Oklahoma 4A girls basketball championship: Classen SAS posts dominant performance against Tuttle in anticipated showdown of top two ranked teams
By Ross Lovelace
OKLAHOMA CITY - Classen SAS versus Tuttle was supposed to be the best girls' matchup of the year in any class.
Both teams were dominant all season, and carry a dominant tradition behind them, too.
The two teams came into the Class 4A title game on Championship Saturday inside State Fair Arena with a combined 48-2 record on the season. Tuttle came into the playoffs ranked No. 1 while the Lady Comets were ranked No. 2.
At "The Big House," though, the Lady Comets took that No. 2 ranking as a sign of disrespect, jumping all over the Lady Tigers from the beginning of the contest and finishing. Classen SAS went on to defeat Tuttle, 55-22, for the crown.
Classen SAS senior standout forward Darianna Littlepage-Buggs, a McDonald's All-American who is headed to Baylor, had 16 points and 11 rebounds, while fellow senior Micah Gray added 13 points. Point guard Jordan Harrison, another senior standout who is headed to Stephen F. Austin State University in Texas, dished out eight assists.
The Lady Comets (24-1) used the defense of Harrison to lead to buckets in transition as Classen SAS intentionally tried to push the pace. The game plan worked, as Classen SAS erupted with a 20-point opening quarter.
In the second quarter, Tuttle (25-2) tried to feed the ball down low to junior center and Oklahoma commit Landry Allen, but the Lady Comets were fighting hard to keep it from happening. Allen ended up adding nine first-half points, but it wasn’t enough as the Lady Tigers shot just 30.8 percent as a team.
Harrison and Gray combined for 17 first-half points, outscoring the Lady Tigers by themselves. Classen SAS took a 31-11 lead into halftime.
In the third quarter, Classen SAS was able to extend its lead as the Tuttle defense had zero chance to slow down the scoring onslaught. The Lady Comets almost had another 20-point quarter.
Littlepage-Buggs took over in the third, scoring on back-to-back-to-back possessions, including a strong and-one. Harrison was throwing dimes all over the court and Classen SAS was simply having fun.
In the fourth quarter, the Lady Comets cruised to a huge win, quieting the doubters they had all season. While Tuttle was consistently ranked No. 1, Classen SAS left no doubt about the best 4A girls basketball team in the state.
Earlier this season, the Lady Comets - whose only loss was in the title game of a prestigious tournament in Arizona - also beat Edmond North, which went on to win the 6A title on Saturday.
