The Jud and the Jury
Birdwell throws the book at Chicks, scores career-high 23 points
KHS SENIOR Jud Birdwell was too much for Chickasha to handle last Tuesday. The forward scored 23 points in leading the Jackets to a 73-33 road win. [Photo by Chris Simon/www.simon-sports-photos.smugmug.com]
Caden Kitchens helped get Kingfisher going against Chickasha.
Jud Birdwell played a bigger role in finishing off the Chicks.
The Jackets on Tuesday ended a rare losing streak in defeating Chickasha 73-33 on the road.
KHS had lost two straight entering the game, both coming at the Tournament of Champions.
It was the first time the program had a losing skid since the end of the 2015-16 season.
The Chicks, entering the game with just one win, did their best to extend the Jackets’ losing skid to three games and were even within two points in the early portions of the second quarter.
But Kitchens scored 10 points in the second, one that saw the Jackets use a 16-0 run to break open.
Battling with a rib head that’s been out of place for the better part of the week, Kitchens came off the bench to score all 16 of his points in the first half.
Birdwell and Drake Friesen got their first starts of the season in the game.
Birdwell had seven points at halftime, but then took over in the third quarter.
The Jackets went to the senior forward on three straight possessions to open the half.
He responded with three straight buckets in the post as the Chicks’ defenders had no answer.
Birdwell ended up with 10 points in the third quarter and a career-high 23 for the game.
His presence down low helped Kingfi sher outscore the Chicks 48-14 in the paint.
The Jackets forced 25 turnovers in the game, which led to 35 points.
There was also a 24-14 rebound advantage as Friesen led the team with six boards.
Birdwell scored the first points of the game, but the Jackets were inconsistent in the first quarter.
Kitchens energized the team with six points while Xavier Ridenour scored the team’s other five.
Ridenour added four more in the second-quarter run and scored nine of his 11 points by halftime.
Kitchens led the team with four steals while Jax Sternberger had a team-high five assists to go with his five points.
Ma’lek Murphy scored 21 points for the Chicks, but got little help.
He was 8 of 14 from the field, but the rest of the Chicks went 5 of 13.
The Jackets were 6-2 after the win, including 4-0 in Western Conference games.