Eisenhower's Gena Rogers (22) races toward the basket after stealing the ball from an unsuspecting Northwest Classen ball handler. Rogers was a key player in the Lady Eagles' 79-29 win regional playoff win, helping force 40 Knight turnovers.
Nothing could stop the Eisenhower girls on Friday night, and everyone got in on the action during the first round of the Class 5A West Regional.
Eleven players recorded points, pacing the Lady Eagles to a dominant 79-29 win over Northwest Classen at the Eagles' Nest. The victory extended Ike's winning streak to four games, putting them in the championship game scheduled for 6:30 p.m. on Monday on Ike's home court.
Ike coach Daniel Wall said he and the assistant coaches implemented the theme of "being a family" before the game, and the Lady Eagles displayed that mindset through their seemingly flawless play.
"That means rooting each other on, being each other's biggest fan and going out and performing together," Wall said. "Families argue and families don't always agree, but at the end of the day when it's time to go to battle, families come together. I thought tonight was a perfect picture of our girls coming together and doing an amazing job of playing for each other."
Wall said during a pregame interview with Oklahoma Sports Network he wanted his team to put Northwest Classen away early, and it did just that.
Behind a suffocating full-court press and precise shooting from Delicia Brown and Ginger Reece, Ike forced six turnovers in as many possessions, taking a 10-0 lead before the Knights could even get a shot up. The Lady Eagles were unrelenting, garnering a 35-5 lead after one quarter before increasing the advantage to 44 points by halftime.
Northwest Classen was held to only 18 points through the first three quarters.
In all, the Knights committed an unprecedented 40 turnovers in the season-ending loss, 25 of which came in the first half.
"We shared the basketball, and everybody stayed positive throughout the game," Wall said. "We wanted to come out and play with a lot of intensity and a lot of pressure, the girls followed the game plan and we had a lot of fun."
Brown (15), Reece (10) and Jaeda Reed (14) led the Lady Eagles with 39 combined points, but the most notable stat lines came from the supporting cast.
The bench, led by Mikaela Hall, who managed nine points, scored 31 points, outscoring the entirety of Northwest Classen's squad. Jada Laster and Destinee Rush took advantage of their time on the court as well, finishing with eight and six points, respectively.
As time winded down in the Lady Eagles' 50-point win, the always rowdy student section began chanting, "We want Kelsey!"
The fans were referring to senior Kelsey Donnelly, and Wall gave them what they wanted, sending the guard into the game with about three minutes remaining.
Donnelly failed to tally points in the scorebook, but she pulled down four rebounds, three of which were of the offensive variety, sending the crowd into a frenzy with each.
Donnelly's daily contributions might go overlooked by some because of her lack of minutes, but her role on the 16-player roster doesn't go unnoticed by the coaching staff.
"She's been committed since Day 1," Wall said. "She's done anything we've asked, whether it's play on the junior varsity team or helping out with whatever we've needed. I was really excited to be able to have the opportunity for her to get in there and play hard for the program.
"It's neat for the student section to get involved, and we're going to need some of that on Monday night, for sure."
Ike (16-6) now turns its attention to Carl Albert for the regional title. The Titans (9-15) defeated Noble, 47-27, Friday night at Eisenhower.
Wall said Carl Albert displayed the skills of a quality team against the Bears, and he anticipates a tough contest come Monday night.
"They're very athletic and they're well-coached," Wall said of the Titans. "They're going to play hard against us, but the game plan for us will be to stay intense and make them uncomfortable."