Lady Wildcats 3-0 to start the 2023-24 season
When the Oak Ridge High School girls basketball team took the floor for the first time last week, it did so with a young roster of talented players.
In their three games, the Lady Wildcats posted three victories and impressed their coach, Paige Taylor.
“I felt really good because we have a young team and I’m expecting them to do things that they’ve never been asked to do before,” said Taylor, who recently began her ninth season as the ORHS head coach.
“We start two freshmen, two sophomores and one senior.
“We’re super young but I like the way they’ve responded.”
The Lady Wildcats (3-0) edged in-county rival Anderson County 46-40 Saturday night at Wildcat Arena.
“I knew Anderson County was good; I’d seen film on them and I saw them play in their first game on Saturday, and you could tell they were solid,” Taylor said. “They move well without the ball.
“They have a good guard and she runs their team well, but I thought we really played good defense.”
Euleesha Mitchell scored 14 points to lead Oak Ridge against the Lady Mavericks (2-2). Dimitria Strickland added 10 points. Jenna Johnson had nine and Jenyah Pippins finished with seven.
Oak Ridge hosted Jefferson County earlier Saturday. The Lady Patriots proved to be a formidable foe, but the Lady Wildcats left the floor with a 52-48 victory.
“Jefferson County always has a good team and they’re really physical,” Taylor said. “They gave us all that we could’ve asked for, but I was really proud of the way we played good defense and won the game.”
Strickland scored 25 points and Mitchell added 10.
Oak Ridge opened its season with a 63-37 win over Knoxville’s Grace Christian Academy on Tuesday, Nov. 14.
Mitchell scored 20 points, grabbed four rebounds and came up with four assists in her high school debut.
Pippins, another freshman, finished with 12 points, seven rebounds and four steals.
Strickland finished with 11 points and three assists.
The Lady Wildcats have a long break as they won’t play again until Dec. 5.
That’s when they open District 3-4A play against Powell at Jeff Hunter Gymnasium.
But Oak Ridge won’t be resting on its laurels.
“We won’t play again until December, so we have a lot of work to do,” Taylor said.
Wildcats 3-0, too
Oak Ridge’s boys team won its first three games.
The Wildcats picked up two wins Saturday.
They opened the day with an 81-46 victory over Jefferson County.
Brennen Scott led the way with 17 points against the Patriots. Garrett Giles added 16. Rayquan had 11 and Kaiden Brightharp finished with 10.
The Wildcats defeated the Mavericks 75-52 behind 20 points from Brightharp and 19 from Cooper Williams. Scott and Gavin Johnson finished with 10 points each.
In its season opener against the Rams, Oak Ridge prevailed 80-42 on Tuesday, Nov. 14, as five Wildcats posted double figures in the scoring column.
Brightharp had 17, while Watson added 12. Scott and Williams had 11 apiece, and Giles finished with 10.
The Wildcats will play in the Bahamas over the Thanksgiving break.
