Wildcats rally late to secure state tournament spot
For the first time since 2020, the Oak Ridge boys basketball team has qualified for the state tournament.
The Wildcats, however, never got the chance to play on the big stage that year as COVID-19 abruptly ended the school year and all extracurricular activities.
The last time Oak Ridge played in a state tournament game was in 2015.
Now, the Wildcats are headed back to the state tournament after erasing a seven-point deficit in the fourth quarter to edge Sevier County 51-50 in a heart-stopping victory.
The win came before a packed house at Wildcat Arena on Monday night, eliminating the Smoky Bears, the Region 1-4A runners-up.
“What a game,” Oak Ridge Coach Aaron Green said. “We were just thankful that we were able to win it.
“We had some bad turnovers at some bad times, and obviously didn’t shoot it great,” he said. “Sevier County is a great team, and they made some big plays. We just made a few more big plays late than they did.”
The Wildcats (29-3) held a 13-10 lead at the end of the first quarter, but the Smoky Bears (26-8) battled back to take a 26-25 halftime lead.
Sevier County continued to build its advantage, leading 38-33 by the end of the third quarter, and 40-33 early in the final period.
From there, Oak Ridge began to chip away at the deficit.
The Wildcats finally seized the lead for good when senior center Cooper Williams sank a pair of free throws with 12.3 seconds left in the game.
Williams struggled offensively throughout the night, finishing with just six points.
Sevier County responded with a late layup to narrow the gap, but Oak Ridge managed to hold on.
The Wildcats nearly turned the ball over on the ensuing possession, but senior Shamar Greene saved an errant pass from going out of bounds, securing the win and a spot in the state tournament.
Oak Ridge will play at Middle Tennessee State University’s Murphy Center on Thursday, March 20. The opponent was not determined at press time.
Senior point guard Ray’Qaun Watson led the Wildcats with 15 points, including several clutch free throws in the closing moments.
Greene contributed 13 points and was a perfect 6-for-6 from the field, also making his lone free throw attempt of the evening. Malik Howard added 10 points off the bench.
“Shamar made some big plays,” Green said. “Ray Ray (Watson) made some big plays and some big free throws. Cooper made two big free throws and Malik made some big plays.”
The victory capped off a big week for the Wildcats, who also defeated Maryville 64-55 after overcoming a double-digit deficit on Thursday night.
They eliminated Bearden in the region semifinals on March 4 at Wildcat Arena.
