Panther cagers score wins at mid-winter tournaments

Although the temperatures plummeted this past week, both OTHS basketball teams heated up, posting wins in tournament hoop action.

The Panther boys team doubled their number of wins during the 2015-16 campaign to collect the consolation title in the Kirkwood Invitational while the OTHS girls squad continued to improve, knocking off Mater Dei in the opening round of the Highland Invitational before falling short in the quarterfinals to 17-2 Triad.

Flying under the radar, partially due to a lurching start in December, the OTHS Lady Panthers have continued on an upward swing beginning with their consolation title run in the Mascoutah Invitational. A 53-43 win over East St. Louis in Southwestern Conference action provided momentum for the Lady Panthers as they entered play in the Highland Invitational on Saturday, and they were able to turn a few more heads with an impressive 58-37 victory over the Mater Dei Knights.

O’Fallon exploded for 22 points in the second quarter after trailing 9-6 after the first eight minutes of play. The Lady Panthers’ scoring run was led by Tamia Cash and Celeste Akoro, who each contributed four points. Three other OTHS players scored during the period to take a commanding 28-18 into the halftime break.

Mater Dei hit the first basket of the second stanza to increase its lead to 11-6, but the OTHS girls responded, scoring 12 of the next 14 points. Cash and Marta Durk got things going in the right direction with short jumpers in the lane and Becca Althoff nailed one of her three 3-pointers to help establish the lead.

The Lady Panthers increased the defensive pressure during the second half which caused additional problems for Mater Dei. The Lady Knights were held to just 19 points during the final two frames, allowing the O’Fallon girls to increase their double-digit lead. Althoff led the Panther attack with 13 points, while Durk added 11.

In the tourney quarterfinals held on Monday, the OTHS squad faced an even greater challenge when they faced off against the 16-2 Triad Knights and one of the St. Louis area’s top 3-point shooter, Sadie Thompson.

Defensively, the Lady Panthers contained Thompson effectively, allowing O’Fallon to take a 10-9 lead by the end of the first quarter. The two squads traded baskets early in the second stanza, but Thompson began to heat up and her teammates also picked up the scoring tempo, racing to a 14-0 run that spanned the halftime intermission and increased the Triad lead to 38-26 by the end of the third quarter.

Down but not out, the Lady Panthers mounted a furious comeback, fueled by a pair of 3-point baskets from both Cash and Jayla Stubblefield. The long-range bombs cut the Triad lead to 40-37, but Thompson converted a conventional 3-point play on Triad’s next possession and the Knights sealed the victory with exceptional free throw shooting down the stretch.

Thompson, who led all scorers with 27 points, was 15-19 from the charity stripe for the game while Samantha Bassler, held scoreless through the first three quarters, converted on 8 of 8 free throw chances in the fourth quarter. Thompson’s offensive effectiveness and the Knights’ clutch shooting from the free throw line proved enough for Triad to down the Lady Panthers 57-46.

While the O’Fallon girls squad was taking bounces in the right direction, the OTHS varsity boys team finally enjoyed some positive results on the court. Traveling across the river last week to compete in the Denver Miller Tournament hosted by Kirkwood High School, an opening round 64-55 loss to Jennings extended a difficult stretch of games for coach Rick Gibson’s squad. But the Panthers were finally able to stop their string of losses with back-to-back victories over Hazelwood West and Eureka to claim the tournament’s consolation championship.

“Our defensive effort has been pretty good from the start of the year,” Gibson said. “Our biggest hurdle has been to put points on the scoreboard. In the Kirkwood tournament, we finally had more shots drop. Our execution and shot selection was better—more consistent—which translated into a better result.”

In their first consolation bracket game against Hazelwood West, the OTHS cagers kept pace with their Missouri opponents, scoring 18 points—a total that in some games they had struggled to achieve by halftime. As has been the case for most of the season, the Panthers relied heavily on the offensive talents of senior Chance Armstrong.

Hitting on 9 of 12 field goals and converting 5 of 7 free throws, Armstrong paced a rediscovered O’Fallon offense with 23 points. Jalen Hodge hit for double figures, too, scoring 11. Five other Panthers added to O’Fallon’s winning total as they held on to a 31-20 halftime lead to record their third win of the campaign, 60-46.

Buoyed by their success, the Panthers faced off against Eureka in the consolation title game. Their new found offense was key in gaining win No. 4. Early baskets by Armstrong, Ryan Fulton and Deion Norfleet moved O’Fallon into an 18-11 lead after the first eight minutes. The offensive efficiency slowed for both teams in the second stanza, but the Panthers were able to maintain their early lead to carry a 27-18 margin into halftime.

O’Fallon shot 46 percent from the field and 75 percent from the free throw line to secure the win. Armstrong, Norfleet and Fulton led the attack, scoring 13, 12 and 10 points, respectively.

Next up, the Lady Panthers have a full slate of four games next week. They will face Alton and Collinsville in SWC road games on Tuesday and Jan. 28, respectively; then, they will travel to Normal for a roundball double-header against Normal Community and Normal West.

Gibson’s squad will travel to East St. Louis on Friday and host Collinsville on Jan. 29.

This story was originally published January 19, 2016 at 2:15 PM with the headline "Panther cagers score wins at mid-winter tournaments."