The Oklahoma high school basketball Class 5A boys state tournament started Monday at State Fair Arena . Here's a look at what happened in the quarterfinals.

Bobby Allison sat at the center of the bench, clenching his replenished bottle of water.

While his players and assistant coaches had already retreated to the locker room to celebrate, Allison remained in his seat, hunched over and massaging his forehead.

The anxiety that had plagued him entering the state tournament had finally begun to ease — at least for now.

Tulsa Memorial defeated El Reno 65-57 in the Class 5A state quarterfinals on Monday night.

“Now I can finally breathe a little bit,” Allison said. “El Reno is a great team that was ranked one or two the entire year and beat us at their place. It’s a relief for now, but this year it's lined up to where everybody's great.”

Junior Fabian Harris led the way for Tulsa Memorial, emerging to score a game-high 26 points along with eight rebounds. Teammate Isaiah Garrett finished the night with 12 points and eight rebounds in the win.

The game was a back-and-forth battle from the opening whistle.

Tulsa Memorial held a slim three-point lead after the first quarter, but El Reno surged ahead with a 20-8 run before halftime. However, Tulsa Memorial responded in the second half, outscoring El Reno 42-26 to secure the win.

“Even when we were down our guys remained comfortable,” Allison said. “That’s what I told them at halftime. They’re locked into a mode where nothing else matters right now, they just care about. That's what's so special about this group.”

Monday’s win marked the culmination of a 12-month redemption tour for Allison.

For the first time in his 12-year tenure at Tulsa Memorial, the program missed the state tournament in 2024. Now, Allison is chasing his seventh state title with the program.

“It's been a hard fought two years,” Allison said.

“We have such a standard here and making the state tournament is the number one goal. Since the year 1994 man, when we get here, we expect to win every game. This time of year you just keep fighting for one more practice in between days."

A sea of Lawton supporters raised their hands in the shape of an ‘L’ as the final buzzer echoed throughout the State Fair Arena.

Second-year coach Chevis Smith made his way off the court, greeted by a swarm of excited peers. It was clear from the atmosphere that the magnitude of the moment had set in for those in attendance.

For the first time in over six decades, Lawton claimed a victory in the state tournament.

The Wolverines rallied for a thrilling 60-57 comeback win over Tulsa East Central in the Class 5A state quarterfinals on Monday evening. The victory marked the program’s first state tournament win since 1962.

“That was such a surreal moment man,” Smith said. “Honestly, I still kind of don't understand what I'm doing right now as far as what I'm doing with this. It’s still all kind of new, so I just take it day by day.”

Senior leaders Tavaris Deans and Pene Vaisagote were instrumental in the victory. Deans posted a game-high 16 points, along with 14 rebounds and three steals, while Vaisagote contributed 12 points and eight rebounds.

After trailing by 10 midway through the third quarter, Lawton ignited a 14-2 run that completely flipped the momentum, ultimately securing the win.

“At halftime I asked them if they wanted to do inventory tomorrow or not,” Smith said.

“Everyone in the room said hell no, and after that, they started to wake up. They've never been past this stage and been in this environment to understand how it is. But once they got themselves out of the way, the confidence kicked back in.”

This season marks Lawton’s first state tournament appearance since 2009.

They will now face Tulsa Memorial in the state semifinals at 8 p.m. Thursday in Yukon.

“Over here, our slogan is 1%,” Smith said. “We’re obsessed with trying to get 1% better each day. That’ll still be our approach for the next 72 hours and beyond.”

Lenny Hatchett has prided himself on one aspect of the game more than anything during his time at Del City.

The Eagles have had great success under the coach, winning titles in 2021 and 2023, and there’s been a commonality.

It’s almost always tough to score against the Eagles.

“That’s been a main theme for me ever since I’ve been at Del City,” Hatchett said.

That was certainly the main theme Monday.

Del City played swarming defense, and it was a major reason the Eagles advanced to the semifinals with a 43-34 victory over Collinsville at State Fair Arena.

Kaleb Blackwolf had nine points for Del City (20-7), which will play Tulsa Booker T. Washington at 6 p.m. Thursday in Yukon.

Mi’Shaun Graham and Tayvann Johnson each added eight, while Collinsville (17-12) shot 13 of 41 (31.7%) from the field.

Collinsville had just two points in the second quarter before Del City took a 14-11 lead into halftime, and Collinsville’s offensive woes didn’t get all that much better after the break as Del City outscored the Cardinals by seven in the third and pulled away.

“Any time you can hold teams under 50 is exceptional,” Hatchett said. “I thought we did a really good job defensively, especially in the second half. First half, we were in there defensively. We did what we needed to do. We just weren’t putting the ball in the hole.

“A lot of that is just nerves, guys never being in this situation, but it was an honor for them to be here and to play in the Big House.”

Del City lost in the quarterfinals last year after making championship appearances in 2019 and 2021-23. The Eagles were in the state tournament in 2020 before it was canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic.

For Blackwolf, a sophomore El Reno transfer, this is a special team, and raising the gold ball has been the goal since the start of the season.

“I couldn’t ask for a better group,” he said. “We all stick together.”

Eli Brown III looked up at the jumbotron and began to have flashbacks.

The Tulsa Booker T. Washington coach looked on as Midwest City ignited a 13-0 run to start the second half. For the first time in the game, his team was trailing, and a sense of déjà vu quickly set in.

“That whole third quarter I was like, ‘Oh my god – what am I gonna tell everybody when I go home?’” Brown said. “It was like Déjà vu from last year. But we stepped up defensively late, so we can breathe a little bit.”

Last season’s Class 5A state championship rematch lived up to the hype.

Tulsa Booker T. Washington weathered a late Midwest City rally and pulled out a hard-fought 63-56 victory, securing a spot in the 5A state semifinals.

Barron Harris was the star of the night, leading the way with 17 points and 8 rebounds. Teammate Jamarri Simpson also contributed with 14 points.

Down by five at the end of the third quarter, Tulsa Booker T. Washington found its defensive rhythm in the final frame. The team mounted a comeback, eventually taking the lead and securing the win.

“As a small team, we pride ourselves on taking charges,” Brown said. “We didn't take a single one in the first half, and we did some in the second. That was a tough mind frame there, and they executed.”

Tulsa Booker T. Washington is chasing its first state title since 2019.

With the victory, the team advances to the state semifinals to play the winner of Collinsville-Del City on Thursday in Yukon at 6 p.m.

But Brown isn’t content with just getting by. He wants to see more growth in his team in its next two outings.

“We don't win this game last year,” Brown said. “We didn’t win it last year. We did grow from that, and we did grow from those tough games we had this year. We can lean back on those experiences, which we did, and it helped us.”