Williams hot for ’Cats in road wins
Cooper Williams had 20 points against Camp- bell County and 17 points against Hall in last week’s District 3 matchups.
Inclement weather has thrown a monkey wrench into area teams’ plans over the past two weeks, forcing multiple cancellations and postponements.
But many teams were finally allowed to return to the hardwood late last week.
The Wildcats (16-5 overall, 6-0 in District 3-4A) defeated Campbell County 71-44 Saturday night in Jacksboro.
Oak Ridge got off to a fast start against the Cougars, who used some hot shooting to get past Knox Central Friday, making 10 three-pointers against the Bobcats in a 63-58 victory at home.
The Cougars didn’t enjoy the same offensive success against the Wildcats, who held a 42-21 advantage by halftime.
The Wildcats opened the week with a 68-48 road victory over Knoxville Halls Friday night.
“We went to Halls and it was their first game after the snow break, and it was our first game after the snow break and it was a little rusty on both sides,” ORHS Coach Aaron Green said. “Halls is always a tough place to play.
“And then we had to go up to Campbell County, and they were coming off a big win against Knox Central the night before where they made 10 threes.”
Against the Cougars, Cooper Williams scored 20 points for Oak Ridge. Garrett Giles added 14, and Kaden Brightharp finished with 11.
At Halls, Williams scored 17 points to lead the way. Brightharp had 14 and Giles finished with 12.
Despite notching two big district road wins, Green said his squad is still a work in progress. The team made another road trip to Karns Tuesday night, but results were not available at press time.
The Wildcats won the first meeting between the two rivals at Wildcat Arena. But Green said Oak Ridge must improve on its recent work to keep its perfect league record intact.
“We’re still trying to find our stride,” Green said. “We have a big game at Karns. We had a tight game against them at our place.
“We’re going to have to play better than we’ve played in our last two games, and we’re going to have to play better than we did against them at our place if we’re going to go over there and get a win.”