Springdale moves on
Springdale’s Chris Owens created problems for West Memphis all afternoon Friday as he scored a game-high 24 points to lead the Bulldogs into the quarterfinals with a 53-39 victory at Springdale Har-Ber High School. Springdale will try to beat Bentonville for the first time in three tries this season when they meet today.
SPRINGDALE — Chris Owens will play guard at the NCAA Division I level in college, but the Springdale senior made his mark in the paint Friday in the first round of the Class 7A boys basketball state tournament.
Owens, 6-3, scored a gamehigh 25 points and created a matchup problem for West Memphis as the the Bulldogs defeated the Blue Devils 5339 to advance to the quarterfinals of the tournament at Springdale Har-Ber High School.
“We put him down on the block late in the game when he had some mismatch problems,” Springdale Coach Brad Stamps said. “With that four-guard lineup, it allows him to go down there to get post points. If he’s got a big on him, he can take him out on the floor, and if he’s got a guard, he can post him. And that’s what we did late and got some baskets.”
Springdale will face Bentonville (19-5) at 5:30 p.m. today. The Tigers are the No. 1 seed from the 7A-West Conference and won the teams’ two regular-season meetings by a combined 15 points.
The Bulldogs ( 11-16) jumped out to a 15-8 lead after the first quarter and stretched it to 24-10 midway through the second quarter thanks to play by Owens and fellow senior TreShawn Gause, who finished with 14 points. Then Springdale went cold.
The Bulldogs didn’t score over the final four-plus minutes of the first half or over the first three-plus minutes of the second. But West Memphis (12-16) couldn’t take advantage, cutting the lead to 24-18 during the span as it struggled with offensive problems of its own.
“That was our opportunity,” West Memphis Coach Larry Bray said. “We just did not shoot the ball well at all and we let them pretty much do the things they were comfortable with doing and couldn’t get them out of their comfort zone.
“That was the big difference in the ball game.”
Owens ended Springdale’s drought with a basket and free throw in the third quarter, and the Bulldogs came back to life on the offensive end as they quickly built their lead back to 14 points by the end of the third quarter.
With Owens making plays in the post and Gause hitting mid-range jumpers, Springdale extended the lead to 18 in the fourth quarter.
The Bulldogs went with Owens at the power forward spot in a four-guard lineup that primarily consisted of him, Gause, senior Tyler Tutt and freshman Tyler Garrett along with junior forward Kyler Mahar.
“It gives us ball-handling on the floor and really helps us defensively as well,” Stamps said.
Gary Ward scored a teamhigh 13 points for West Memphis, while Darius Williams chipped in 10.
FORT SMITH NORTHSIDE 71, CABOT 44
The Grizzlies started the game with a 16-0 run and never looked back Friday evening as they defeated Cabot in an opening-round game at the state tournament.
Fort Smith Northside (20-10) advanced to the quarterfinals, where it will play Van Buren, the top seed from the 7A-Central Conference, at 8:30 tonight.
Senior Tyler Triplett led Fort Smith Northside, the No. 4 seed from the 7A-West, with a game-high 17 points. Dedric Patterson added 10 points, while Tevin Brewer and Jackson Forsey chipped in nine each.
Logan Gilbertson led Cabot, the No. 3 seed from the 7A-East, with 11 points.
ROGERS HERITAGE 52, BRYANT 48
Bryant had trouble guarding Rogers Heritage guard Lexus Hobbs earlier this season, and that didn’t change much in the opening round of the state tournament.
The 5-foot-11 guard scored a gamehigh 23 points and made key plays down the stretch to help the War Eagles advance to the quarterfinals, where it will face fellow 7A-West member Fayetteville at 2 p.m. Sunday.
Hobbs scored five points in a 7-2 Heritage run late in the fourth quarter, after Bryant (14-13) had tied the game at 41 on Romen Martin’s long three-pointer.
The War Eagles also made free throws late, something they struggled with for the majority of the game. Heritage made 16 of 27 free throws overall, but hit 8 of 10 in the fourth quarter and 6 of 6 in the final 70 seconds to secure the victory.