It was 6 p.m. on a brisk January evening at Booker T. Washington High School, but it felt like a statewide homecoming.
Hours before the opening tip for the Jan. 17 basketball matches, lines wrapped around the Nathan E. Harris Field House as fans braved the chill, hoping to be spectators in one of Oklahoma high school sports’ most anticipated showdowns. Tickets were gone. Doors were shut. The buzz spilled into the streets. Inside, the noise never stopped.
What followed was more than a game.
It was No. 1 versus No. 2 in the state, Millwood versus Booker T. Washington, two historic programs with unmatched legacies, defending state champions in their respective classes and owners of 35 combined OSSAA titles.
Oklahoma City-based Millwood High School is the top-ranked boys team in the state, according to the sports website MaxPreps. The Millwood Falcons are the reigning kings of Class 3A with a state-best 18 championships. They squared off against undefeated Booker T., the pride of Tulsa and the No. 1 team in Class 5A and second all-time with 17 titles.
Millwood mounted strong lead
When the final horn sounded, it was Millwood standing tall, pulling away late for a 61–46 victory. The game underscored why the Falcons remain the standard — regardless of classification.
In an earlier game at the stadium, Booker T.’s Lady Hornets beat Millwood’s Lady Falcons, 48-39. The Falcons pulled ahead in the first half of the game. But the Hornets came back strong in the third quarter, capturing the lead and maintaining it.
Booker T. head coach Eli K. Brown III pointed to toughness and preparation as the difference in the boys game.
“We gotta be tougher,” Brown said in a post-game interview with The Oklahoma Eagle. “We gotta do better as a coaching staff to prepare our kids for this environment.”
Mental preparedness matters
The Hornets entered the matchup after a demanding stretch — four games in five days, including three straight days on the floor. Brown acknowledged the toll.
“It was a hectic week,” Brown said. “You can never just show up to a game, and just think that since you showed up that that’s enough.
“You have to come with a mentality, and Millwood came with that mentality, a tougher mentality,” Brown said. “Hats off to Millwood, Coach Dorrian Williams … great staff, great team.”
For Millwood, the win was another example of collective focus.
“Staying tough and together, dealing with adversity,” Williams said in an interview. “Booker T. made a great run at the end of the third (quarter). We responded, we got a mature group. They focused and locked in on the right things, really proud of how (we) responded.”
The mood: ‘Unreal‘
Williams acknowledged that the setting — a stadium filled mostly with hyped up Booker T. fans — presented a great challenge.
“Unreal,” Williams said. “It was good to be a part of. I’m extremely blessed to have this opportunity to be here.”
Williams remembers coming to Booker T. when he was a youth in the early 2000s.
“Those were some powerhouse matchups,” he said. “Just to come back and experience some of that is awesome.”
From the moment fans poured into the gym, the atmosphere felt historic. Crowds chanted back and forth, cheerleaders flipped and countered each other’s routines and Booker T.’s “T. Connection” marching band added another layer of electricity. Tulsa radio station 105.3 FM hyped the masses to open the game, as fans filled every seat and student sections stood tall.
The game opened with Booker T. feeding off that energy.
The Hornets jumped out to a quick 5–0 lead, sparked by a Mason Matulis three-pointer. Guards Joc Mitchell and Matulis — both averaging 16 points per game — set the early tempo, pushing the pace. For a moment, it looked like the undefeated Hornets might ride the wave.
Millwood: strong defense and offense
Millwood responded with force.
The Falcons ripped off 14 unanswered points, flipping the momentum and quieting the crowd. Millwood’s Isaiah Wilks attacked the lane relentlessly, while Amari Barrett controlled the glass and converted around the rim.
By the time Booker T.’s Branden Crosslen ended the run with a layup at the 1:06 mark, Millwood had seized command. The Falcons closed the first quarter ahead 14–7, a reminder of their poise in hostile environments.
The second quarter turned into a gritty, back-and-forth battle.
Wilks answered baskets, Matulis countered with jumpers and Crosslen chipped in inside. Defensive intensity ramped up on both ends, highlighted by blocked dunk attempts from each team that sent the crowd into a frenzy. With 11 seconds left before halftime, Wilks drilled a three, giving Millwood a 26–17 advantage at the break.
At halftime, the night shifted from competition to commemoration as Booker T.’s 1981 state champion basketball team was among the awardees at its Ring of Honor That team won four straight state titles and was coached by Nathan E. Harris, which Booker T.’s current athletic facility is named after.
As names were called and applause echoed through the gym, past and present blended together — a reminder that this rivalry is about a winning legacy.
The third quarter delivered the drama that the crowd expected.
Millwood led 30–25 with 4:20 left in the period, but Booker T. refused to fade. Mitchell knocked down a three to pull the Hornets within one, 32–31, with 2:34 remaining. Then, at the buzzer, Matulis buried another deep three, tying the game at 37–37 and sending the crowd into a roar.
The Hornets comeback
For a brief moment, momentum belonged to the Hornets.
That moment didn’t last.
A corner three from Millwood’s Khris Clay at the 7:04 mark of the fourth quarter ignited a decisive 7–0 Falcons’ run. Booker T. struggled to generate clean looks, committing turnovers and coming up empty on several possessions. Millwood capitalized, knocking down multiple three-pointers in the period and sealing the game with disciplined execution.
Wilks finished with a game-high 21 points, Barrett added 15 and Millwood’s championship experience showed when it mattered most. Matulis led Booker T. with 15 points, but the Hornets never fully recovered from the fourth-quarter surge.
Despite the statement win, Williams emphasized growth over satisfaction.
“Our focus is to always continue to grow. We’re never satisfied,” he said, noting the Falcons would be back in the film room Sunday. “It’s the constantly improving type of attitude. That’s what’s helped us up to this point. That’s why we are where we are.”
The final score of 61–46 only told part of the story.
This was a night when the state of Oklahoma showed up — when tradition, pride and competition collided under one roof. The chants, the ceremonies, the cold air outside and the heat inside all blended into a reminder of why this rivalry matters.
Millwood left Tulsa with another win, another chapter and another example of championship composure.
And for everyone packed inside the Nathan E. Harris Field House, it was proof that when Millwood and Booker T. Washington meet, the entire state feels the power of the moment.
Cory Young, a Tulsa photojournalist, is a contributor to The Oklahoma Eagle.
