Oklahoma 2A girls basketball semifinals: Late shot in OT sends Pocola to title game against LeFlore County rival Howe

By Buck Ringgold I Photo by Carlos Flores

OKLAHOMA CITY - In Pocola's last appearance in a state championship game, the Lady Indians won it all on a buzzer-beating shot.

Friday afternoon, the Lady Indians got another late shot to fall their way in order to get the chance to play for a gold ball.

Kail Chitwood scored her only basket of the day on a shot down low with six seconds left, capping a wild overtime affair between Pocola and Dale. The Lady Indians were able to pull off the 63-62 win in the Class 2A semifinals at State Fair Arena.

"(Pocola coach Mark McKenzie) said, 'I believe in y'all; you've just got to play hard and keep going,'" Mika Scott, the lone senior on the Lady Indians' roster, said in a postgame interview with the NFHS Network. Scott had the assist on Chitwood's game-winner.

"(McKenzie) was like, 'You should have all the confidence in the world; we're only down one.'"

Thanks to Chitwood putting the Lady Indians up by the eventual final one-point margin, Pocola (27-1) will now play for the 2A championship Saturday, and standing in the Lady Indians' way will be a very familiar foe.

It's none other than Pocola's LeFlore County rivals from Howe, which beat Hooker in Friday's other 2A semifinal.

Pocola beat Howe in January, 66-65, in overtime for the LeFlore County Tournament championship. Howe beat Pocola in last season's 2A quarterfinals en route to winning its second straight 2A championship.

The rematch kicks off "Championship Saturday" at State Fair Arena at 10 a.m.

"I'm so very excited, I'm so proud of us, we've accomplished so much this year," Scott said in her postgame interview with NFHS.

Pocola is attempting to win its first state title since 2008. That year, the Lady Indians defeated Walters for the 2A championship on a dramatic 40-foot shot from Callie Slate at the buzzer. The coach of Pocola then was McKenzie, who returned in 2019 to guide the Lady Indians once again, and has led Pocola to seven state tournaments in his two stints at the school.

With Chitwood's shot, she now will etch her name alongside Slate in the annals of great Lady Indian shots. 

In a back-and-forth game, with the lead changing hands several times, Dale went in front 61-60 when junior Makenzy Herman banked in a jumper off the glass with 18 seconds left.

On the next possession, with the clock ticking away, Herman appeared to force a jump ball, with the arrow favoring Dale. But a time out was called right before the jump ball situation, keeping possession with the Lady Indians.

Chitwood inbounded underneath Pocola's basket and passed it to Mika Scott, the lone senior on the Lady Indians' roster. Chitwood then moved right near the goal, and Scott was able to spot her at the last instant.

Upon receiving the ball, Chitwood was able to deliver an easy layup. Action continued without a time out, and Dale quickly sprinted down the floor, but aggressive defense by the Lady Indians forced a desperation shot to go off target as Pocola players celebrated the win.

"Honestly, I knew that I could do it, and if it wasn't for my teammates getting me the pass that I got and working the whole game that that wouldn't have even mattered," Chitwood said to statewide reporter Hunter Sheppard following Friday's win.

The Lady Indians had been down nine at halftime, 29-20. They were also down nine, 33-24, with less than three minutes to go in the third before they made their move.

Pocola went on a 14-0 run to take a 38-33 lead early in the fourth. The Lady Pirates came right back to go in front, and the game continued to be tight.

With 1:53 left in regulation, Pocola went up by five, 51-46, on a three-point play from freshman Allyssa Parker. But the Lady Pirates didn't go away.

Junior guard Brook Rutland hit a pair of clutch shots, the latter a 3 from the corner with 13 seconds left, allowing Dale to tie the score at 53-all. Pocola had a chance to win it at the end of regulation, but a shot was missed at the buzzer.

The overtime continued to be a seesaw affair. A 3 from Rutland gave Dale a 58-57 advantage, but Scott answered seconds later.

Pocola then went up by three, 61-58, but Herman pulled Dale within a point. The Lady Indians missed the front end of a one-and-one with 31 seconds to go, and Dale worked the ball for a good shot, which Herman was able to do.

But that gave Pocola plenty of time to respond, and Chitwood delivered the eventual game-winning shot.

Parker led the Lady Indians with 26 points on 10-of-18 field goals and 6-of-8 free throws while Scott - a Northeastern State signee - had a double-double with 21 points and 11 rebounds.

Kylee Smith added 10 points for Pocola. While Chitwood had just two points, she did grab 10 rebounds.

"I knew that I had to work hard down low and that I was the biggest girl out there, so I knew I had to work hard and I had to get the rebound," Chitwood - a 6-footer - said in the interview with Sheppard. "That's what I put my mind into the game, just defense and rebounds."

Rutland also had a double-double of her own, 29 points along with 12 boards. Herman and Faith Wright each had 12 points for Dale (24-6), and Wright got her 12 on the strength of four 3's.

Howe 49, Hooker 32

The theme for Howe's senior class entering the state tournament has been "One Last Ride."

As freshmen, they were part of the Lady Lions' 2A championship team. After the 2020 tournament was canceled due to COVID-19, they came back last season as juniors and won it again in 2A.

Saturday, those seniors will get the chance to win three gold balls while also attempting to gain a measure of revenge on Pocola, which beat Howe in the LeFlore County Tournament title game two months ago.

The Lady Lions (24-5) helped pick up their end of the bargain to ensure the all-LeFlore County championship game by controlling the pace throughout much of Friday's contest.

Howe led 12-8 at the end of one quarter and went up by double digits late in the first half before a last-second shot from Hooker's Hollie Stalder cut the Lady Lion halftime lead to eight, 25-17.

The Lady Bulldogs (26-2) then came out and scored the first five points of the second half to make it a one-possession game.

Howe answered with an 11-0 run to seize control for good. A pair of free throws from senior Kayley Turner gave the Lady Lions a 36-22 advantage.

By the end of the third quarter, it was 40-24 after senior Raelyn Delt knocked down a pair of shots. Then another senior, Shiloh Fletcher, drained a 3 to finish off an 18-4 run, giving Howe a 43-26 lead.

Delt later put the finishing touches on the win with a steal and layup with more than two minutes left, building the lead to 18 points, 47-29.

For the game, Delt had 15 points, Fletcher 13 and Turner 10. Turner grabbed 10 rebounds as well for a double-double, while Fletcher made both of Howe's 3-pointers for the day.

Hooker's Mady Swayze led all scorers with 17 points.