The Match Up: Choctaw vs Douglass

The night cap of the Pride of the East Side Showcase proved to be worth the wait. Just when it looked like the hosting Douglass Trojettes would pull away with a hard earned win, the Yellowjackets struck. In the final 70 seconds of the game, they connected on three three-pointers, to give them a 60-58 victory. Choctaw Junior Lyric Gillispe was the Yellowjacket to hit the game winner as the clock expired.    Let's start with the heroine for the Yellowjackets. With the clock running down, Gillispie proved she has ice in her veins and fire in her wrist. As she drained the go ahead three pointer like it was just another shot in practice. It was the perfect capper for an amazing sequence that saw Choctaw erase a double digit fourth quarter deficit. The Yellowjackets are a deep team with contributions across the board and the sharpshooting junior is sure to have more big moments this season.     The leader for Choctaw, she started the game nearly unstoppable off the bounce. Her shifty drives carved up the Trojettes defense, first keeping Choctaw in the game. Then powering them ahead to end the first quarter. After that, Douglass' size gave her more issue at the rim. But she was undeterred. The Oral Roberts signee kept making an impact on defense and trusting her teammates by making the right passes. Including the game winning assist she made in the chaos of the closing seconds.     Burge is a big time athlete and she briefly took over the game in the second quarter. Locking up and forcing steals on defense, crashing the glass on offense and hitting a mid-range pull up. She's a difference maker, with an outstanding motor. Capable of covering 1-4 at the next level. Seems to be working on her shot, as she also drained a three during a Douglass second half run.     Woods had a takeover moment in the third quarter. She started cooking with off the dribble threes. Then made a great transition feed to a teammate. Last year, she played with outstanding senior guards, which gave her more freedom to simply get buckets. This opener was an indication that while she's still a bucket getter, she's embracing the distribution aspects of being a lead guard. Impressive signs in the development of one of Oklahoma's elite prospects.     Scrappy sophomore, who made her mark throughout and really shined down the stretch. It started with a tough take to get the score within five. Moments later, she drained a three that made it an one point game. Throughout and after that stretch, she was apart of the havoc causing defense Choctaw used to further propel their comeback. Impressive start to her sophomore campaign. An example of always being ready when your number is called.     Douglass is replacing a lot of production and Gates is one of the players who stepped up big throughout the game. Big time athlete with a plus wingspan, lost track of the amount of blocks she recorded. Generally did a good job of running the floor hard and finishing in transition. Was tough to contain off the dribble in the halfcourt as well. It may not have been a perfect night for Gates, but it was still a stellar start to her season. With the raw potential clearly there for her to be among the state's top juniors.

The night cap of the Pride of the East Side Showcase proved to be worth the wait. Just when it looked like the hosting Douglass Trojettes would pull away with a hard earned win, the Yellowjackets struck. In the final 70 seconds of the game, they connected on three three-pointers, to give them a 60-58 victory. Choctaw Junior Lyric Gillispe was the Yellowjacket to hit the game winner as the clock expired.