State champions crowned
Class 1A, 2A have winners; rest of finals postponed.
CLASS 2A BOYS
ENGLAND 68, EARLE 57
HOT SPRINGS — Standout performances from England’s dynamic duo allowed the Lions to go back-to-back Thursday night.
Seniors Tamarous Dodson and Kevante Davis combined for 43 points and 21 rebounds as the Lions ran away from Earle in the fourth quarter to grab a 6857 victory in the Class 2A boys final in front of a crowd of 2,447 at Bank OZK Arena.
Dodson, a 6-3 forward, scored 22 points and pulled down 14 rebounds en route to earning MVP honors, while Davis had 18 of his 21 points in the second half for England (30-5), which picked up its second consecutive title and third in the past six seasons.
“Seniors, man, seniors,” England Coach Trent Morgan said referring to Dodson and Davis, who accounted for 33 of the Lions’ 36 second-half points.
“I’m just so humbled to be coaching these two guys. They stepped up, played the right way and did what needed to be done against a really good Earle team.”
There wasn’t much England did wrong in what could have been the final high school basketball championship game of the season.
The Arkansas Activities Association has postponed the remaining eight state title contests because of the coronavirus pandemic, but the Lions took advantage of being in the spotlight by overcoming a bit of misfortune early.
Davis picked up two fouls in the first three minutes,
which limited his productivity in the opening half. The 5-11 guard, who scored 34 points in the Lions’ quarterfinal victory over the Bulldogs a year ago, remained in the game but sat for most of the second quarter. Still, England managed to build a big lead with him on the bench until Earle (21-10) rushed back behind freshman guard Donnie Cheers.
After the Lions established a 26-16 second-quarter lead following a 10-0 run, Cheers scored eight of the Bulldogs’ final 14 points. He also assisted on the other six points, both of which resulted in three-pointers from guard Rholly Davis. The sophomore nailed a 23-footer just before the halftime buzzer to trim Earle’s deficit to 32-26.
“This is what he’s been doing since the eighth grade and the ninth grade, that’s why I moved him up,” Earle Coach Carl Miller said of Cheers. “He’s got heart, he’s
got some fight in him, and he’s got some dog in him. That’s what you’ve got to have.
“We don’t quit. We got down by 18 against Marianna and tied it up in one quarter. This team has never quit on each other. We go to the end.”
England’s lead was carved to 34-33 after a driving layup from Cheers with 5:59 remaining in the third quarter, but Davis pocketed six points in a row during an 8-2 spurt to create much-needed space for the Lions.
“I knew I was going to have to be aggressive in the second half,” Davis said. “That’s why Coach Morgan sat me down with those two fouls. I had to come back more aggressive and play good defense.”
The Lions did leave the door open by missing 9 of 13 free throws during a six-minute span in the third and fourth quarters, which kept them from extending their cushion even further. England
led 56-45 after another bucket inside by Dodson before Rholly Davis ended an 0-for-7 shooting stretch by the Bulldogs with a basket off the glass with 2:24 left in the game.
England eventually won going away by canning 12 of 14 from the foul line, with Kevante Davis hitting 10 in a row, during the final 1:14.
“I had to keep the team going when [Davis] was out,” Dodson said.
“When he came back in, we flipped the switch, and that gave us that little boost we needed to get out of the doghouse to fight some more and finish it out.”
Morgan said the victory was special for him, particularly because this is his first title as the team’s head coach.
“I’ve been here three years, with the first two as an assistant,” he explained. “I’ve paid my dues. Just being in this position, coaching this special group of kids. … I’ve truly been blessed.”