McGehee turns back Smackover

MCGEHEE 60, SMACKOVER 57

SMACKOVER — McGehee’s Ryan Berry hit a 5-foot jumper in the lane to break a tie, and the Owls hit 4 of 6 free throws in the final 28 seconds Tuesday night to remain undefeated with a 60-57 victory over Smackover.

McGehee (16-0, 7-0 3A-8), the No. 3 team in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette’s Class 3A rankings, took a two-game advantage over the No. 6 Buckaroos (10-4, 5-2) in league play.

“We knew coming over here it was going to be a good game,” McGehee Coach Jerome Pace said. “They came [to McGehee] and played us a good game over there. … It was a big win for us.”

Trailing 44-43 entering the final quarter, the Owls surged ahead on a Kenny Lewis basket, a steal and layup by Berry and a three-point play by Gabe Pace for a 54-48 advantage with 2:24 left.

Smackover responded with back-to-back three-pointers from Chad Coulter and Logan Clark to tie the game at 54-54 with 1:28 to play.

After a McGehee timeout, Berry put the Owls ahead to stay with his inside basket. Then a costly turnover, one of 17 committed by Smackover, resulted in two free throws by Lewis and a 58-54 lead with 27.9 to play.

“We got the ball up the court like we were supposed to, but the ball just went through our hands,” Smackover Coach David Preston said.

The loose ball wound up in McGehee’s hands.

“We’d better get it,” Pace said. “We kind of pride ourselves of getting after loose balls.”

Of McGehee’s 23 field goals, all but one were within 10 feet.

“What I was concerned about was their scoring on the inside,” Preston said. “They were able to get a lot of rebounds and putbacks, and that was my concern.”

Berry finished with 18 points and Keanis Henry added 15 for the Owls. Jordan Jones had 17 for Smackover.