Weatherford blows past McLoud at MidFirst Classic

The Weatherford Eagles beat the McLoud Redskins, 69-57, on Friday afternoon at the Weatherford High School Gym during the Second Annual MidFirst Bank Classic.

Weatherford gained control early and never trailed as they ran away with the game, led by Cooper Morlan’s game-high 17 points. The 6-foot-4 senior poured in 10 points in the first quarter alone, before cleaning up with seven in the final two frames.

The two sides traded fouls early, with the first six points coming via the charity stripe with the Eagles and Redskins knotting up at 3-3. The first field goal of the game came courtesy of Morlan at the 5:37 mark in the first quarter, and he was fouled for his trouble and converted the ensuing and-1 attempt. Isaac Fuller was also hot early, draining two shots from beyond the arc.

McLoud would be held without a field goal until the 3:23 mark when junior Ethan Dyer found the bottom of the basket from range. The Redskins were at a 22-11 deficit at the end of a chippy quarter of play in which 12 fouls were called.

The Eagles poured it on in the second quarter, connecting on three more threes. Fuller took a heat check with 5:43 to play in the half and drained it to go up 29-13.

A great strip by Dyer on Brandon Kirk of Weatherford gave him a breakaway opportunity, but a good recovery by Kirk saw him swat the layup attempt away from the basket. McLoud then answered with a three by Jason Brown and a long two-pointer by Cole Garcia; however, the Eagles would go into the locker room at halftime up 40-23.

Fuller went quiet in the third quarter, but Kirk was there to pick up the slack, scoring five points, including a statement 3-pointer to open the half. The Redskins would not go quietly however, connecting on four shots from beyond the arc, including Brown’s third and fourth makes from range. McLoud outscored the Eagles 16-14 in the quarter, but were still looking up from a 54-39 hole.

Weatherford kept the lead comfortable in the final frame. Fuller and Morlan poured in five and four points respectively, while Dyer notched his final four points for McLoud. The two sides cleared the benches with 2:02 remaining the Eagles up 69-51. Layne Phillips and Taylor Austin made the most of their cameos for the Redskins, combining to score the final six points of the game.

Morlan (17), Kirk (16) and Fuller (16) all finished in double digits for the Eagles, while Kirk also finished with two blocked shots. An unsung hero, Dyllan Haworth finished with four points, but took two charges in the victory. Dyer led the Redskins with 14 points, while Brown and Jon Emani finished with 12 and 10 points each.

The Eagles will advance to the consolation bracket final on Saturday at 2 p.m. inside the Weatherford High School Gym against an opponent to be determined.