November 18, 2006
By KEVIN HAGELAND Staff Writer / Plano Star

PLANO - The combination of a short bench and a tightly called game by the officials was too much for the Plano (1-1) basketball team to overcome last night, as the Wildcats were defeated, 82-78, by South Oak Cliff (2-0).

When asked after the game about the officiating, Plano head coach Tom Inman would only say that it was inconsistent.

The marquee matchup featured the defending Class 5A state champions Wildcats against the two-time defending Class 4A champion Golden Bears. Plano came into the game ranked No. 3 in the state, while South Oak Cliff is ranked No. 2.

Plano only dressed nine of their fifteen players Friday night, as injuries, a recruiting trip and grade ineligibility gave the Wildcats a limited bench.

“You hate to lose this kind of game, but by the end we were down to six players and all of our guys were dog tired,” Inman said. “I am encouraged though by the fact that our team still had a shot to win the game towards the end.”

The Golden Bears won the opening tip and scored the first basket in a first quarter that would go almost entirely the Wildcats way. A steal and lay-up from senior John Roberson put Plano up early, 8-3.

The Wildcats ran into foul trouble early as senior Raahul Ramakrishnan got three fouls in the first five minutes of the game. Sophomore Rex Burkhead replaced Ramakrishnan, who would not play for the remainder of the first half.

The Wildcats continued to run the floor with great success early, as an alley-oop lay-up from Roberson to senior Landon Skinner gave Plano an 18-9 lead and forced South Oak Cliff head coach James Mays II to call a timeout.

Already leading 28-18, Plano went on a 12-0 run that was capped by Roberson making an acrobatic shot after being fouled. Roberson, who would make the accompanying free throw, even impressed the Wildcats’ public address announcer, who could only say, “Oh wow,” after the play.

On Plano’s next trip down the floor, Mays was called for a technical foul after complaining to the refs. Mays appeared on the verge of being thrown out of the game after knocking his chair to the ground, but no further technicals were called.

With the free throws, Plano increased its lead to 45-21 before South Oak Cliff began its comeback. The Golden Bears went on a 10-0 spurt to cut the lead to 13 points by halftime.

With the start of the second half, Ramakrishnan came back in for the Wildcats and gave the team its first points of the third quarter, putting Plano up 49-36.

“The key for us in the first half was that we got out and had a lot more energy,” Ramakrishnan said. “We still played strong in the second half, but South Oak Cliff really turned it up and matched us after halftime.”

Trailing by 13, the Golden Bears went on a 12-2 run to cut their deficit to 51-48. The three point advantage was Plano’s smallest since leading 10-7 in the first quarter.

Things got worse for the Wildcats as senior Anton Korolev drew his fourth foul in the third quarter, which allowed South Oak Cliff to dominate the post and come to within 59-58 by the end of the third.

Plano was able to hold on to the lead when Skinner drew a charge with 0.7 seconds left in the third. In addition to his defensive contributions, Skinner scored 21 points for the Wildcats.

The Golden Bears took a 60-59 lead by scoring the first basket of the fourth quarter. It was South Oak Cliff’s first advantage since 3-2.

The two teams jockeyed back-and-forth with Plano taking a 68-66 lead after Roberson sank a three-pointer with 4:31 remaining in the game. On the evening, Roberson had 30 points for the Wildcats.

After Roberson’s three, South Oak Cliff came back with an 8-0 run to take a 74-68 lead. Plano was able to chip away at that deficit thanks in part to dreadful free throw shooting by South Oak Cliff down the stretch.

In the final two minutes, the Golden Bears were 6-of-16 from the line. However, two big offensive rebounds by South Oak Cliff and two turnovers by Plano sealed the Wildcats’ fate, and their first loss of the young season, 82-78.

“It is very demoralizing to have your opponent miss a free throw and then also get the offensive rebound,” Inman said. “You hate to lose games like this, but you have to give South Oak Cliff credit for getting a lot more aggressive in the second half.”