Turnovers trouble Oak Ridge in district opener
Oak Ridge senior Charlie Taubenheim brings the ball up the floor against Bearden on Friday night. The Wildcats dropped their first district game of the season. (photo:Kyla Carter | ORHS Sports Media )
The Wildcats, who reached last season’s Class 4A state championship game, graduated four of their five starters — a difficult enough hurdle on its own.
Then came TSSAA’s latest reclassification, placing Oak Ridge in a loaded District 4-4A alongside Bearden, Farragut, Hardin Valley Academy, Lenoir City, McMinn County and Rhea County.
With the Wildcats in early-season rebuild mode, the timing couldn’t have been tougher.
Bearden, returning several contributors from a team Oak Ridge eliminated in last season’s Region 2-4A semifinals, earned its payback Friday with an emphatic 81-55 win in West Knoxville.
Oak Ridge (2-3, 0-1 District 4-4A) came out sharp, jumping to a 12-9 lead before the Bulldogs (8-0, 1-0) surged late in the opening quarter.
Bearden closed the frame on a 15-6 run, although the Wildcats remained within striking distance at 24-18.
But turnovers quickly changed the tone. Oak Ridge committed 20 miscues, helping Bearden extend its lead to 46-32 by halftime.
“We turned the ball over too much, and you can’t have that many turnovers against a team like Bearden and expect to win,” Oak Ridge Coach Aaron Green said. “They’re a good team, and we have a lot of inexperience. We’re looking for that second, third and fourth scorer. These kids are in totally different roles than they’ve ever played, but we’ll get better.”
Bearden Coach Jeremy Parrott echoed Green’s view of the Wildcats’ potential.
“That’s a tradition-rich, well-coached program,” Parrott said. “They’re replacing a lot of pieces and figuring things out. I expect as the season goes on they’ll be at or near the top of our district.”
Justin Nordin and Carson Asbaty, a transfer from Knoxville Catholic, scored 18 points each for the Bulldogs. Sean Capshaw added 13.
Ethan James paced Oak Ridge with 17 points, and Charlie Taubenheim finished with 16.