Beggs scores double-digit wins to take county battle with Morris
The varsity basketball programs at Beggs and Morris met Tuesday evening at the Beggs Event Center for the first of two regular-season meetings in 20232024.
The county battle was the season opener for the host Beggs cage squads, while it was Morris’ third regular- season contest in the past seven days.
The host Demons and Lady Demons began their 2023-2024 campaign on the winning end of a pair of double- digit decisions with the Beggs ladies taking the opening contest by a 54-43 margin, while the Beggs gentlemen awarded new head coach James Youngblood his first win at the Okmulgee County cage program with a 58-33 victory in the nightcap.
Both teams were back in action Thursday at different 3-day tournaments.
Morris traveled to Okemah on Thursday to battle Chandler in the first two opening-round games at the annual Okemah Invitational Basketball Tournament, while Beggs was in Oilton on Thursday at the Oilton Invitational Basketball Tournament with the Lady Demons opening tournament play against Hominy and the Demons beginning tournament action against the host Oilton Panthers.
In Tuesday’s girls county battle, the Lady Eagles came out of the opening frame with a 15-12 advantage, while the Lady Demons took the second stanza by a 20-4 margin to lead by double digits at halftime, 32-19.
Morris escaped the back-and-forth third period with a 15-13 advantage to make it a 45-34 Beggs lead with eight minutes remaining in regulation.
Both teams tallied nine points in the final frame to give the host Lady Demons the 54-43, season-opening, win.
Rylee Youngblood was tops offensively for Beggs with a game-high 21 points, followed by Tessa Christy with 14 and Destiny Clay with 11. Konner Stanton and Kamya Stallings rounded out the Lady Demon scoring on Tuesday with six and two points, respectively.
Morris was led in scoring by Fire Clark with 14, followed by Alexis Schell with nine. Other Lady Eagle scorers in the county battle were Lillian Giddens with six, Emma Duclos five, Skylar Phillips four, Alli Guynes three, and Ashlyn Clevenger two.
In Tuesday’s county boys showdown, the host Demons escaped the opening quarter with a 15-10 advantage, then outscored the Eagles by an 18-11 margin in the second stanza for a 33-21 lead at the halftime break.
The Beggs squad put the game further out of reach in the third period, outscoring their county rivals 25-9 in the frame for a 58-30 advantage with eight minutes remaining in regulation.
Morris took the low-scoring fourth quarter by a 3-0 margin to make the final tally, 58-33, in favor of the host Beggs Golden Demons.
Jaxon Remington was one of four Beggs players to finish with double- digit scoring with a game-high 14 points. The other three Demon players to reach double figures in the county battle were Rickey Smith and Jaylen Williams with 12 apiece and Brayden King 10.
Other Begg scorers in the season opener were Dakota Hudson with four and Jordan Wesley, Ezrah Anderson, and Jace Basquez two each.
The Eagles were led in scoring by Tre Robinson with eight, followed by Bobby Baker with seven, Robert Woods five, Evan Felts four, Gage Adkins three, Koen Burgess and Bryce Howard two apiece, and Race Casey and Jerry Reilly one each.
— Girls Game
Beggs 54, Morris 43
Morris: 15 – 4 – 15 – 9 (43) Beggs: 12 – 20 – 13 – 9 (54) Morris Scoring: Fire Clark 14, Alexis Schell 9, Lillian Giddens 6, Emma Duclos 5, Skylar Phillips 4, Alli Guynes 3, Ashlyn Clevenger 2.
Beggs Scoring: Rylee Youngblood 21, Tessa Christy 14, Destiny Clay 11, Konner Stanton 6, Kamya Stallings 2.
— Boys Game
Beggs 58, Morris 33
Morris: 10 – 11 – 9 – 3 (33) Beggs: 15 – 18 – 25 – 0 (58) Morris Scoring: Tre Robinson 8, Bobby Baker 7, Robert Woods 5, Evan Felts 4, Gage Adkins 3, Koen Burgess 2, Bryce Howard 2, Race Casey 1, Jerry Reilly 1.
Beggs Scoring: Jaxon Remington 14, Rickey Smith 12, Jaylen Williams 12, Brayden King 10, Dakota Hudson 4, Jordan Wesley 2, Ezrah Anderson 2, Jace Basquez 2.
