Oak Hill cruises past McCallie, 89-59

McCallie's Jorden Starling is guarded by Oak Hill's Rodney Miller Friday, February 5, 2016 at McCallie.
McCallie's Jorden Starling is guarded by Oak Hill's Rodney Miller Friday, February 5, 2016 at McCallie.
photo McCallie's Adrian Thomas shoots as Oak Hill's Lindell Wigginton leaps behind him Friday, February 5, 2016 at McCallie.

Yes, they're just that good.

Despite having just eight able-bodied players, Oak Hill Academy proved why it is the nation's No. 2-ranked high school basketball team as a dominant first half led to an 89-59 win over McCallie in the Dr Pepper TEN Classic Friday night.

The Warriors (31-1) built a 47-21 lead by halftime and cruised through the second half, led by Lindell Wigginton's game-high 22 points. Wiggington - a junior who has scholarship offers from Tennessee, Georgia, Florida State, Virginia Tech, Oregon and Boston College - made a pair of deep 3s as the Warriors put on a show both from the outside and with five dunks before halftime.

"They're not the No. 2 team in America for nothing," Blue Tornado coach John Shulman said. "They're so skilled and their length gave us a lot of problems. I think our guys were a little tight and scared in the first half because we're not used to that level of talent, but I'm really proud of the way we kept fighting in the second half, and - are you kidding? - we played the second-ranked team in the country and only got outscored by four in the second half.

"It was a great experience for our guys."

Because of injury, the Warriors have just eight players available, but coach Steve Smith said they will add two next week.

One of seven players 6-foot-7 or taller, Alabama signee Braxton Key, had seven of the Virginia team's first nine points. Ty-Syhon Alexander, a Creighton commitment, connected on three 3-pointers, including a pair early in the second quarter to kickstart a 14-2 spurt that extended a 10-point advantage into an insurmountable lead. Key and Alexander finished with 19 points apiece.

"We wanted to get after these guys early and I thought we played really well in the first half," Smith said. "But we relaxed a bit in the second half, and that's disappointing," Smith said. "We're really shorthanded right now, but we'll add a couple more guys next week to build up some more depth."

The Warriors will play No. 25-ranked Hamilton Heights tonight at 8, after McCallie plays Central. Hamilton Heights came within five of knocking off Oak Hill earlier this season.

"We've already played them and they're an excellent team, so we'll have to put four good quarters together," Smith said.

McCallie was led by Max Shulman and Junior Clay, each with 14 points.

"This was a great atmosphere," Clay said. "We tried to treat it like a regular game, but we were pretty nervous once it started. They're some big human beings, but it was a fun experience."

Contact Stephen Hargis at shargis@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6293. Follow him on Twitter @StephenHargis.

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