No. 3 North Oldham survives Butler scare, moves to state tournament semifinals

Social media sensation Pierre Rondo continued dazzling, dropping 14 points (4-7 FG; 6-9 FT) and five assists, but it was the third quarter play of Oakland Shearer who kept the Mustangs running despite a 20-6 Butler run.

Shearer scored eight points, including two three-pointers, in the quarter to keep No. 3 North Oldham (28-5) one step ahead, as the Mustangs survived No. 7 Louisville Butler (27-6) and advanced to the state tournament semifinals with a 62-56 win.

North Oldham started the game dominant, going up 26-10 in the first 13 minutes. But the Bears began to find answers and went on an 11-4 run to close out the half, foreshadowing what was to come.

Although smaller, the Bears have a lot of athleticism that they use to their advantage.

“I felt like we did a really good job, particularly in the second half, speeding the game up, getting steals, getting deflections,” Butler coach Kevin Geary said.

Pierre and the Mustangs dance into the final four!

Pierre Rondo 14 PTS – 5 AST
Tommy Gregg 19 PTS – 10 REB
Shearer/Howard – 4 3PM in 2H pic.twitter.com/EAlOSsEyA5

— SterlingVision (@sterlingvis1) March 21, 2026

Butler switched to a full-court press, trapping and flustering Rondo and the North Oldham offense to go on a 20-6 run in the third quarter. Butler shot 80 percent from the field in the third.

“I think our defense led to offense that game,” Adrian Wilder, who scored 12 for Butler, said. “Whenever we sped them up, that’s when we took the lead.”

Brandon Heath led all scorers with 20 in the game, pouring in 11 during that run for the Bears.

With the game now in anyone’s hands, it turned into a chess match. David Levitch and the Mustangs counter-adjusted, bringing Pierre to the corner to shake off the traps and settle into their offense. As a result, the Mustangs went 5-6 from the field, including 2-2 from three, in the final frame, and closed out the dub.

“When we started rotating, we started, like, kind of getting stuck in a trap on one man and would leave a shooter open,” said Wilder.

“He [Rondo] doesn’t play like a normal eighth-grader,” said Geary. “He has elite vision. He understands the game. He understands where help is coming from, where to get the ball to.”

In addition to Shearer, who scored 12 on the evening, Henry Howard — playing less than nine minutes in the contest — hit two big splashes in the second half to keep the Mustangs rolling.

“You always got to be ready in a tournament like this,” David Levitch, North Oldham coach, said. “Henry’s a great shooter and was ready when his number was called.”

Tommy Gregg led the Mustangs with 19 points, shooting 7-14 from the field, with 13 of them coming in the first half. He scored a key up-and-under basket midway through the fourth quarter to go up 54-52, taking the lead for North Oldham the final time.

“On any given night, my teammates and coaches will trust me to make those plays,” Gregg said. “Wasn’t really a game plan, but just came out look to score and make plays.”

Heinrich Barjolo was the only other scorer in double figures for Butler, who scored 11, including two key and-ones in the final quarter.

North Oldham dominated on the glass 34-19. Gregg, Shearer, and Collin Daniels out-rebounded the entire Bears team with 25 between the three of them.

Even though his team was dominated on the glass, Geary mentioned how that’s just been something they lived with for the whole year, often lacking in size versus other teams, and looked for other ways to compete, using their speed and athleticism.

North Oldham (26-5) will face the winner of George Rogers Clark and Marshall County in the semifinals at Rupp Arena on Saturday (1:30 p.m. EST).