Today’s overall top 10 games
BOYS NO. 1 NORTH LITTLE ROCK AT FORT SMITH NORTHSIDE
WHERE Northside Arena, Fort Smith
RECORDS North Little Rock 20-3, 9-0 6A-Central; Northside 12-12, 5-4 6A-Central
COACHES North Little Rock: Johnny Rice; Northside: Eric Burnett
NOTEWORTHY A North Little Rock win today sets up a crucial 6A-Central Conference game at home Friday against No. 9 Bryant, depending on whether or not the Hornets can beat Cabot. A half-game separates the Charging Wildcats and Bryant for the No. 1 slot. … Northside got balanced scoring last week to steal a win at Conway on Feb. 11, led by an 18-point night from Luke Young. … North Little Rock center Kel’el Ware had 33 points when the teams played Jan. 21 — an 86-56 victory for the Charging Wildcats.
WEST MEMPHIS AT NO. 2 JONESBORO
WHERE Don Riggs Hurricane Gymnasium, Jonesboro
RECORDS West Memphis 14-7, 6-3 5A-East, Jonesboro 20-3, 10-0 5A-East
COACHES West Memphis: Irving Clay; Jonesboro: Wes Swift
NOTEWORTHY West Memphis, which has won three games in a row and four of five overall, gave Jonesboro its closest challenge in conference play on. Jan. 18, in a 43-28 loss. … The Blue Devils hold a 6-5 edge in the previous 11 matchups, but the Golden Hurricane own wins in their last three head-to-head battles. … Two of Jonesboro’s next three games are on the road, including one at No. 5 Marion.
HAMBURG AT NO. 3 MAGNOLIA
WHERE Panther Arena, Magnolia
RECORDS Hamburg 3-17, 0-11 4A-8; Magnolia 21-0, 12-0 4A-8
COACHES Hamburg: Champ Watson; Magnolia: Ben Lindsey
NOTEWORTHY Magnolia can complete a third straight unbeaten run through the 4A-8 Conference with victories today and Friday at Warren. … A Hamburg upset would put an end to the Lions’ three-game losing streak. … The Panthers haven’t lost a home game since Feb. 1, 2019, which was a 59-55 defeat to Monticello.
BENTON
AT NO. 4 LITTLE ROCK PARKVIEW
WHERE Charles Ripley Arena, Little Rock
RECORDS Benton 11-10, 4-6 5A-Central; Parkview 19-3, 10-0 5A-Central
COACHES Benton: Dexter Hendrix; Parkview: Scotty Thurman
NOTEWORTHY Parkview held Beebe to nine points in the fourth quarter of its 58-30 win last week. … Cam Harris is coming off a 25-point, 7-rebound, 5-assist effort for the Panthers in a 70-68 loss to Jacksonville. … While the Patriots sit alone atop the 5A-Central, Benton is tied with Beebe for fifth place. Those two are a game back of Jacksonville for the No. 4 spot.
NO. 5 MARION AT BATESVILLE
WHERE Pioneer Gym, Batesville RECORDS Marion 18-5, 8-1 5A-East; Batesville 4-17, 0-10 5A-East
COACHES Marion: David Clark; Batesville: Chad LaRose
NOTEWORTHY Marion beat Batesville 75-45 in an earlier game but can’t look ahead to Thursday’s contest at third-place West Memphis. Marion will also play fourth-place Greene County Tech on Friday. … The Pioneers have lost 11 straight games, with its last victory coming over Marianna on Dec. 30. … The Patriots’ three 5A-East victories away from their home arena have been by an average of 9.3 points. By Erick Taylor
NO. 6 FAYETTEVILLE AT ROGERS
WHERE Mountie Arena, Rogers
RECORDS Fayetteville 18-4, 10-0 6A-West; Rogers 8-13, 4-6 6A-West
COACHES Fayetteville: Brad Stamps; Rogers: Lamont Frazier
NOTEWORTHY Fayetteville has already clinched a playoff berth, but if the Bulldogs beat the Mounties, they’d also clinch at least a share of the conference title. … Rogers leads Rogers Heritage by two games for the sixth and final playoff spot in the 6A-West. The two will play in the regular-season finale next week. … The 13-game winning streak that Fayetteville is one represents the longest in Class 6A.
NO. 8 MAUMELLE AT LITTLE ROCK HALL
WHERE George Cirks Arena, Little Rock RECORDS Maumelle 20-3, 9-1 5A-Central; Hall 0-17, 0-10 5A-Central
COACHES Maumelle: Michael Shook; Hall: Jon Coleman
NOTEWORTHY Hall’s young roster is hoping to notch its first victory of the year. … Maumelle guard Colby Garland, a two-time all-stater, recently received an offer from Otero (Colo.) College. … The Hornets ran past the Warriors 96-30 on Jan. 21, behind 21 points from Dexter White.
CABOT AT NO. 9 BRYANT
WHERE Hornet Arena, Bryant RECORDS Cabot 7-16, 3-7 6A-Central; Bryant 16-5, 9-1 6A-Central
COACHES Cabot: Logan Bailey; Bryant: Mike Abrahamson
NOTEWORTHY Cabot is currently locked in a battle with Little Rock Catholic, Conway and Little Rock Southwest for the last two postseason spots out of the 6A-Central. Less than two games separate the four in the standings. … Bryant got 24 points from Drake Fowler in its 63-41 victory over Southwest in its last game. … The Hornets have a date with No. 1 North Little Rock on Friday.
