Oak Ridge Men's Basketball Knocks Off Brenham

SHENANDOAH, Texas -- The Oak Ridge War Eagles are slowly, but surely sending a message to the rest of the basketball teams in District 14-5A.

Look out.

“This is as deep as we have been since 1987,’’ said Oak Ridge head coach Rob Stewart after watching the War Eagles knock off Brenham 63-49 in a non-district game Tuesday night at the Eagles' Nest.

“We can go nine or 10 deep and not lose a thing,’’ a happy Stewart continued. “That is a nice luxury to have.’’

Oak Ridge already had one star coming into the season in 6-foot-5 guard Sean Kovar, who is one of the top 3-point shooters in the Houston area.

But the War Eagles now have two new budding stars in 6-foot-5 jumping jack Scott Bastian and 6-3 slasher Terrell Lawrence.

“Scott Bastian is a stud,’’ Stewart said of his athletic center, who had 14 points and a couple of huge blocks on Tuesday. “I said it last week and I will say it tonight. The kid can play.

“Lawrence also played very well,’’ Stewart said. “We have a lot of guys who can step up and get the job done.’’

The War Eagles, behind the play of floor leader Logan Griffin and athletic shooting guard Alonzo Jefferson, shot to a 22-10 lead early in the second quarter and led by at least eight points for the rest of the night.

“Logan Griffin has been playing great for us,’’ said Stewart, who watched his team improve to 5-1 on the young season. “You can’t leave him alone. He will knock down the three. It is nice to have a point-guard like that.’’

Griffin buried a couple of 3-pointers and Jefferson hit some tough fade-away jumpers to jump-start the War Eagles’ offense.

Kovar then hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer to send the War Eagles’ into the lockerroom with a 34-20 halftime advantage.

Brenham, behind the sparkling play of Chris Hill and Deconte Breedlove, cut the lead to eight twice in the second half, at 45-37 and 47-39.

But Lawrence and Bastian led Oak Ridge on a 14-3 run during a five-minute stretch of the fourth period to give the War Eagles an insurmountable 61-42 advantage.

Lawrence also had 14 points, while Robert Tyson pitched in 13.

“Robert also had a good night for us tonight,’’ Stewart said of his 6-6 center. “It was really an all-around effort.’’

Brenham, which opened the season ranked No. 12 in Class 4A by the Texas Association of Basketball Coaches, only dressed seven players for the game. It was missing one starter and one reserve due to football, Stewart said.

“No. 22 (Hall) and No. 3 (Breedlove) are as good as they come,’’ Stewart said. “Their big guy (Steven Chovance) also is huge. They are very deserving of their preseason ranking.’’

Oak Ridge has defeated Katy Taylor, Mayde Creek, Cy Ridge, Klein Oak and Brenham while losing to Westfield.

“Against Westfield, we shot 30 percent from the field and 40 percent from the free throw line,’’ Stewart said. “You aren’t going to win many games like that.’’

Oak Ridge started the 2008-2009 season 7-0.

“We are off to a great start, but the funny thing is, our guys are kind of disappointed because we started 7-0 last year,’’ Stewart said. “They wanted to do better.’’

Oak Ridge next will travel to meet Huntsville at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 1. The War Eagles are picked to battle Lufkin for third in the 14-5A race.

“College Park is good,’’ Stewart said. “If The Woodlands hits their threes, they can beat anybody. And, when Lufkin gets their football guys out, they are going to be tough. It should be a good race.’’