Benefit game very special to Okla. coach
Stephen C. Smith Sr., Times Record News

For Oklahoma girls coach Carol Parker, this year's 2003 Oil Bowl Basketball Classic is more than just a clash for regional bragging rights between rivals Texas and Oklahoma, it's also a gift for her grandson, 4-year-old Ethan Morton.
"It means the world to me, not only as a basketball coach coaching in a Texas-Oklahoma game, but also as a grandmother," Parker said. "I have a grandson who has a port wine stain birthmark and the Shriners are removing it for him in Galveston at Shriners Hospital.
"He is the beneficiary of their generosity."
Parker, who led Cashion to a Class A State title in 2000, brings her Oklahoma contingent into tonight's clash with Pilot Point head coach Deryll Friday's Texas squad at Midwestern State University's D.L. Ligon Coliseum. Tip-off is scheduled for 6:30 tonight.
"I'm a competitor," Parker said. "So I love to win and I expect to win when you hit the floor - besides, it's Texas-Oklahoma, what more can I say?"
Forward Keshia Holmes, the 2003 Class B Most Valuable Player, and point guard Jennifer Bullis of the three-time defending state champion Dover Lady Longhorns will lead an Oklahoma team that includes Rice University signee Samantha Stovall, a center from Class 6A State champion Jenks, Okla., along with Beaver's Mara Kee and Oolagah's Nikki Yager.
Amy Allison of Jenks will not be participating in the contest and was not replaced on the Oklahoma roster.
"We can't press, so we'll have to play man-to-man," Parker said. "It's pretty much laid out for you, but I know these girls and they get up and down the floor. We also have a lot of excellent 3-point shooters, so I look for it to be a game were we'll be pushing the ball."
Friday plans to counter with Class 4A State Tournament MVP Tojjinay Thompson of Plainview and Oklahoma State signee and long-range scoring threat Erica Parker of Boyd in the backcourt, along with three-time TAPPS Class 3A All-State selection Danielle Wilhelm of Notre Dame, Decatur's Lyssa Dennard and Little Elm's Evelynn Edwards in the post.
"We're going to have a lot of fun," Friday said. "This is not a game where I come and coach - they (the players) come and play. My main job is to get personnel lined up, and the kids are just going to go play."
Friday led Pilot Point to an 18-12 record last season in the team's first season in Class 3A after qualifying for the Class 2A State tournament in the 2001-02 season.
"All-star games are wide open. You're not going to have that controlled type of basketball," Friday said. "Probably whoever shoots the best and plays a little defense will determine the outcome.
"Besides, anytime you get Texas and Oklahoma together, it's a rivalry."
But even in the heat of the rivalry, Parker's thoughts never stray far from her grandson.
"I feel very privileged to be asked to come here and I think the Shriners do great work," Parker said. "He's had six treatments there and I've gone down there and I've been so impressed with how kind and wonderful they are to the children.
"That's why as much as being a coach and a competitor, that part is so special to me."
Staff sports writer Stephen C. Smith Sr. can be reached after 6 p.m. at 1-800-627-1646 or (940) 720-3470. Or you can e-mail him at smiths@timesrecordnews.com