Can El Reno (Oklahoma) girls basketball finally win elusive state championship?
EL RENO, OKLAHOMA - Nazhoni Sleeper knew it last year.
The El Reno senior guard saw almost immediately that her squad had the potential to be one of those special teams with the ability to carry the gold ball off the court at the University of Oklahoma's Lloyd Noble Center and jump on the highway back to El Reno to celebrate the program’s first championship.
However, a quirky thing happened on the way to their crowning. The Lady Indians were knocked out, 58-44, in the 5A semifinals by Sapulpa, who went on to win it all and had their own celebration on the Lloyd Noble Center court.
Yet, despite the crushing blow, Sleeper and the rest of the El Reno team still believed they had what it took to win it all.
“I think (we started believing) right after our first couple of games last year. We had the same starting lineup. We had everybody back,” Sleeper said. “I knew because I grew up with these girls. We went to grade school, we've been playing with each other for years and years.
"I think I just knew if we keep on working hard and get in the gym and trust each other like we do and love each other like we do, I knew we were going to be special.”
Sleeper’s belief appears to be on the verge of coming true, but a year later during their 2023-24 campaign. As the Lady Indians head into the postseason, they carry the best record in Class 5A at 23-0. Only Choctaw (girls) in Class 6A, along with Mt. View-Gotebo (girls) and Calumet (boys) in Class B, can also claim an undefeated mark in the state.
Lady Indians' head coach Jennifer Douglas points to the experience they were able to bring back as a key to this team’s success.
“If you think about it, I only had two seniors last year that didn't play very much. And so, I started three sophomores and two juniors last year,” Douglas said. “And then people that were coming in off the bench were sophomores, juniors and freshmen. And so just maturity as the year has gone on, jelling together.
"It's super important that we are paying attention to those little details. And then on top of that, just making sure that they understand the system and how we're going to be successful.”
It’s not just that El Reno is winning games, it has been the manner in which they have done it that has stood out. Their average margin of victory is 30 points after outscoring their opponents, 1,402-711, during the regular season. That includes holding teams to just 30 points a night.
The most points any team has scored on the Lady Indians was 44 by Elgin. El Reno still won the contest by 13 points.
Their closest game took place the first time they faced Shawnee on Jan. 29. They won 39-30, which was the only time they failed to achieve victory by less than 10 points.
However, when the two teams met up in the final game of the regular season on Feb. 13, the Lady Indians unleashed a stifling defense that held the Wolves to eight points in the second half as they prevailed, 43-28.
“Whenever we went out there, that was our objective, to win the quarter,” Douglas said. “And so our objective is to make sure that we do whatever's necessary defensive-wise, to shut them down, to make sure that we win that quarter.”
Along with a physical and suffocating defense, Douglas says the key to the season has been the team's ability to have several players step up on offense.
Senior Pauline Black-Harmon (who has committed to Seminole State College) leads the team in scoring at 14.0 points and averaging eight rebounds a game. Reagan Bugaj (10.8 pig), Lilly Thomas (9.9 ppg, 4.4. rpg) and Emmary Elizondo (9.1) have shown they can put up points in a flurry as well.
El Reno senior Pauline Black-Harmon (21) seeks to elude a double team by Shawnee during a game on Feb. 13, 2024.
“What makes us special is it's just that all of us have something they bring to the team and I feel like it's hard to stop actually,” Thomas said. “Everyone brings a weapon to the team, and it just adds all together.”
Yet, Sleeper acknowledges that one of the biggest battles the team has faced hasn’t always been on the court.
“From last year to this year, we've gotten better and people keep on telling us in our ears a whole bunch of success that's going to come to us and sometimes, it fills our egos and makes us get a little bit of big heads,” said Sleeper, who has also committed to Seminole State College. “But with that, it kind of makes us slack off in practice, slack off in things that we need to take seriously.
"And so, sometimes that can make us frustrated when we mess up. I think that's why we're trying to stay positive with each other and try to understand where everybody's coming from. We just really want to support and uplift each other more and more every day.”
After getting a first-round bye, the Lady Indians' postseason run will begin Friday when they host the 5A West Regional championship, taking on Guymon. The winner will advance to the area tournament.
El Reno's Emmary Elizondo launches a shot during the Lady Indians' regular-season finale against Shawnee on Feb. 13, 2024.
With a chance to bring back the first-ever girls' basketball title, Douglas knows what it would mean to complete their job this year. Not only for the team, but also for the El Reno community.
“I think it would be special. We talk about making history over and over again,” Douglas said. “I think that it would be great for our program. I think it would be great for our community, even our Native American community.
"I think that it's special and everybody is just in pulling for us and everybody is supporting us. And so I think it would just be pretty amazing and special all in one.”
El Reno's players are hoping this season is finally the year the Lady Indians win the first state title in program history.
Photo of El Reno's Lilly Thomas (00)
-- Michael Kinney | @SBLiveOK
