Oak Ridge survived an early 3-point barrage by state champ Bartow and scored a 65-58 homecourt boys basketball win over the Yellow Jackets on Thursday night.
Mike James scored 28 points and fellow senior Jalen Smith added 18 as the Pioneers, ranked No. 1 in Class 7A by MaxPreps, improved to 11-1.
Bartow (4-3), last season’s 6A champion, shot out to a 12-5 lead in the first two minutes of the game. Oak Ridge finished the first quarter on a 16-6 run to take a lead it never relinquished.
The Pioneers led 39-30 at halftime with James and Smith combining for 31 points.