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No. 3 Westmoore girls hold off No. 10 Norman North for nine-point victory
MOORE — Rory Hamilton is rarely sure where his team’s points will come from, with a handful of Norman North players challenging for scoring honors each night.
Early in Tuesday’s game, none were in the challenging mood.
Oklahoma signee Jessi Murcer scored 20 points for No. 3 Westmoore, and the Jaguars’ big first-half lead was the foundation in a 64-55 victory over No. 10 North.
North rallied, outscoring the Jaguars 36-28 after intermission. It was an encouraging sign for Hamilton, but not enough to deny Westmoore its
sixth straight win.
The start was the difference.
“We got a little bit rattled there early. Being off for 10 days, it looked like it there in the first quarter giving up 22 points,” Hamilton said.
“You’ve gotta credit Westmoore. They were ready to play.”
North (10-4) fell behind by as many as 14. Westmoore raced to a 20-6 lead, with Murcer blitzing by defenders for eight early points. She finished with five rebounds and four assists.
Murcer dished to Madison Hayes for a first-quarter 3-pointer and North trailed 16-6. Murcer added two free throws upping the lead to 12 points with just under two minutes let in the first.
Westmoore (11-3) received good production from forwards Whitney Outon (seven points, seven rebounds) and Kendra Gillispie (18 points, five rebounds). The heavyweight Jaguars shot 18 of 20 from the field in the first half and appeared well on their way to an easy victory.
“If you take away Murcer, then their bigs are really good,” Hamilton said. “That’s hard to guard, obviously.”
North responded to Hamilton’s halftime challenge and looked more itself down the stretch, shooting 50 percent in the second half. It started with an 8-2 run to start the third quarter, capped by Lindsey Waters’ 3-pointer.
Waters and Jessica Evans each finished with 15 points and were instrumental in the fourth, when North whittled the lead to as small as 56-50 following two Evans free throws.
Evans followed those makes by racing downcourt for a vicious block at the other end.
“That’s what we’ve seen 10 games into the season, that kind of effort,” Hamilton said.
Emma Base scored nine points and Jacie Evans added eight for North.
Waters, who scored seven points in the fourth quarter, provided needed energy with time winding down.
“I thought Lindsey Waters was phenomenal, just her leadership on the floor,” Hamilton said.
“But you can lose it in the first quarter, and I felt like we did. That’s been [Westmoore’s] M.O. all year, exploding in the first quarter.”
North hosts Yukon on Friday.
“We found out we’ve got some work to do. … The second half showed you what kind of group we have. They got challenged, they didn’t play their best,” Hamilton said. “Their pride was kind of on the line and they came out with some fight.”
“It’s unfortunate we weren’t able to do it for four quarters, but it’s still a microcosm of who we can be.”
MOORE — Rory Hamilton is rarely sure where his team’s points will come from, with a handful of Norman North players challenging for scoring honors each night.
Early in Tuesday’s game, none were in the challenging mood.
Oklahoma signee Jessi Murcer scored 20 points for No. 3 Westmoore, and the Jaguars’ big first-half lead was the foundation in a 64-55 victory over No. 10 North.
North rallied, outscoring the Jaguars 36-28 after intermission. It was an encouraging sign for Hamilton, but not enough to deny Westmoore its
sixth straight win.
The start was the difference.
“We got a little bit rattled there early. Being off for 10 days, it looked like it there in the first quarter giving up 22 points,” Hamilton said.
“You’ve gotta credit Westmoore. They were ready to play.”
North (10-4) fell behind by as many as 14. Westmoore raced to a 20-6 lead, with Murcer blitzing by defenders for eight early points. She finished with five rebounds and four assists.
Murcer dished to Madison Hayes for a first-quarter 3-pointer and North trailed 16-6. Murcer added two free throws upping the lead to 12 points with just under two minutes let in the first.
Westmoore (11-3) received good production from forwards Whitney Outon (seven points, seven rebounds) and Kendra Gillispie (18 points, five rebounds). The heavyweight Jaguars shot 18 of 20 from the field in the first half and appeared well on their way to an easy victory.
“If you take away Murcer, then their bigs are really good,” Hamilton said. “That’s hard to guard, obviously.”
North responded to Hamilton’s halftime challenge and looked more itself down the stretch, shooting 50 percent in the second half. It started with an 8-2 run to start the third quarter, capped by Lindsey Waters’ 3-pointer.
Waters and Jessica Evans each finished with 15 points and were instrumental in the fourth, when North whittled the lead to as small as 56-50 following two Evans free throws.
Evans followed those makes by racing downcourt for a vicious block at the other end.
“That’s what we’ve seen 10 games into the season, that kind of effort,” Hamilton said.
Emma Base scored nine points and Jacie Evans added eight for North.
Waters, who scored seven points in the fourth quarter, provided needed energy with time winding down.
“I thought Lindsey Waters was phenomenal, just her leadership on the floor,” Hamilton said.
“But you can lose it in the first quarter, and I felt like we did. That’s been [Westmoore’s] M.O. all year, exploding in the first quarter.”
North hosts Yukon on Friday.
“We found out we’ve got some work to do. … The second half showed you what kind of group we have. They got challenged, they didn’t play their best,” Hamilton said. “Their pride was kind of on the line and they came out with some fight.”
“It’s unfortunate we weren’t able to do it for four quarters, but it’s still a microcosm of who we can be.”
