High school basketball: Oak Ridge’s Brown and Co. show why they are among the area’s best

Steve White has been a part of the Oak Ridge High School girls’ basketball team for a while now.

He’s seen his share of great players and coached championship teams. One player, in particular, stands out. That would be senior Teagan Brown, who signed her letter of intent to the University of Washington in November.

Brown looked the part of an elite Division l player Friday in Loomis against Del Oro. She scored a team-high 21 points in fourth-ranked Oak Ridge’s 53-30 win over No. 3 Del Oro in a Sierra Foothill League matchup.

“She’s the best player I’ve ever coached,” White, who also doubles as Oak Ridge’s athletic director said. “Sara (James) was a tremendous player. But Teagan locks the best offense player up on the other team, still leads us in scoring. Ella and her are battling for the rebounding lead. She leads our team in assists, steals, deflections and she doesn’t lead in turnovers. She plays both ends for 32 minutes.”

He added, “It’s incredible the amount of endurance (she has) and the kind of athlete she is. I hope she makes the McDonald’s All-American team because she really deserves it. … The energy you see here is the same she approaches practice with. Anything she does she goes at it full speed, including being a goofball. She’s a great mentor to our younger players. They want to be like her. Her legacy is going to go a lot longer than the four years she was here.”

What impresses him the most is Brown is her athleticism and defense. Against the Golden Eagles, she had the task of guarding Madison Butcher, who signed with Sacramento State in November. Brown held her to two points.

“Madison is a fabulous player,” White said. “She is so strong and skilled. It’s a challenge for Teagan and anyone who goes up against her. She’s one of the people in this league that scares me a lot.”

Oak Ridge isn’t a one-trick pony. The Trojans have a balanced roster that features four each of seniors, freshmen and juniors; as well as two sophomores. Sophomore Jessica Crannell and freshman Liv Yergensen had eight points each and senior Ella Ray had six. Ray signed a letter of intent to play at the University of Pennsylvania.

The game Friday was a part of a doubleheader. The girls played first at 5:30, followed by the boys’ game between the two schools. The SFL changed the scheduling a few years ago to allow the boys and girls varsity games to be played as a doubleheader to draw bigger crowds.

The scheduling tweak has worked. A few hundred fans were in attendance to watch a pair of top-five teams go at it.

“I love it as a girls’ basketball coach and an athletic director,” White said. “I think it’s equitable. When you play at opposite sites, kids have to choose where to go and they choose the boys game. This gives the girls an opportunity to experience some of the hype and excitement of having a crowd. … Every SFL game is like a playoff game.”

Oak Ridge (14-4, 3-0) plays Whitney next on Wednesday. Del Oro (15-3, 1-2) will face Rocklin next also on Wednesday.

This story was originally published January 15, 2022 at 7:26 AM.