Guthrie erupts in third quarter to collect win

The Guthrie boys basketball team needed 16 minutes to knock the rust off in their season opener against 16th ranked Shawnee inside the Guthrie High School Gymnasium.

The BlueJays, who never trailed in the game, erupted for 25 points in the third quarter, including a 14-0 run in the final 2:05 of the frame, to separate themselves from the Wolves with a 58-44 win and collect their first win of the season.

With most teams in the state having already played a couple of games, the Jays have had full team practices for just over two weeks and it showed in the first half by shooting just 26%. However, with conditioning being a question entering the game, the Jays shot 54% in the second half.

Click here to listen to head coach Pete Papahronis in his post game radio interview.

Senior Kentrell Brothers finished with a team high 18 points with all coming in the final two quarters (6-of-8 shooting in the second half) after playing just seven minutes in the first half due to foul trouble, but it was fellow senior Tim Zupo and junior Codee Gross that opened the game up.

With Guthrie leading 28-27 with 2:35 remaining in the third quarter, Zupo and Gross each hit two-three pointers and Zupo added a field goal to combine for 14 points and increased the Jays lead to 42-27 to close out the quarter.

The Jays (1-0) shot 9-of-18 in the third quarter, including 5-of-8 from the three-point line.

Zupo finished with 14 points and was named the Farmers and Merchants Player of the Game. The senior guard was 1-for-7 in the first half, but was 4-of-6 in the second half.

Shawnee (4-2) struggled from the field by going 14-of-43 from the field and snapping their four game winning streak. The Wolves jumped into the rankings this week (16th) after winning the Durant Lions Classic this past weekend.

Guthrie returns back to the GHS gym, Friday night, when they host Western Heights. The game can be heard on 105.1 FM and on Guthrie Sports Page.

Guthrie Scorers: Kentrell Brothers 18, Tim Zupo 14, Codee Gross 12, Kai Callins 5, Richard Brothers 4, Shron Parker 3, J.T. McFadden 2