Second-quarter run carries Oak Ridge boys basketball team past Woodland

Aaron Yount drained his second free throw to even the score early in the second quarter Tuesday.

No. 14 seed Woodland was sticking with another better-seeded team, just like it did Monday with Scott County Central.

But Tuesday's game followed a script similar to Monday's. The Cardinals' opponent reeled off a string of points to eliminate the suspense.

This time 11th-seeded Oak Ridge went on a 17-0 run and cruised from there to a 67-47 victory in their consolation-bracket quarterfinal.

"We were within six against Scott County [Monday] and they went on a big run," Woodland coach Robert Stein said. "Foul trouble. We had to take three starters off the floor, and their press, they are really long and they're lanky. In that same run, I know we missed three or four easy shots.

"When you're just trying to compete and get better every game like we are, those misses build up quick. Against a good team, a well-coached team like Oak Ridge, they can hurt you."

Kelby Brown started the burst with a basket, then Kyle Rohde scored the next four points to get rolling.

"We just had to get pumped up," Rohde said. "Our intensity level was way lower than it should have been. We came out flat. I think it just kind of hit us."

Woodland managed to score the last six points of the half, but Oak Ridge's lead never stood in doubt after the second-quarter run.

"We just got a bunch of easy shots and we made really good decisions," Oak Ridge sophomore Ryan Below said about the run. "It probably started with the defense and stopping them and creating turnovers on their end."

The Blue Jays didn't shoot exceptionally well from the field (43 percent), but they shot 40 free throws compared to 15 for the Cardinals.

"We try to attack," Oak Ridge coach Adam Stoneking said. "We don't shoot a lot of midrange jump shots. It's either a 3 or at the basket, and that gets us to the foul line a lot. Just getting the ball inside and looking to attack."

The Blue Jays hit 52 percent of their free throws (21 of 40), but they still outscored Woodland by 15 points there.

"I think they helped us out a lot by fouling," Below said. "We took it to the hole a lot and just worked it inside a lot better than we did last night. It helped us get to the free-throw line, the whole team."

Below paced the Blue Jays with 15 points, while Rohde added 10.

The Blue Jays advanced to face Delta in Thursday's 1:30 p.m. consolation semifinal.

Freshman Garret Reynolds led the Cardinals (2-7) with 13 points. He went 5 of 8 from the field.

"We're pretty young and it's a building process," said Stein, who is in his first year at Woodland. "It's still pretty new for me and them."

Woodland 14 7 11 15 47

Oak Ridge 15 17 16 19 67

WOODLAND (47) -- Aaron Yount 6, Garret Reynolds 13, Dakota Long 2, Skyler Liley 10, Sean Magee 2, Lance Yount 6, Codey Miles 8. FG 20. FT 6-14. F 27. (3-pointers: Reynolds 1. Fouled out: Miller, Miles)

OAK RIDGE (67) -- Ethan Seyer 3, Hunter Seyer 5, Kelby Brown 8, Ryan Below 15, Jake LeGrand 8, Dakota Zoellner 7, Kyle Rohde 10, Ben Stewart 1, Lance Rohde 5, Corvin Schoen 5. FG 20. FT 23-42. F 19. (3-pointers: E. Seyer 1, H. Seyer 1, Brown 2. Fouled out: none)