Dylan Warlick pushes Edmond North past Moore for fourth straight state tournament bid

SHAWNEE — If Dylan Warlick is playing for a championship, he's driven to claim it, no matter the conditions.

In Edmond North's last showdown with Moore in February, the Huskies dropped its first in-state game in nearly two years. The loss triggered the team's heightened sense of urgency as it prepared for another deep playoff run.

But the Wyoming commit wasn't solely motivated to evoke revenge on the Lions ahead of Friday's rematch.

"Their history with us mattered to me, but it didn't at the same time, if I'm being honest," Warlick said following Edmond North's 55-42 win over Moore in the Class 6A area playoffs. The Huskies captured its third consecutive area championship in the win.

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"They were in our way, so I knew we would dominate them," Warlick continued. "This time of year is what really gets me going. You know I'm all about competing and bringing home any championships we can."

Moore had virtually zero answer for the three-star forward from start to finish. He went off for 25 points while grabbing nine rebounds in the victory to give the Huskies their sixth consecutive win.

While the final score may indicate a calm contest, Edmond North initially struggled out of the gate. Lions guard Tristan Hankins gave the Huskies problems early with 10 first-half points. However, Chiante' Tramble caught fire from downtown to ease Edmond North's worries heading into halftime.

Tramble knows a thing or two about the Lions' persistent ways. He spent his sophomore season at Moore, where he was a team leader as he has been for Edmond North as a senior.

"We know that they have two go-to guys in Darian Grant and Tristan Hankins, and we did a great job of limiting them in the second half," Tramble said. "We knew that if we shut them down, the rest of them would fall along with them. Our coaching staff did a good job of making sure we prepared for whatever they threw at us."

Edmond North erupted on a 14-6 run in the third quarter to widen the gap after timely buckets from Tramble and forward Bryce Potts. Warlick then took over in the final quarter, scoring 11 points to lead the Huskies to victory, snapping Moore's 15-game win streak.

With the win, the two-time defending 6A champions will now have a chance to go for its highly coveted three-peat. The idea of seizing a third state championship has inspired the group for the past 12 months.

With the addition of Tramble to the mix alongside Warlick, Potts, Dontrell Yearby and Tatum Ridge, the Huskies seek to be the first team in 6A history to win three straight state championships.

"I worked my tail off every day in the summer just to get back to where we are now," Warlick said. "If there's a competition to win, I want to be a part of it. That's just in my nature. So, I can't wait to head to OU in a few days and do just that at the highest level yet. We know there's a target on us, but we'll be ready for the challenge."

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Westmoore stays alive in win over Norman North

The Jaguars still have a strong shot at punching its ticket to the state tournament.

They fought off Norman North's late surge in a 62-46 win to advance to play Moore on Saturday at 6 p.m. in Shawnee. Westmoore junior guard Garrett Loper continued his recent hot streak, scoring a game-high 26 points in the victory.

"We know that we're a small team and so we need to come in and be physical," Loper said. "In order to win in March, we'll have to fight through adversity. So our game plan is to just keep doing that."

The win proceeds Westmoore's regional win over Edmond Santa Fe, where Loper dropped 31 points and 10 rebounds.

Jordan Davis covers high school sports for The Oklahoman. Have a story idea for Jordan? He can be reached at jdavis@oklahoman.com or on X/Twitter at @jdavis34_. Sign up for The Varsity Club newsletter to access more high school coverage. Support Jordan’s work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today at subscribe.oklahoman.com

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Edmond North snaps Moore win streak to reach Class 6A state tournament