Bruins battle rugged slate in Mustang tourney

Facing a rugged slate of games in the prestigious Mustang Holiday Classic last week, defending state champ Caddo found the going tough against a pair of large school contenders before dropping a last second loss to Class A challenger Seiling in the tournament final game.

The Bruins ran into a buzz saw in powerful Carl Albert in a 78-28 opening round loss but bounced back with a solid effort before a narrow 56-51 loss to 6A Southmoore. Caddo built as much as a nine-point lead against Seiling but had to rally in the final stanza only to come up just short in a 52-51 defeat to basically the same team they toppled in last year’s state semifinals.

Second-rated Caddo faces another huge Top 10 showdown this week with a major road test at third-ranked Rattan.

Carl Albert, the Class 5A state runner-up a year ago, took command from the start with its size and athleticism, scorching the nets for 65 percent shooting to run away with the victory.

Caddo connected on just 24 percent overall, including 0 for 15 on three-pointers, as they were outscored by a 30-0 clip from beyond the arc. D.J. Dill was the lone Bruin in double figures with 16 points as Carson Culbreath tallied nine despite missing the final two quarters with an injury.

The Bruins played nearly even with Southmoore each quarter, even out rebounding the 6A Sabercats by a 27-20 margin but could never get over the hump thanks to three-point shooting. Southmoore connected on 12 treys while Caddo could only counter with four, three of which came from Culbreath on the way to his 14 points.

Dill sank eight of 20 shots from the field and nine of 13 at the charity stripe for 25 points in addition to seven rebounds and five assists. Gavin McMichael finished with six points.

In the finale against Seiling, Caddo raced to a 17-8 first quarter lead thanks to a 13-0 Bruin burst over the final four minutes and 15 seconds of the period. Kale Brister was the catalyst of the flurry, canning a pair of three pointers in addition to two free throws.

Seiling made its answering run to start the second period as Caddo only managed a Parker Bearden putback over the first six minutes as the Wildcats closed to within 19-18. Bearden added another bucket and Dill chipped in one of his own to keep Caddo in front 23-21 at intermission.

The Wildcats continued their push into the third period by taking the lead, but Caddo remained close with a Brister trey and baskets from Rance Richardson and Culbreath off Dill assists. It was Dill’s 17-foot jumper as the horn sounded that cut the deficit to only 37-36 after three frames.

Seiling extended the margin to five points midway through the fourth but Dill cashed in back-to-back steals and then drained a three pointer with two minutes left as he reeled off seven straight Caddo points.

Trailing 50-48, Culbreath cashed in a conventional three-point play off another Seiling turnover with 21 seconds remaining. The Wildcats however countered with the go-ahead basket in the lane with eight seconds to play. Caddo’s potential winning shot was off the mark as time expired.

Team statistics were fairly equal for the game with Caddo connecting 49 percent from the field, paced by Dill’s 23 points. Brister tossed in 11 as Culbreath notched seven points and six assists. Bearden also scored six with Richardson ending with four points.