NORMAN – Hot-shooting Owasso took advantage of an ice cold third quarter from Putnam City North, eliminating the Lady Panthers, 54-38, Wednesday (March 6) in the Class 6A girls state tournament at Lloyd Noble Center.

The Lady Panthers (21-7) sprinted out to a 11-5 lead in the first quarter behind 3-pointers from sophomore Tehlia Kutsoati and senior Alaysia Burrough. Owasso (22-5) answered to tie the game up 11-11 at the end of the opening period.

The Lady Rams shot 70 percent from the field in the second quarter, taking a 23-18 lead with 3:14 left before halftime.

Putnam City North coach Logan Martin called a timeout for her squad to regroup.

“We just tried to regroup and remind them the keys of what we need to do in our game: how to speed them out, speed them up, um, but also be really patient offensively,” Martin said.

After the timeout, North cut the deficit to 25-24 on two treys and two steals from senior Nevaeh Sanchez.

“It’s a big moment and a lot of players get kind of intimidated by it,” Martin said of Sanchez. “She rose to the occasion. She wasn’t scared when we went out there.”

After the break, Owasso made its move, outscoring North, 12-3, in the third quarter. The Lady Panthers were 0-of-9 from the field in the quarter.

“I think we kind of started rushing shots and then we weren’t scoring and we just continued to rush,” Martin said.

Trailing 37-27, the Lady Panthers clawed back into the game, and Burrough added two more treys. Her 3-pointer with 3:37 left in the game cut the deficit to five points (42-37).

North would only score one more point the rest of the game (a Nini Geretta free throw) as Owasso finished on a 12-1 run.

“We didn’t box out quite as well,” Martin said after the Lady Panthers were outrebounbed, 33-21. “Our second efforts defensively weren’t there early.”

For the game, North shot 28 percent from the field while Owasso shot 57 percent.

The Lady Rams also outscored North in the paint, 20-10.

Sanchez finished with 10 points and five assists. Burrough also scored 10 points. Junior Nykaiya Dillard added eight points and eight rebounds.

After the game, Martin reflected on her senior starters (Sanchez and Burrough).

“They’re a really special group. We’ve been through a lot of ups and downs together, but I’m really proud of the direction they’ve helped take this program.” Martin said. “They’ve really built a good foundation for these younger girls that we have coming back.”

TEAM	1	2	3	4	F
Putnam City North	11	13	3	11	38
Owasso	11	14	12	17	54