Late Surge Powers Pea Ridge Past PG Boys

PEA RIDGE — In a game heavily dominated by defensive play by both sides, Pea Ridge gained their first lead in the third quarter on the way to beating Prairie Grove, 34-25.

A Blackhawk offensive surge in the final period carried them past their Washington County rivals in 4A-1 boys basketball action on Feb. 8.

The Blackhawks opened the game with a suffocating defense, not giving the Tigers an open shot until the game’s first 80 seconds had passed, Unfortunately it was a long shot that went in for a 3-0 Tiger lead. A few seconds later, senior Jared Brewer tied the score for Pea Ridge with a trey from the corner at the 6:10 mark. Prairie Grove answered Brewer’s trey with one of their own to get back ahead 6-3 with 5:32 showing. The Blackhawks shut the visitors out for the rest of the period but suffered a series of turnovers to not take advantage of it.

The Blackhawks pulled off a couple of steals to begin the second quarter to keep the guests from scoring and a layup by Bric Cates cut the deficit to 5-6 with 4:17 left in the half. Freshman James Bledsoe ripped a 3-pointer with three minutes left in the half for the Blackhawks’ only lead of the first half at 8-6. It didn’t last long as the Tigers scored inside moments later to tie the score at 8-8. It stayed tied until a minute left when the Tigers got a layup to fall for a 10-8 lead. The Blackhawks had three chances to re-tie or take the lead but three straight turnovers nixed the chance as the half ended with Prairie Grove clinging to a 2-point lead.

Both teams traded buckets with Cates knifing in for a layup and the Tigers scoring inside to keep their lead at 12-10. The Tigers then got a bucket and free throw to fall to get a little space ahead, leading 15-10. Cates made up most of the difference with a layup and two free shots as the Blackhawks led by just 1 at 15-14 with 3:35 left in the third.

Prairie Grove coach Steve Edmiston was upset with one of his players and he called timeout just a second before one of his guards let fire a 3-shot which went in but was disallowed because of the timeout called. The already upset coach then got tagged with a technical foul. Brewer made both shots and the Blackhawks were ahead 16-15.

Prairie Grove did get the lead back with a mid-range jumper with 30 seconds left in the third, but Cates alertly passed the ball down to Austin James down low just before the buzzer to send the Blackhawks into the final period with a lead, 18-17.

The guests got a layup to fall seconds into the fourth to retake the lead but a short jump shot by Josh Turner took the lead right back for Pea Ridge at 20-19 with seven minutes left. Prairie Grove got their fans to their feet with a free throw and layup to regain the lead at 22-20 with six minutes left. For the next two minutes both teams cranked up their defenses with no scoring until Evan Anderson got a shot to drop inside with four minutes left, tying the score at 22-22.

Brewer than stepped up to get the two biggest shots in the game, nailing two treys less than a minute apart, to shoot the Blackhawks ahead 28-22 with 2:28 left in the game, forcing the Tigers to change their defenses.

After making a shot to close the gap to four points with two minutes to go, the Tigers came out of their defense of the lane to regain possession. That left Anderson open and sharp Blackhawk passing to the junior forward paid off as he banked in three shots in the paint to put the game away. The Tigers could score but one point in the final two minutes, leaving the Blackhawks with a final 9-point victory.

The Blackhawks scored 20 points through the first three and half quarters, but rammed home 14 points in the last four minutes to carry

the day.

Brewer led the scoring with 11 points, followed by Cates with 8, Anderson 8, Bledsoe 3, Turner 2 and James 2.

Pea Ridge 34, Prairie Grove 25 Prairie Grove 6 4 7 8 — 25 Pea Ridge 3 5 10 19 — 34

(Left photo) Blackhawk sophomore Josh Turner (white No. 23) pushes down the court as Tigers Ryder Orr (black No. 24) and Cole Edmiston (black No. 15) attempt to block his progress Tuesday, Feb. 8, 2022. Pea Ridge won the boys basketball game 34-25. Prairie Grove senior Landon Semrad (black No. 12) goes up for a shot as Blackhawk senior Jared Brewer (white No. 20) attempts to block the shot Tuesday, Feb. 8, 2022, in Blackhawk Arena. Pea Ridge won the boys basketball game 34-25.

PHOTOS BY ANNETTE BEARD/ PEA RIDGE TIMES (Above photo) Prairie Grove sophomore guard Eric Henderson (black No. 3) works toward the goal guarded by Blackhawk junior Bric Cates (white No. 5) Tuesday, Feb. 8, in Blackhawk Arena. Pea Ridge won the boys basketball game 34-25.

Prairie Grove sophomore Eric Henderson (black No. 3) works toward the goal guarded by Blackhawk junior Bric Cates (white No. 5) and sophomore Austin James (white No. 24) Tuesday, Feb. 8, in Blackhawk Arena. Pea Ridge won the boys basketball game 34-25.

Prairie Grove senior Cole Cash (black No. 33) recovered the rebound and headed back up court as Blackhawk junior Evan Anderson and Tiger Landon Semrad keep a close eye on the ball.

The opening jump Tuesday, Feb. 8, in Blackhawk Arena as the Pea Ridge Blackhawks hosted the Prairie Grove Tigers. Blackhawk junior Evan Anderson (black No. 4) faced against Prairie Grove senior Landon Semrad (black No. 12).