OKLAHOMA CITY – Putnam City pulled past sister school Putnam City West in the fourth quarter for a 75-65 win Saturday (Dec. 10).

“We played hard for 32 minutes, and when we play hard, we’ll always have a chance to win,” Putnam City coach Brandon Jackson said.

After the lead changed hands several times throughout the game, the scored was tied 52-52 at the end of the third quarter.

The Pirates (2-1) pulled ahead in the fourth quarter thanks to a 5-0 run. West pulled within three points (62-59) after a bucket and a two free throws from junior guard DJ Carter.

SCHOOL	PC DISTRICT RECORD
Putnam City North	2-0
Putnam City	1-1
Putnam City West	0-2

Momentum shifted back to original after a dunk from sophomore Gabe Osborne to make it 64-59 with 3:31 left in the game.

Carter, again , added two free throws to cut the deficit back to three points (64-61).

Pirate senior Johnn Sheffey responded on the other end with a put-back bucket to make it 66-61. Senior Kelton Locke followed with two free throws with 1:57 left.

Locke added another bucket with 1:14 left to make it 70-61.

From that point each team traded points but the Patriots had to foul to stop the clock.

Putnam City hit 4-of-5 from the line to seal the win. Jackson said his squad worked on free throw shooting Friday in practice.

“It’s not the most enjoyable practice, but, you know, it does turn into wins,” Jackson said.

Sophomore MarQuell Robinson finished with a game-high 22 points (14 in the first half). Osborne added 20 points (with seven points in the fourth quarter).

“Osborne was big time finishing out the rim and making his free throws,” Jackson said.

Locke had 14 points in the win.

Jackson highlighted Sheffey, who also added a key steal after a West defensive rebound.

“He comes in with the energy,” Jackson said. “He makes winning plays.”

The win came after PC fell, 48-46, to Putnam City North Thursday (Dec. 5), concluding a stretch of three games in five days.

“It’s been a good week for us,” Jackson said. “We kind of showcased that we can play with almost anybody in the state, if not anybody in the state, and we were able to learn and grow a lot.”

West coach Brian Booker lamented missed opportunities, free throws and mistakes in final period.

“We played like a young and inexperienced team in the fourth quarter,” Booker said. “We were right there, but they executed at the end and we didn’t.”

For West, Carter led the Patriots with 16 points.

“Carter has been our best ball player, probably so far this year,” Booker said. “DJ’s been doing all of those things defensively and offensively.”

Mari Gilstrap added 14 points.

“Gilstrap played well second half. If we had it feel like we had one or two more, I felt like we win there,” Booker said.

Jordan Kairuki collected 10 points.

UP NEXT

Putnam City (2-1) travels to Norman North (1-0) Tuesday (Dec. 10) in a 6A-1 matchup. The Timberwolves beat Mustang, 44-1 on Dec. 3.

“(Norman North is) really good, long and active. They play a really good zone and they are well coached with Kellen McCoy, who I used to work under at Mount Saint. Mary,” Jackson said. “It’s gonna be another dog fight. Our district is really hard.”

Putnam City West (1-2) hosts Tulsa Union (2-2) Tuesday (Dec. 10) in a 6A-3 contest. The Redhawks fell to Broken Arrow, 65-62, in the Bishop Kelly Tournament finals Saturday.

“We’ve got a tough one – the best team in the state, probably,” Booker said. “We’re gonna have to buckle our chin strap and do things we haven’t done.”

Both games tip off at 7:30 p.m.

	1	2	3	4	F
Putnam City (2-1)	17	19	16	23	75
Putnam City West (1-2)	21	12	19	13	65