Parkview pulls away late

It didn’t take long for Little Rock Parkview to turn a competitive game into a blowout.

Senior forward Curtis White scored 18 points and senior forward Ethan Henderson added 16 to lead the Patriots to a 67-45 victory over the Maumelle Hornets at Ripley Gymnasium in Little Rock on Tuesday.

Maumelle used aggressive defense and the sharp shooting of senior guard Byron Wade to keep the game close midway through the third quarter. Parkview (13-5, 5-1 6A-5A-4) had not shown signs of running away, though a three-pointer by senior guard Rod Terry gave it a 32-25 lead early in the third.

After a layup by Maumelle junior guard Brahm Harris, Wade hit the first of 3 three-pointers to cut Parkview’s lead to 33-30.

A hard foul by senior forward Tyric Robinson on Henderson prevented a slam dunk. Henderson made one of two free throws to give Parkview a 34-30 lead, but Wade hit from 28 feet to pull Maumelle (11-9, 4-3) within 34-33 with 3:30 left in the third quarter.

“They were just outworking us,” Parkview Coach Al Flanigan said. “I got on our guys pretty good, and they responded.”

Parkview scored the next six points, a run interrupted by Wade’s 24-footer but reignited by junior forward Allen Flanigan’s three-pointer at the third-quarter buzzer that gave Parkview a 43-36 lead.

“I’m proud of my guys,” Maumelle Coach Michael Shook said. “They came to compete, and for two-anda-half quarters, it was a two-possession game.”

White’s three-pointer in the first minute of the fourth quarter put Parkview up 4636 and the rout was on. Fastbreak layups by Henderson after Maumelle turnovers on consecutive possessions gave Parkview a 56-38 lead halfway through the fourth.

“We put some pressure on them, and that made them think,” Flanigan said. “That’ll work on your mind. We picked up the intensity, but before that, we were messing up every time. We have to work on that.”