Central wins
Little Rock Central guard Bryson Warren had trouble knocking down shots for the first three quarters Tuesday, but scored 10 of his team-high 20 points over the game’s final eight minutes to power Central past Bryant.
6A-CENTRAL BOYS LR CENTRAL 56, BRYANT 43
Little Rock Central guard Bryson Warren had a tough time knocking down shots through the first three quarters of Tuesday night’s game against Bryant.
But the sophomore caught fire in the fourth to pick the Tigers up out of a rut and send them to a victory on Senior Night.
Warren scored 10 of his team-high 20 points over the game’s final eight minutes to power Central past the Hornets 56-43 at Eddie Boone-Oliver Fitzpatrick Jr. Fieldhouse.
Junior guard Cody Robinson scored all 10 of his points in the second half while senior guard Corey Camper had 9 points, 6 rebounds and 3 steals for Central (18-4, 10-1 6A-Central), which bounced back after last Friday’s upset loss to Fort Smith Northside.
“I thought our half-court defense was really good the whole 32 minutes,” said Central Coach Brian Ross, whose team shot 20 of 48 (41.6%) from the floor. “We let [Bryant] get some stuff in transition and we let them get a lot of offensive rebounds, all of which hurt us. We finally started taking care of those little things there in the fourth quarter and really shut them down.
“And it was a really physical game. But the key, I thought, was that we had three physical finishes at the rim to start that fourth, and then everybody kind of loosened up after that.”
Warren especially got loose for the Tigers, who also matched last season’s win total with the victory. He shot just 3 of 9 in the first half and made just one free throw in the third before scoring seven points during a 9-0 run to start the final frame to snap a 38-38 tie and give Central some breathing room.
Senior guard Camren Hunter finished with 20 points, 14 rebounds, 6 assists and 4 steals for Bryant (15-4, 7-4), which suffered through a miserable night from the outside. The Hornets missed all 16 of their three-point attempts and trailed the entire game. Bryant hit just 17 of 53 (32%) overall from the floor but managed to stay step for step with Central.
The Tigers led by as many as nine points in the first half and was up 28-19 with 2:39 left in the second after a threepoint play from Warren until the Hornets scored the final four points to trim their deficit to five at the half.
Bryant cranked up its defense a bit in the third period by contesting nearly all of Central’s shot attempts and keeping Ross’ team off the glass. The Tigers made just 3 of 13 (23%) in the quarter compared to 6 of 12 (50%) for the Hornets.
“It was one of those things where I don’t think either of us really shot it well there,” Ross explained. “They’re going to study us, we’re going to study them, know exactly what each of us can and can’t do. It was really a game where we were trying to attack each other’s weaknesses.
“It was tough there for a while.”
Bryant eventually tied the game at 38-38 on Hunter’s basket and free throw with 47.7 ticks left in the quarter, but it’d be the last bucket the Hornets would make until late in the fourth.
Warren opened the final period with a 21-footer, fed Camper for a basket and hit back-to-back buckets inside to help the Tigers open up a 4738 lead. Bryant missed its first eight shots and finally notched its first field goal when junior guard Gabe George scored on a reverse lay-up with 1:01 left in the game. By that time, Central had built a double-digit lead.
“Our kids did a great job, especially late,” Ross said. “I spent all weekend frustrated with losing [to Northside], but I knew that was probably good for us. It helped us get refocused and kept us hungry.
“We know we have to stay on top of things going down the stretch. We don’t have a two-game cushion anymore in conference play. We’ve got to play every night, or that thing will be gone in a heartbeat.”
GIRLS
LR CENTRAL 56, BRYANT 50
A three-point conversion from freshman forward Jordan Marshall with 7:40 left in the fourth quarter broke a 42-42 tie and gave Central the lead for good.
Senior guard Lauryn Pendleton had 18 points and six rebounds and Marshall ended with 15 points and 10 rebounds for the Lady Tigers (10-10, 4-5 6A-Central), who trailed 28-25 at halftime. Senior guard Elyse Smith added 12 points for Central.
Junior guard Parris Atkins had 33 points, 16 rebounds and 3 steals for Bryant (98, 2-6), which made just 3 of 14 (21.4%) shots in the final quarter.