Under the lights of the 2017 Nike Extravaganza, Oak Hill Academy (Virginia) clashed with Foothills Christian (El Cajon, California). It was a battle of two athletic teams, with Foothills grabbing an early lead and Oak Hill responding by dominating the boards and blocking shots. The Knights of Foothills Christian did their best to match Oak Hill's physicality through the first quarter, but had too many unnecessary turnovers.
By halftime, Oak Hill had taken over, leading 42-24, and it was over from there. The Warriors went on to take a big win, 86-58, on Friday night at Mater Dei High School in Santa Ana.
For Oak Hill, 6-foot-9 forward Billy Preston energized the crowd with a mid-third quarter slam, electrifying his team for the remainder of the contest.
"I mainly was just trying to grab rebounds, and I took my shots when I saw opportunities," Preston said.
Six-foot-2 guard Lindell Wigginton also showed out for the Warriors, scoring 29 points on a 10/18 clip.
"I was aggressive, attacking gaps and taking what the defense gave me," he said. Wigginton hit six 3-pointers, which only added to Oak Hill's dynamic attack.
Oak Hill's Head Coach, Steve Smith, discussed how his Warriors attacked Foothills' defense.
"They played a zone defense, so we definitely needed to shoot well," he said. "I thought we attacked their zone pretty well."
Smith acknowledged the unity of his group, saying, "We started the game off a little slow, but the guys did a good job coming together and playing well offensively."
While Oak Hill came away with the win, Foothills Christian's dynamic senior guard, Jaylen Hands, was perhaps the most impressive player on the floor. Hands left everything on the court, pouring in 34 points and snatching seven rebounds, which gave Foothills Christian some momentum throughout the game.
"I play the same way every time I step on the court, I just go hard and compete," he said.
Throughout the course of this game, Oak Hill simply wore out the opposition. From beyond the 3-point line, Oak Hill shot 40 percent, while Foothills Christian connected on just 25 percent of their attempts. Oak Hill out rebounded the Knights 42-27, and had a whopping 35 bench points while Foothills Christian had 3.
