Prep basketball game in Oklahoma ends with 4-2 score

By CLIFF BRUNT AP Sports Writer

(AP) — An Oklahoma high school basketball game between two of the top teams in their class ended with a score more common in soccer.

Weatherford defeated Anadarko 4-2 on Tuesday after Anadarko chose to stall. The result came a month after the Oklahoma Secondary School Activities Association (OSSAA), the sport’s governing body, voted 8-7 against adding a shot clock.

The game matched two of the top teams in Class 4A, the state’s third-largest class. Weatherford is ranked No. 3 in the OSSAA’s rankings, while Anadarko is ranked ninth.

Neither team scored in the first quarter, and Weatherford led 2-0 at halftime. Anadarko didn’t score until the final three minutes of the game and had the ball in the final minute with a chance to win.

“Eagles win the offensive shootout against Anadarko,” the Twitter account for Weatherford athletics posted.

Weatherford had scored at least 50 points in each of its previous 12 games, with a high of 88. Anadarko had scored fewer than 50 points in its previous 11 contests.

Anadarko basketball coach Doug Schumpert, who was inducted into the Oklahoma Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2019, was heavily criticized on social media for his coaching decision.

Anadarko superintendent Jerry McCormick defended Schumpert.

“While this game has gained much media attention in regard to how the game was played, our basketball coach Doug Schumpert and his staff utilized their knowledge of the game along with the skills of our players to provide us with the best opportunity to win and we support those efforts,” McCormick said in a statement.

An OSSAA spokesman said 19 states have shot clocks for high school basketball.