A trip to the Oklahoma Secondary Schools Athletic Association Area Tournament at the MVSKOKE Dome in Muskogee over the weekend resulted in a two-and-out for the Newcastle Racers.
The Racers had a firstround loss on Friday against #3-ranked North Rock Creek, 62-57, and then a close loss on Saturday against Stilwell, 3635. The losses ended Newcastle’s 2023-24 season.
Head Coach Jessie Brown said, “We had a great season. We lost a lot and I think no one knew what to expect, but we got in the gym and went to work. Everyone stepped up, many with new roles and they thrived in these roles.”
Brown said at the end of the day, the team’s inexperience hurt but he was very proud of the young players and he felt like they beat the odds. Newcastle had only one senior, Bobby Burrell, on this year’s team.
Brown said Burrell, junior Antonio Brown, and junior Zach Cragg led the way the entire year. He added that junior Rex Heskew was a defensive force all year long.
“All of our younger guys stepped up and made major plays,” Brown said.
Against North Rock Creek, Newcastle had quarters of 17, 10, 9 and 21, while the opponent had 15, 15, 16 and 16. Brown led Racer scoring with 29 points. Burrell had 17, Cragg had 5, Chapman Mc-Cully had 3, and Heskew had 2. In contrast to the North Rock Creek game, the Racers had only five points in the fourth quarter of the Stillwell game.
Scoring in the first three quarters was: 7, 12 and 11. Burrell led Racer scoring with 10, while Cragg had 9, and Brown had 8.
The Racers finished the season with a 19-9 record. They were one point away from a State Tournament appearance after losing about 50 points a game from last year’s team, according to Brown.
He said the Racers were 6-4 at the mid-year break, but didn’t lose a regular season game at home.
Brown said, “I am so excited for the future of Newcastle Basketball.”
Returning starters for next year include: Antonio Brown, Heskew, Cragg, and sophomore Alan Price. Players who saw time on the court and who will return for the 2024-25 season are: sophomore Chris Brinlee, freshman Alec Shumard, and sophomore Jon’tre Sloan.
Coach Brown said all of these athletes “saw a ton of minutes,” on the hardwood.
“When I took over this team in 2017 I didn’t come here to create a good team,” Brown said. “I came to establish a winning culture and to create a program we could be proud of!
“We have done that. The future is bright for Newcastle Basketball. Welcome to ‘The Castle.’”
