CATOOSA — Shane Cowherd was right. It was top-ranked Edmond Memorial playing was more discipline down the stretch.

“I thought we played with a whole lot more composure in the second half,” said the Bulldogs’ veteran coach. “We played a lot more fundamental, and that’s what it takes to win games in the state tournament.”

Despite trailing by three at halftime, Edmond Memorial blitzed No. 4 Sapulpa in the third quarter of a Class 6A quarterfinal Thursday and went on to beat the Chieftains 61-50 in a jam-packed Catoosa Activity Center.

“We didn’t always make the perfect play tonight,” Cowherd said. “We made more than our fair share of mistakes, but the second half we played with a lot more clarity to our game.”

He’s right.

Sapulpa (21-5) misfired on 22 field goals in the second half and never challenged, despite Julian Smith cutting Edmond Memorial’s lead to 47-42 with 6:04 left.

The Bulldogs even advanced with Drew Tennial going down midway through the fourth quarter. The Texas State signee did return, and he finished with 15 points. JV Seat led the Bulldogs with 20 points, and Sean Pedulla had 14 points.
