Wolves top El Dorado, advance to conference championship game

PEARCY — With a first-round bye in the Class 6A tournament up for grabs, Lake Hamilton’s senior boys pulled away from El Dorado with a blistering second half Tuesday night.

Clinging to a 21-19 lead at the half, the Wolves (26-4) outscored the Wildcats (13-15) 14-8 in the third quarter and 25-14 in the fourth quarter for a 60-41 win at Wolf Arena.

Junior guard Lane Kersey paced the Wolves with 21 points and seven rebounds, while junior forward Kanaan Williams added 12 points with five rebounds. Sophomore guard Malique Hill scored 12 points for Lake Hamilton, and junior guard Mondo Watkins recorded eight points with four assists.

Increasing their winning streak to eight games, Lake Hamilton will host Benton (19-9) in the 6A-West conference championship game at 6 p.m. Saturday. The Wolves are 15-0 at home this season.

The top two seeds from the 6A-West conference will each receive an automatic bye into the quarterfinals, needing just two wins in the Class 6A state tournament at West Memphis to advance to the state championship game at Bank of the Ozarks Arena.

Girls

GREENWOOD — The Lake Hamilton Lady Wolves were no match for top-seeded Greenwood Tuesday night.

After Lake Hamilton (16-13) closed the second quarter on a 7-0 run to pull within 29-21 at the half, the Lady Bulldogs (19-9) scored the first 13 points of the third period and pulled away for a 71-41 win in the 6A-West conference tournament semifinals.

The Lady Wolves will travel to Sheridan (22-6) for the thirdplace game at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday. Greenwood will host Russellville (15-12) in the championship game Saturday night.

One of four Lady Bulldogs in double figures, freshman Kinley Fisher led all scorers with 16 points. Freshman Ally Sockey scored

in the second quarter and finished with a game-high 17 points.

“Matt Snow came off the bench and hit some big shots tonight,” Page said. “That’s what he’s done for us all season, especially in these last couple of games.”

Fueled by Snow’s outside shot, the Red Devils took their first lead of the game with 5:31 remaining in the second period, later taking a 31-25 advantage into halftime.

The Wildcats kept things interesting as Jerrion Marshall knocked down two shots from behind the arc to spark an 8-0 run that tied the game at 33-33 with less than six minutes to play in the third quarter.

After another mass substitution, Mountain Pine’s reserves built a lead that they would not surrender. Elijah Browning and Snow combined for nine points as the Red Devils closed the frame on a 17-4 run for a 50-37 lead entering the fourth quarter.

“I think halfway through the game, we woke up and realized we were in a dog fight,” said Page. “That second unit came in focused, and they locked down. Once we locked down on defense, we were able to get out, get some easy buckets and push that lead out.”

Rison pulled within 57-47 with less than four minutes to play, but the duo of Cason Porter and Tyler Zander would not be denied. Both players scored six points in the final period, and the Red Devils withstood 3-pointers from Martin and Malachi Marks to preserve the win.

Porter finished with 11 points for Mountain Pine, including eight in the second half.

“Cason has come full circle,” Page said. “I always believed he was able to do this. He goes up against (senior guard) Fay (Haywood) every day in practice, and Fay has prepared him to play against anybody. Now, Cason can come in with that second unit and be a facilitator or a scorer, whatever we need him to do.”

Zander scored 12 points for the Red Devils. Browning and Haywood each had nine points.

Marsh paced the Wildcats with 14 points, while Marshall scored 12 points and Lea finished with 10 points.

Mountain Pine will face Bearden (21-4) or Caddo Hills (15-14) in the semifinals at 5:30 p.m. on Friday. Bearden knocked off the Red Devils in the first round of last year’s 2A-South regional tournament, leaving them one game shy of the state tournament.

“It would mean a lot if we get that opportunity,” said Page. “I’m definitely not counting out Caddo Hills, because they are a sneaky team. It would be great to have another shot at Bearden, but I’m looking forward to it with whoever we play.”