The Heritage Hall Chargers men's basketball season was halted last year on the steps of the Big House as the coronavirus pandemic virtually shut down all sporting events.

Coming into the 2020-2021 season there were high expectations for this Charger team. Although the lineup looks a little bit different than last year, it is no way worse. 

The Chargers have been consistently starting three sophomores, a junior and a senior throughout this season. 

Star player and Auburn commit Trey Alexander has had an outstanding season up to this point averaging 25.7 points, 9.1 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 2.5 steals, and 1.5 blocks per contest. 

One player that has really stepped up this season after a phenomenal freshman season is Sebastian Perry. The sophomore is averaging 11.6 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 1.7 assists. 

Another breakout player that has had a big impact on the Chargers team this season is sophomore forward C.J. Smith. After a massive summer growth spurt, the 6'5 swingman is averaging 7.9 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 1.1 assists. Smith and Perry crash the offensive glass hard, pulling down a combined 3.2 second-chances per game for the Chargers.

Kyle McLaughlin started the season on fire from behind the arc (52.9%) and is averaging 7.1 per contest. Joe Washington has provided a spark since returning to the court from football season (4.1 ppg, 1.3 oreb). Ethan Franks has been solid at point guard in his first season as a varsity starter (3.1 ppg).

The rest of the bench runs deep. Seniors Blake Garrett, Miles Perry, and Melvin Swindle provide experience and leadership. Junior Nick Foster and sophomore Orie Walker have become known for their hustle, but can light up the scoreboard in a hurry too.  

The Chargers started the season with a fantastic run as they went undefeated in their first six games of the season against many talented teams. The Chargers opened with a rout of 5A #17 Ardmore, and continued with wins over 5A #1 Carl Albert, 3A #8 Community Christian, 6A #2 Del City, 5A #3 Macarthur, and a thrilling overtime win over 6A #15 Moore to tip off the Putnam City Invitational. 

The Chargers then had a little two game skid at the PCI, losing "nail-biters" to 6A #3 Edmond North and 6A #2 Putnam City North. All three games in the PCI tournament went into overtime as the Chargers finished 4th place.

It didn't take long for a bounce back as the Chargers took out their frustration in a dominating performance against 3A Crooked Oak, 83-37. 

A few days later, the Chargers hosted 5A #1 Carl Albert in a rematch of the December road contest. It was the Titans who exacted revenge in a 66-62 win at The MAC.

The Chargers may have lost to the Titans, but Senior Trey Alexander eclipsed 2,000 career points after he put the Chargers up 2-0 in the 1st quarter of the game. This was an incredible feat for Alexander – no one else in Heritage Hall history has broken 2,000, and at the time only 91 players in State history had done so.

Heritage Hall looked like a different animal after running 3A #1 Millwood out of their own gym, beating them 67-38. Last Monday, the team traveled down to Ada for a showdown against the 4A #7 Cougars in which the Chargers reigned supreme, 52-37. 

The Chargers traveled to Deer Creek over the weekend to play in the Bruce Gray Invitational. On Thursday they faced a scrappy 6A Bartlesville Bruins squad and won 71-67. In game two, the 6A #11 Midwest City Bombers pulled away in the second half to drop The Hall, 63-51. The Chargers showed some grit and bounced back on the last day of the round robin tournament with a 41-37 win over host school 6A Deer Creek. 

Up next for Heritage Hall (4A #2, 11-4 record) is a short road trip to OCS to take on the 3A #18 Saints. On Friday the boys take on the 4A #5 Tuttle Tigers in a Top 5 showdown and rematch of last year's 59-58 Charger win over the Tigers in Regionals.

Onward, Chargers!