Warriors second quarter rally falls short to Red Devils
DONALDSON — After suffering a 11-point double-digit deficit midway through the second quarter, the Ouachita Warriors rallied back to only trail Mt. Pine 26-22 at halftime on the Ouachita High School AllCare Pharmacy Court. But in the second half, the Red Devils outscored the Warriors 33-18—with Ouachita falling to Mt. Pine 59-40 Tuesday in senior high boys basketball action at Ouachita High School Gymnasium.
The match-up was fast paced the entire 32 minute contest—with pressure defense applied full-court by both teams.
The Red Devils edged the Warriors by a seven point margin to end first period action, 15-8. In the second quarter, the Red Devils sparked to a 23-12 lead over the Warriors down to the 4:19 mark. Despite their double-digit deficit, the Warriors created a run to stay within striking distance down to the 2:21 mark to outscore the Red Devils 7-1—with Ouachita trailing by five points, 24-19. Rhett Lee drained a huge trifecta (nothing but net) from way downtown to pull the Warriors within two points 24-22 with 1:36 remaining in the first half—built momentum for Ouachita. After a timeout by the Red Devils, they finished the quarter with a basket to extend their lead for a four-point edge at the break over Ouachita.
Mt. Pine held a 43-29 lead over the Warriors at the end of the third quarter, then the Red Devils outscored Ouachita 16-11 in the fourth period. The Warriors managed to score in double-digits with Mt. Pine for third and fourth quarter scoring in the second half.
For the game, Warriors’ Lee led scoring by drilling four trifectas (3-pointers) to display pure shooting from long-distance with 12 points for double-figures. Kelton Fowler chipped in eight points, Tanner Furr finished with seven points, Kade Fulmer contributed five points with a trey. Payton Neal, Bralyn Maynard, Caden Morrison and Austin Wilkinson each scored two points apiece to contribute their efforts for the Warriors team performance.
The Warriors aim to regroup and finish out the week for productive battles against Benton Harmony Grove and head on the road to face Oden in senior high boys action.