NO. 10 PINE BLUFF AT SHERIDAN
WHERE Yellow Jacket Arena, Sheridan RECORDS Pine Bluff 16-6, 10-0 5A-South; Sheridan 13-9, 3-6 5A-South
COACHES Pine Bluff: Billy Dixon; Sheridan: Joe Scott
NOTEWORTHY Outside of Jonesboro, there may not be a hotter team in Class 5A than Pine Bluff, which has won 10 consecutive games. … Sheridan has lost three of its past four games and plays at Texarkana and at Hot Springs on Thursday and Friday, respectively. … Courtney Crutchfield is averaging 23.6 points over his past five games for the Zebras.
NOTE No. 7 Farmington is idle.
GIRLS
NO. 1 CONWAY AT LITTLE ROCK CENTRAL
WHERE Boone-Fitzpatrick Fieldhouse, Little Rock
RECORDS Conway 23-1, 9-0 6A-Central; Central 16-7, 4-5 6A-Central
COACHES Conway: Ashley Hutchcraft; Central: Marlon Williams
NOTEWORTHY A win puts Central back at .500 in the conference and strengthens its playoff positioning. … Conway continued its dominance after beating No. 4 Fort Smith Northside last week. It will still have rematches with Northside, No. 2 North Little Rock and red-hot Bryant before the regular season ends. … The Lady Wampus Cats moved up to No. 10 in the ESPN national top 25 rankings.
NO. 2 NORTH LITTLE ROCK AT NO. 4 FORT SMITH NORTHSIDE WHERE Northside Arena, Fort Smith RECORDS North Little Rock 19-3, 7-1 6A-Central; Northside 19-3, 6-3 6A-Central
COACHES North Little Rock: Daryl Fimple; Northside: Rickey Smith
NOTEWORTHY Quite possibly the biggest game of the season for Northside, which lost at North Little Rock 60-58 three weeks ago. … The Lady Bears can move within a half-game of the second-place Lady Charging Wildcats in the 6A-Central. … North Little Rock, which is playing some of its best basketball since it put together an impressive stretch in December, beat Mount St. Mary 73-16 on Feb. 11. It was the fourth time in a row it’d held the Belles to less than 20 points.
ROGERS HERITAGE AT NO. 6 SPRINGDALE HAR-BER
WHERE Wildcat Arena, Springdale
RECORDS Heritage 16-7, 7-3 6A-West; Har-Ber 17-4, 9-0 6A-West
COACHES Heritage: Josh Laymon; Har-Ber: Kimberly Jenkins
NOTEWORTHY Har-Ber can inch closer to the league title with a win. Second-place Heritage, in turn, can trim its gap to 1.5 games for the top spot with a victory. … The Lady Wildcats’ Caylan Coons, the state’s reigning player of the week, averaged 28 points and 9.5 rebounds over the team’s previous two. … The Lady War Eagles have back-to-back games coming against Bentonville West and Fayetteville.
NO. 7 GREENWOOD AT SILOAM SPRINGS
WHERE Panther Arena, Siloam Springs RECORDS Greenwood 19-4, 10-0 5A-West; Siloam Springs 15-6, 6-3 5A-West
COACHES Greenwood: Clay Reeves; Siloam Springs: Tim Rippy
NOTEWORTHY Siloam Springs is trying to hold on to the No. 4 playoff spot. The Lady Panthers are currently a game in front of Greenbrier, but they own the tiebreaker. … Greenwood can lock up at least a share of the 5A-West crown with a win. … The Lady Bulldogs survived 57-52 when they played each other on Jan. 18.
WEST MEMPHIS AT NO. 9 JONESBORO
WHERE Don Riggs Hurricane Gymnasium, Jonesboro
RECORDS West Memphis 14-6, 7-2 5A-East; Jonesboro 15-6, 9-1 5A-East
COACHES West Memphis: Erica Leak; Jonesboro: Jodi Christenberry
NOTEWORTHY Beating its rival again can go a long way in Jonesboro’s quest to capture a conference championship. The Lady Golden Hurricane won 51-32 the last time they faced one another. … West Memphis has dropped five straight in the series. … The Lady Blue Devils are tied with Marion for second in the 5A-East and are two games clear of fourthplace teams Paragould and Greene Co. Tech.
EL DORADO AT NO. 10. LAKE HAMILTON
WHERE Wolf Arena, Pearcy
RECORDS El Dorado 14-5, 7-3 5A-South; Lake Hamilton 21-2, 10-0 5A-South
COACHES El Dorado: Ashlee Curtis; Lake Hamilton: Blake Condley
NOTEWORTHY Curtis was a part of El Dorado’s staff and was serving at the Lady Wildcats’ interim coach during the summer months before being elevated to head coach in July. … Lake Hamilton’s last loss was on Dec. 17, when it was beaten at Nettleton 53-36. It’s won 13 straight since then. … The Lady Wolves close with three consecutive games away from Wolf Arena after today.
NOTE No. 3 Farmington, No. 5 Melbourne and No. 8 Bergman are idle.