Bulldogs’ playoff journey continues following regional consolation title win

The Okmulgee Bulldog varsity basketball team is three wins away from earning a spot in the Class 3A state tournament after six years.

The Bulldogs will continue their Road to State this Thursday at 7:30 p.m. with a consolation quarterfinal showdown with the Hugo Buffaloes in the Class 3A Area II tournament at East Central University in Ada.

Okmulgee met the Buffaloes twice during the regular season with Okmulgee taking the January 28 showdown in Okmulgee by a 48-43 margin, while Hugo took the other contest by a 55-41 advantage February 13 in Hugo.

The Okmulgee gentlemen began their postseason journey with a 65-63 loss to Bethel in the District 4 championship game Feburary 17 in Okmulgee.

The narrow setback put the Bulldogs into the loser’s bracket side of last week’s regional tournament, meaning Okmulgee needed six-straight wins over a 2-week period to punch their first ticket to the state basketball championships since 2017.

The Bulldogs began their run through the regional tournament last Thursday with a 66-49 win over the Little Axe Warriors in consolation quarterfinal battle at Prage High School. The win over Little Axe put the Okmulgee squad into the consolation semifinal round last Friday in Kellyville against the host Kellyville Ponies.

The Bulldogs added Kellyville to their list of loser’s bracket obstacles cleared with a 73-60 win last Friday afternoon.

The win over Kellyville put the Okmulgee gentlemen into Saturday’s consolation title game against the Holdenville Wolverines, who kept their season alive with two-straight loser’s bracket wins over Sperry (5836) and Bethel (56-52), respectively.

The final obstacle in Okmulgee’s way to the area tournament was cleared with a 68-58 victory on Saturday against the Wolverines.

If the Bulldogs can continue their winning ways on Thursday, they will advance to Friday’s 3 p.m. consolation semifinal game against the winner of Thursday’s other loser’s bracket contest at ECU between Silo and Henryetta, while a loss to Hugo on Thursday will end the Okmulgee squad’s bid for a state tournament appearance in 2023.

In last Thursday’s consolation quarterfinal contest, the Bulldogs came out of the opening period with a 16-12 advantage. Little Axe cut the Okmulgee lead in half, 26-24, at halftime after taking the second quarter by a slim 12-10 margin.

The Okmulgee gentlemen outscored the Warriors 22-15 in the third stanza to extend their lead to nine, 48-39, with eight minutes remaining in regulation.

The Bulldogs put the finishing touches on their 17-point, loser’s bracket, win last Thursday with an 1810 advantage in the final frame.

Tre Swan led the way offensively for Okmulgee last Thursday with a teambest 17 points. Other double-digit scorers for the Bulldogs against Little Axe were Darin Miles with 13 and Allen Thierry with 10. Jaxsun Fulton and Nolan Yates just missed double figures for Okmulgee with nine and eight points, respectively, while the remaining offense for the Bulldogs last Thursday came on four points by Joseph Robertson, three points by Javin Hutchinson, and two points by Braeden Williams.

In last Friday’s loser’s bracket battle with Kellyville, the host Ponies took the opening quarter by a slim 10-9 margin. The Bulldogs sent the contest to the intermission with the Okmulgee squad in front by four, 25-21, after outscoring Kellyville 16-11 in the second stanza.

The Bulldogs increased their lead to 12 points - 51-39 - following a 26-18 advantage in the third period.

The scoring went back and forth in the final frame with Okmulgee escaping the quarter with a 22-21 margin to walk away with the 73-60 victory over the 11th-ranked Ponies.

The top scorer for the Bulldogs last Friday was Jaxsun Fulton with a team-high 19 points. Fulton was joined in double figures by Tre Swan with 18, Darin Miles 13, and Allen Thierry 12.

Other Okmulgee scorers in the elimination game against Kellyville were Jeremiah Harley with four, Javin Hutchinson and Nolan Yates three each, and Joseph Robertson one.

In Saturday’s consolation title game against Holdenville, the Bulldogs led 14-8 after one and 27-19 at halftime.

The Okmulgee squad came out of the third quarter with a 19-11 margin to take a 16-point lead - 4630 - into the final eight minutes of regulation.

Holdenville put up 28 points in the final stanza in a comeback bid. The Bulldogs countered with 22 points in the frame to thwart the rally attempt and walk away with the 68-58 victory and the regional consolation title.

Four Bulldog players tallied double-digit scoring on Saturday, led by Jaxsun Fulton with a team-best 17 points. Other double-figure scorers for Okmulgee against Holdenville were Darin Miles with 16, Allen Thierry 15, and Tre Swan 10.

The remaining scorers for the Bulldogs were Javin Hutchinson with four and Jeremiah Harley and Nolan Yates three each.

--- Class 3A Regional Tournament Consolation Quarterfinals Okmulgee 66, Little Axe 49

Okmulgee: 16 - 10 - 22 - 18 (66) Little Axe: 12 - 12 - 15 - 10 (49) Okmulgee Scoring: Tre Swan 17, Darin Miles 13, Allen Thierry 10, Jaxsun Fulton 9, Nolan Yates 8, Joseph Robertson 4, Javin Hutchinson 3, Braeden Williams 2.

--- Consolation Semifinals Okmulgee 73, Kellyville 60

Okmulgee: 9 - 16 - 26 - 22 (73) Kellyville: 10 - 11 - 18 - 21 (60) Okmulgee Scoring: Jaxsun Fulton 19, Tre Swan 18, Darin Miles 13, Allen Thierry 12, Jeremiah Harley 4, Javin Hutchinson 3, Nolan Yates 3, Joseph Robertson 1.

--- Consolation Finals

Okmulgee 68, Holdenville 58

Holdenville: 8 - 11 - 11 - 28 (58) Okmulgee: 14 - 13 - 19 - 22 (68) Okmulgee Scoring: Jaxsun Fulton 17, Darin Miles 16, Allen Thierry 15, Tre Swan 10, Javin Hutchinson 4, Jeremiah Harley 3, Nolan Yates 3.