The idea is to push the players and see where they’re at in the summertime, especially since actually practicing isn’t allowed, and so far, the Bishop Kelley Summer Basketball League is serving those interests for both Sapulpa and Kiefer’s high school boys squads.
The two local teams faced each other on Tuesday, May 30 in the first day of Summer League competition and each squad came away with plenty of lessons after Kiefer’s 48-34 victory.
Kiefer, which went 17-8 last season and was ranked No. 12 in Class 3A before falling in the area playoffs, looked good – especially considering they’d already played several other games earlier in the day in a different summer league in Henryetta. They arrived just minutes before tip-off time and then proceeded to deliver an impressive performance that saw them lead 27-14 at halftime and build up a 26-point lead midway through the second half.
“That was our fourth game today,” Kiefer coach Jeff Hefner said afterwards. “We rode up here from Henryetta, jumped off the bus and played. I’m super-proud of this group of kids. We’re missing two kids that could easily be in the starting rotation, but we don’t fall off, we just battle. Very proud.”
Ryan Resler scored 17 points and Stryker Johnson had 12, including eight in the first five minutes, to lead the Trojans against Sapulpa. Owen Murphy scored 8 points, Cooper Shoaf contributed 7 points and Brody Hoover had 4.
For the Chieftains, Kylen Edwards scored 12 points – nine in the second half – and Zach Lewis had 10. Jaylen Pratt added 5 points, Romen Abbage had 4 and Isaac Ragsdale 3.
After Edwards drove to the basket and put home a layup eight minutes into the opening half (they play two 20-minute running-time halves) to pull Sapulpa to within 12-9, the Trojans went on a 10-0 run over the next eight minutes to take control of the contest.
Another big Kiefer run of 17-4 over the first 10 minutes of the second half put the game way out of reach, as a basket by Murphy with 9:29 remaining pushed the Trojans’ advantage to 44-18.
The Chieftains made it a bit closer down the stretch but by then the game was already decided.
Even as they continued to play more games in Henryetta, the Trojans were back on the floor at Bishop Kelley Thursday night against Union’s JV squad and won 55-48. For a team that has high expectations for the 2023-24 season, these summer activities will help prepare them for a big season.
“We want to play the highest level competition we can play,” Hefner said. “I think this group is very special. They got a chance and the only way you can do that is to play some of the best. Couldn’t be more proud of them.”
Getting the kids tired and pushing them beyond their limits was part of the point of all these games.
“That’s what it’s about, learning to play through the fatigue, through some adversity, getting them through all that,” Hefner said.
For Sapulpa, it was the first time playing under new head coach Jordan Nagel, who was back at the site of his previous job at Bishop Kelley for his first official day coaching the Chieftains. Taking over a team that endured a difficult 2022-23 season with two different head coaches and that ended with a disappointing 5-18 record, Nagel is more focused on the process of learning his new players (and them learning his new system). It really doesn’t matter at this point that the Chieftains lost their first three Summer League contests.
“Through three games, I can tell you that the attitudes have changed drastically,” Nagel said. “The team is slowly coming together. We’ve had guys that didn’t play a lot of minutes a year ago, we’ve had some guys that played spot minutes and then we’ve got guys like Kylen Edwards who has been a starter for three years. So trying to get this team to gel together on and off the court is a big emphasis this summer.
“And through three games, I like where we’re headed. Guys are excited to be in the gym, guys are excited to get on the bus. Yes, we’ve lost some games early, but they’re learning me, I’m learning them. It’s a whole new, different style of play. We can’t practice, so going to Summer League, I’m trying to install what I do and they’re trying to learn it, but it’s kind of all on the fly right now.”
Two hours earlier on Tuesday, Sapulpa played a strong game against Edison, losing a 52-50 heartbreaker on a buzzer-beater, and Nagel believed if that had gone the other way, they would have played better against Kiefer.
The Chieftains came back on Thursday in their next game and lost 71-52 against Victory Christian, a team that went 17-10 and reached the Class 4A area playoffs last year. Sapulpa actually led 24-23 late in the first half, but things quickly turned after that. But at this point, these are the lessons the players have to absorb during the summer in order to become a strong, cohesive team in December and February.
“We hit a 3, go up 24-23, we looked a little gassed, I called time out and then Victory goes on a 15-0 run in the last three minutes of the first half, and kind of never looked back,” Nagel said. “Victory will be a state tournament team this year in 4A, so realistically, to piece these guys together and play as well as we have, even though the wins aren’t there, there are definitely key pieces with this team and guys that are coming into their own roles. By the time five months comes around, we’ve got something. By the time I’m able to teach my system and they’re able to grasp what we’re trying to do, I really like where we’re headed.”
Nagel is seeing progress and hopes that continues into the weekend camp that both Sapulpa’s varsity and JV teams will be participating in at TU on Friday and Saturday, before the Bishop Kelley Summer League resumes on Monday.
“It is the process; it’s a marathon not a sprint,” Nagel said. “Right now, the guys are enjoying being around each other and I am enjoying being around them. They are learning my new coaching staff, we’re learning them and the personalities – that’s what summer’s about.”
The Bishop Kelley Summer League continues with three games per week for each team, concluding June 15.
Tuesday:
Edison 52, Sapulpa 50
Kiefer 48, Sapulpa 34
Sapulpa: 14-20=34
Kiefer: 27-21=48
Sapulpa: Edwards 12, Lewis 10, Pratt 5, Abbage 4, Ragsdale 3.
Kiefer: Resler 17, Johnson 12, Murphy 8, Shoaf 7, Hoover 4.
Thursday:
Victory Christian 71, Sapulpa 52
Kiefer 55, Union JV 48
