Titans Capitalize on Turnovers in 52-32 Win Over Oakton

In the point of view of some bystanders, a 20-point victory in a regional playoff game is usually something to write home about. After all, playoff basketball is just about surviving and advancing.

T.C. Williams coach Julian King believes that the tolerable performance his Titans showed in their 52-32 win over Oakton in the first round of the Northern Region playoffs on Monday night was one that could’ve sent the Titans home against a higher-ranked opponent.

“Let’s hope that it’s an eye-opener for these guys,” said King, who earned the 2011 Northern Region Coach of the Year. “The guys need a sense of urgency.”

Both teams struggled shooting in a low-scoring affair that matched the Patriot District champion against the Concorde District’s fourth-place team. The Titans were hampered offensively by Oakton’s sagging 2-3 zone and neither team converted a 3-point shot.

After closing the Patriot District tournament on fire and garnering tournament MVP honors, T.C. Williams point guard Tyrell Sitton scored just five points against the Cougars.

“It was just a bad shooting night for him,” King said.

While having an off-night offensively, Sitton stepped up his defending on Oakton senior guard Steele Shemeld. The Titans' standout  limited one of the top 3-point shooters in the Concorde District to just one point.

Holding a 10-point advantage for most of the game, the Titans finally broke out at the start the fourth quarter. After leading 34-24 heading into the final quarter, T.C. Williams went on an 11-1 run sparked with a hook shot by reserve center Jay Whitmire and a spinning layup from Sitton. Guard Jamal Pullen scored on another easy layup that was followed by a 3-point play from Whitmire to push the Titans to a 45-25 lead with 4:12 remaining in the game.

The Titans’ success primarily came from a dominant defense that forced a litany of turnovers from Oakton that were converted them into easy fast-break layups. 

Small forward T.J. Huggins and guard Jamal Pullen were the beneficiaries of most of the Titans’ slashing layups after Oakton mistakes. The consistent Pullen led the Titans with 12 points and Huggins scored 10.

Oakton started the game aggressively and led 8-4 after Shemeld made a perfect assist while diving out of bounds to find teammate Jonathan Morris for a layup. The Titans responded with the help from center Rick Mathews, who showed off a couple of low-post moves by scoring six points in the first quarter to help T.C. Williams take an early 14-10 lead.

The Titans led 24-15 at halftime in large part thanks to points generated off turnovers. Guard Jordan Byrd was responsible for numerous Oakton turnovers and scored eight points in the game, mainly in transition.

The only player that T.C. Williams couldn’t stop was Oakton forward Adi Hajrovic. Early in the fourth quarter, Hajrovic scored 21 of the Cougars’ 25 points.

“He’s a workhorse,” King said. “He’s tireless and used a variety of moves and we tried to focus on him.”

T.C. Williams faces Yorktown in the quarterfinals of the Northern Region tournament on Wednesday. Tipoff is slated for 7:30 p.m. at The Garden.

Download the movie