Mid-America starts off with a classic (original) (raw)

Dec. 28—The 47th Annual Bertha Frank Teague Mid-America Classic got off to a thrilling start.

Anadarko erased a nine-point fourth-quarter deficit to force overtime before Seiling shut out the Lady Warriors in the extra session in a tense 44-40 victory in the tournament opener Thursday afternoon.

Seiling, ranked No. 1 in Class A, improved to 4-0 on the year, while the Lady Warriors — No. 3 in Class 3A — dropped to 6-3.

The Lady Wildcats faced Dale in a Friday night semifinal contest, while Anadarko matched up with Purcell in consolation play.

Seiling 44, Anadarko 40 (OT)

Andarako outscored Seiling 13-6 in the fourth quarter and held the Lady Wildcats scoreless over the final four minutes of regulation.

The Lady Warriors scored the last six points of the fourth period on a basket and two free shots by Heaven Haywood and a putback by Taejah Hightower with 2:48 to play. Both teams had scoring opportunities down the stretch but couldn't cash in.

Keirstin Briggs hit one free throw early in the overtime and Teagan Hamar later scored on a nice drive to the basket to put the Lady Wildcats on top 43-40 at the 2:35 mark of the extra period.

Anadarko still had a chance after Lyndlea Nichols missed two free throws with 11.4 seconds left. However, the Lady Warriors turned the ball over before crossing half-court and Hamar iced the game with one free shot with 5.3 ticks remaining.

Haywood scored on a fast break to put Anadarko ahead 16-7 late in the first quarter. However, the Lady Wildcats turned the tables in the second period, outscoring the Lady Warriors 16-6 to take a slim 23-22 halftime lead.

Seiling limited Anadarko to just five points in the third quarter and led 34-27, heading into the fourth period.

Hamar led the Seiling attack with 19 points, including a pair of 3-pointers. She also had three steals. Briggs also reached double figures with 10 points for the Lady Wildcats. Kadence Griffin was next with eight points.

Haywood paced Anadarko with 16 points and eight rebounds. Ivory Miller followed with 10 points, including a 3-point basket. Lenaya Williams just missed double figures with nine points and also made a 3-pointer for the Lady Warriors.

Anadarko finished 6 of 8 from the free-throw line and Seiling went 13 of 21 from the stripe.

The Lady Wildcats are making their first Mid-America appearance since 2016 and Anadarko last competed in the tournament in 2018.