Titans stun Deer Creek boys 73-66 in overtime

Jeff Harrison The Edmond Sun

EDMOND — The Deer Creek boys gave Carl Albert a scare on Tuesday night, but it was the No. 11-ranked Titans, who delivered the knock out punch.

The Antlers appeared well on their way to a huge win as they led Carl Albert by seven points with just 30 seconds to play. But the Titans (15-7)made every second count and forced overtime on a steal and layup by Trevante Porter with seven seconds left. Deer Creek (10-11) could only muster four points in the extra period as they fell 73-66 on senior night.

“It just shows a little bit of our inexperience and youth,” Deer Creek coach Matt Bailey said. “I got a lot of guys playing that didn’t play last year and Carl Albert’s guys are all seniors just about. We had trouble holding onto the ball at the end, they were playing real hard defense, but we have to be stronger as players to get open and make those simple plays.”

While the loss stings, Bailey believes Tuesday night’s game could be a confidence builder for his team.

“Now we know we can play with anybody,” Bailey said. “Carl Albert is going to be in the state tournament, so we know we’re there minus some mistakes. If we ever would really put in a full game we’d be really good.”

Hayden Wagner shined on senior night as he led the Antlers with 18 points including three 3-pointers. Garrett Hermanski was also in double figures with 10 and Michael Fulmer came up with plenty of big shots and finished with nine points.

The Titans got off to a hot start and put the Antlers in an early hole. Larry Cunningham did most of the damage in the first as he poured in 10 points to give Carl Albert a 22-8 lead.

Deer Creek bounced back in the second and made a big dent in the 14-point hole. Hermanski hit a couple of 3-pointers and Michael Aduddell added another to make it a 28-26 game with 1:03 to play in the half. J.T. Realmuto finally snapped the Antlers’ run with a bucket in the final minute of the half, making it a 30-26 halftime score.

Wagner had the hot hand in the third as he hit three 3-pointers to fuel the Antlers’ rally. But the biggest shot came from a unlikely source, as Fulmer tied the game up 50-50 with a 3-pointer from the corner just before the buzzer sounded.

Deer Creek spent the next seven and a half minutes building a lead. Seth Gebhart had a big putback to make it a five point game and Jalen Burnett extended the Antlers’ lead to 62-55 on a pair of free throws with 34.9 seconds to play.

But 30 seconds was all the Titans would need to climb out of the hole. Cunningham went to the line with a chance to make it a four-point game. The senior missed the second shot, but Terrance Berry was there for the rebound and putback to make it a two-point game with 17 seconds left. Deer Creek tried to bring the ball up court, but Porter was there for the steal and layup to send it to overtime.

The Titans’ momentum carried over into the extra period as they outscored Deer Creek 11-4 for the win.

“We made a few mistakes down the stretch, but that’s not why we lost that game,” Bailey said. “If we don’t start down so far in the first then we’re there to compete and maybe have a bigger lead. But I’m really proud of my guys they fought and didn’t’ give up.”

Cunningham led all scorers with 23 points. Caleb Price and Markell Walker finished with 13 points apiece and Realmuto kicked in 11.

The Deer Creek boys are on the road Friday night to take on Shawnee in the regular season finale.