Putnam City North boys avenge lone loss to rival Putnam City West

By Michael Kinney

OKLAHOMA CITY - Class 6A No. 2 Putnam City North came into Friday night's boys game with one blemish on its record.

A 64-60 loss to rival Putnam City West in early January was the only stain on what has been an impressive season for the Panthers.

So, the Panthers were excited to get the chance to face the same Patriots squad Friday with not only a chance to exact some revenge, but also continue to prepare itself for a run at the gold ball.

After a sluggish first half, Putnam City North pulled away late for a 69-55 victory at PCN.

“It's a great sign. It shows that we're ready,” PCN senior CJ Smith said. “I think we're battle tested. It shows growth.

"The first time we played at their place, it was kind of a rough game. We kind of got out of our game a little bit. They gave us our first loss. But we showed that we've grown since then and showed that we're ready.”

Check It Out: Regional basketball sites for Classes 5A-6A officially released by the OSSAA

However, when the night started, it looked like the Panthers (20-1) were possibly headed for another L. Behind Kaidon Rayfield, the Patriots were able to match the Panthers shot for shot in the first quarter.

Jaden Constant joined Rayfield in helping PC West (11-8) go on a 12-2 run to start the second quarter as the Patriots took a 35-31 advantage into halftime.

North coach Ryan Wagner took his team into halftime and reminded them of just who they were.

“My deal is with these guys, they're such a good group of kids. It was just reminding them what we had talked about,” Wagner said. “It's very emotional.

"This is a huge game and then it's your rival; and I thought in the first half, we got rattled a little bit and kind of lost our way. And so, we just try to get them to reboot and kind of settle down.”

SBLive Oklahoma Top 25 boys basketball rankings: Vanoss jumps in after two big wins

Whatever Wagner said, it seemed to work. The Panthers came out for the second half with more intensity to their game.

With Khai Brown and Kejuan Payne leading the charge, Putnam City North was seemingly able to score from all over the court.

But it was the Panthers' defense that turned the tide of the game.

They slowed down Rayfield and Constant and shut down everyone else on the court. This allowed PCN to build a 54-47 lead heading into the fourth quarter.

“The key was our second-half defense,” Wagner said. “We went in and made some adjustments defensively at halftime.

"I wasn't pleased with the way we were playing in the first half, and they stuck to the plan and I thought that gave us the edge.”

Oklahoma's best high school boys basketball players: Meet the state's top post players

With 3:40 left in the game, West closed the gap to eight, 60-52, before calling a time out. It was probably the Patriots' last chance to get back into the contest and they needed to make a run.

However, coming out of the time out, the Panthers got the ball to Payne out past the 3-point line. The senior used his hand to beckon the Patriots' JJ Wilson to come out and guard him.

Payne then drove past Wilson into the paint for a monstrous poster dunk that brought the PCN fans out of their seats. That pretty much closed out the game as the Patriots never got any closer.

“They scored 35 in the first half and then in the second half, they barely scored,” Smith said. “We just locked in on D. Defense wins championships.

"We have always been pretty much a defensive team, and so it pretty much showed in the second half.”

Rayfield led West with 19 points. Constant added 16 points. No other player scored in double figures.

Payne led all scorers with 20 points. After not being able to play in their first encounter due to turf toe, Wagner was glad to have Payne back in the lineup.

“He almost broke his toe. Thank God he didn't,” Wagner said. “So it was nice to have him back, and you can obviously see the effect that he has on our team and the value that he brings.”

Brown and Anthony Leonard finished with 12 points each, while Smith and Zander Baker both chipped in with 10 for PC North.

The second-ranked Panthers are the first team in Class 6A to hit the 20-win mark. They have just two games left on their schedule before they host a regional tournament to tip off the postseason.

“I really think we got more that we can prove,” Wagner said. “To win a state championship, you've got to obviously continue to grow over the next month.

"So hopefully, those guys aren't satisfied because I'm not.”