Lions avenge loss to Saints, defeat Mastiffs in nonconference game
GRAVETTE — After pulling escort duty for the basketball homecoming queen’s entourage Jan. 12, members of the Gravette Lions boys’ basketball team turned their attention toward the job at hand, basketball. Their opponent? The Shiloh Christian Saints.
The contest, played at the competition gym in Gravette, was the second meeting between these two teams. The first, in Springdale on Dec. 1, ended with a one-point Lions’ loss to the Saints, 57-56. The Lions were looking for revenge as they started the Jan. 12 contest.
The opening tip-off went to the Saints. Thirtyfive seconds later, a Shiloh player hit a three-point shot from the left wing to give the Saints an early lead. On the very next play, Gravette answered with a three-point shot of its own from the left wing, making it a three-all ballgame. The Lions hit a two-pointer on their next possession and the race was on. By the end of the first quarter, Gravette held a 14-11 lead over Shiloh.
One minute and 30 seconds into the second quarter, the Saints tied the contest at 14 all. Shiloh stayed with the Lions until the halfway point in the quarter when Gravette began a run that would extend its lead to six going into the final minute of the first half. With 40 seconds left, the Saints pulled to within one, 23-22. With less than 10 seconds remaining in the quarter, a Gravette player hit a two-pointer to give the Lions a 25-23 lead going into the second half of play.
As the second half got underway, a slight change in the Lions’ game plan by Coach Matt Busch proved its worth as Gravette began an 11-0 run on Shiloh in the first three minutes of the third quarter. The Saints tried to power back but the Lions, on a mission, proved too much and the game ended with Gravette winning the contest by nine, 61-52, and the conference victory.
One Lion, Dayten Wishon, was in double figures with 23 points, followed by Chase Austin, Chris Childress, Kelton Trembly and Bailey Soulé, each with eight points, and Braydon Trembly with six.
In an earlier matchup Jan. 9, the Lions traveled to Fayetteville to take on the Haas Hall Academy Mastiffs at Fayetteville Christian School in Fayetteville. It was the Lions by 23, 5330, in the nonconference contest.