Oak Hill rolls by Hickory
By Steve Behr
sports@wataugademocrat.com

HICKORY — Few basketball teams eagerly embrace a chance to get beat by 27 points. Yet Hickory, a highly regarded 3-A team, was happy to test itself against high school basketball power Oak Hill Monday night.

Oak Hill, which boasts the top point guard in the nation in Brandon Jennings and 6-foot-9 center Keith “Tiny” Gallor, shook off a slow start and buried Hickory 90-63 in front of a packed house at David Craft Gym.

The game was the second of three in the National Basketball Night In Hickory, presented by gamewornuniforms.com. Patterson Prep School beat North Carolina Tech of Charlotte in the first game.

Veritas Christian played Mount Zion Academy in the nightcap.

Jennings, who is headed to Arizona next year, did his part by scoring 25 points on nine field goals, three that were 3-point baskets. Three other Warriors scored in double figures, led by 6-7 Glenn Bryant’s 19 points and Gallor’s 14 points, 10 of them coming on slam dunks down low. Bryon Allen also had 14 points.

“They were scoring at will inside on us, without a doubt,” Hickory coach Shawn Johnson said. “We didn’t play bad help-side defense. When you’re throwing the ball up to a 6-9 and a 6-10, and have help-side with a 5-9 and a 5-10, it’s still makes it tough.”

It was close for the first four minutes as Hickory trailed 12-10 after Bryant Crutchfield hit a 3-point shot. But Oak Hill (18-3), which was too big and too quick for the Tornadoes, closed out the first quarter with a 11-2 run to lead 23-12.

The Warriors, ranked No. 22 by USA Today nationally, opened the second quarter with a 12-3 burst to claim a 35-15 run that was never threatened. Oak Hill led 45-23 at halftime and 77-44 by the end of the third quarter.

“The bottom line is that they’re big, they’re athletic as anybody you’ll find and they’re long, and you can’t coach that,” Johnson said. “We can’t even practice against that, but I was very proud of our kids. We competed until the end and that’s what we wanted to do.”

Hickory (12-2), which does not have a player taller than 6-6, had two players — Trevin Parks and Patrick Monroe — score 10 points each. Dane Hilton added eight.

Oak Hill did not need to score from the outside, as Jennings was the only Warrior to hit a 3-point shot.

Instead, the Warriors turned to Bryant and Gallor on the inside for points. The Warriors opened the game with a Bryant dunk and a Jennings dunk to set the tone for the night.

In fact, Bryant had three dunks in the first quarter, including an ally-oop slam with 2:24 left in the period.

Hickory’s Tajh Middlebrooks slammed through a dunk on the breakaway, which gave the Hickory crowd a chance to celebrate. The problem was the Tornadoes were behind 68-35 at the time. Jennings answered with a 3-point basket.

Johnson, even with the loss, was happy to get the chance to play against Oak Hill.

“When we finally got this game finalized, the kids were excited, the coaching staff was excited and we weren’t intimidated,” Johnson said. “We knew they were good and that they’re one of the best teams in the country year-in and year-out. It was great opportunity for our kids and for our community and for our school, and we were not going to back down from that.”

Oak Hill 90, Hickory 63
Oak Hill (18-3)
Mockford 1 2-2 4, B. Jennings 9 4-5 25, Allen 5 4-7 14, Gallor 6 2-4 14, Campbell 1 0-2 2, Howard 1 1-2 3, D. Jennings 3 0-0 6, Bryant 9 1-2 19, Oliver 1 0-2 2. Totals 36 15-25 90.
Hickory (12-2)
Burgins 2 2-2 6, Younghouse 1 2-2 5, Crutchfield 2 1-2 7, Parks 5 0-0 10, Wilson 0 0-0 0, Ussery 2 1-2 5, Monroe 4 0-0 10, Middlebrooks 2 0-0 4, Hilton 4 0-0 8, Poole 2 2-2 6, Wright 1 0-0 2, Robinson 0 0-0 0, O’Brien 0 0-0 0, Middleton 0 0-0 0. Totals 24 8-10 63.
Oak Hill 23 22 32 13 — 90
Hickory 12 11 21 19 — 63
3-point goals—Oak Hill 3 (B. Jennings 3), Hickory 5 (Monroe 2, Crutchfield 2, Younghouse). Total fouls—Oak Hill 11, Hickory 20. Fouled out—None. Technical fouls—None.