarter of play. The Dewar gentlemen cut the deficit to one, 2423, at halftime after coming out of the second period by a 13-5 margin.
The Dragons deadlocked the score at 39-39 after three quarters with a slim 16-15 advantage in the third, and put up 13 points in the final frame.
Canadian, however, tallied 20 points in the final eight minutes of regulation to put the Dewar gentlemen on the losing end of a 59-52 outcome.
Dewar’s top scorer against Canadian was Skelly Taylor, who finished with a team-best 16 points. John Rex also found his way into double figures in the home loss with an 11-point performance.
Other Dragon scorers on Monday were Ishmael Stewart and Seth Hudson with eight points each, Tryton Mack seven, and Cole Miller two.
In Tuesday’s girls contest at Strother, the Lady Dragons were unable to Stigler, the Lady Eagles escaped the opening period with a narrow 13-11 margin. The Morris cagers took a 33-22 lead into halftime after outscoring the visitors 20-11 in the second stanza, then took the final two frames by margins of 15-8 and 20-10, respectively, to put the finishing touches on their decisive 68-40 victory.
Kaleah Barnett finished with a team-best 19 points to lead the Morris scoring. Other double- digit scorers for the Lady Eagles on Tuesday were Maddie Moore with 15, Skylar Phillips 11, and Emma Duclos 10. Other Morris scorers against Stigler were Marti Yaerger with five, Reagan Bowling four, and Jessica Wilson and Taylon Ray two each.
In Tuesday’s boys showdown with Stigler, the visitors took the opening frame by a 17-7 margin. The Eagles came out of the second stanza with a narrow 11-10 advantage to trail by nine at halftime, 27-18.
Stigler regained their 10-point advantage (3828), heading into the final quarter after outscoring the Morris gentlemen 11-10 in the third period.
The Eagles were unable to overcome the double- digit deficit in the final frame, being outscored by a 17-8 margin to end up on the short end of a 55-34 outcome.
Morris’ top scorer in the home loss was Cody Smith with 15, followed by Tucker Kelsey with seven and Xavier Harjo and Jerrick Raines five each. Ryan Benavidez rounded out the Eagle scoring on Tuesday with two points.
--- Monday, February 6 Girls Game
Morris 57, Eufaula 43
Morris: 15 - 19 - 9 - 14 (57) Eufaula: 7 - 18 - 12 - 6 (43) Morris Scoring: Skylar Phillips 14, Kaleah Barnett 14, Maddie Moore 11, Reagan Bowling 6, Taylon Ray 5, Marti Yaerger 3, Emma Duclos 2, Jessica Wilson 2.
--- Boys Game
Eufaula 60, Morris 57
Morris: 7 - 13 - 9 - 28 (57) Eufaula: 13 - 16 - 10 - 21 (60) Morris Scoring: Race Casey 18, Cody Smith 18, Jerrick Raines 8, Tucker Kelsey 7, Ryan Benavidez 4, Xavier Harjo 2.
--- Tuesday, February 7 Girls Game
Morris 68, Stigler 40
Stigler: 11 - 11 - 8 - 10 (40) Morris: 13 - 20 - 15 - 20 (68) Morris Scoring: Kaleah Barnett 19, Maddie Moore 15, Skylar Phillips 11, Emma Duclos 10, Marti Yaerger 5, Reagan Bowling 4, Jessica Wilson 2, Taylon Ray 2.
--- Boys Game
Stigler 55, Morris 34
Stigler: 17 - 10 - 11 - 17 (55) Morris: 7 - 11 - 10 - 8 (34) Morris Scoring: Cody Smith 15, Tucker Kelsey 7, Xavier Harjo 5, Jerrick Raines 5, Ryan Benavidez 2.
