Arena opening a breeze for Lake Hamilton

PEARCY — It was the kind of debut a team dreams of.

Before a less-than-capacity crowd estimated at 1,000 but still sizable considering many area residents lacked power after a violent storm earlier Tuesday, Lake Hamilton opened its new arena with a pair of virtuoso performances. The Lady Wolves won 46-21 and the Wolves, in easier fashion, 60-18, leading 37-6 at halftime.

First the Lady Wolves make easily work of Mena, the Wolves were even more dominant in a 6o-18 romp

“We played hard. Defensively, I thought we played very sound,” boys coach Scotty Pennington said. “No matter who you play, when you hold somebody to six points for a half you’re thrilled.”

In their season opener, the Wolves most pleased their third-year coach with intensity.

“Something we talked about a lot is this arena is beautiful, it’s state of the art … but the thing that’s going to make it special are the teams on the floor,” Pennington said. “If the teams on the floor play their hearts out we’ll pack in 2,500 a night. That’s what’s going to make it special, not the immensities and the gadgets we have. That’s all fine and dandy, but if the teams play well that’s what’s going to make it special, and we made a good start tonight.”

Lake Hamilton scored the first seven points and led 17-2 after one quarter. Senior transfer Dewayne Matlock’s second and third treys of the half and five points by senior Stefan Daily ignited the 20-4 second quarter.

With coaches agreeing that the clock run continuously in the second half, Jason Burks and sophomore guard Defavion Haywood each scored four of the Wolves’ 14 third-quarter points Daily adding his final three. Reserves handled the final period, sophomore post Juan Jackson scoring three points.

Daily and Matlock, two started two seasons at Mountain Pine, both

finished with 10 points. Senior Nick Amerson had nine.

“Offensively, for the most part we executed and got the looks and shots we wanted,” Pennington said. “We shot a fair percentage. I’m just proud they came out and took care of business, didn’t get lost in the moment and all the to-dos that go along with this (arena) and forget to play the basketball game.”

Playing at and graduating from Class 1A Emerson makes coaching at Wolf Arena a thrill for Pennington.

“The place we played in last year is prettier than anything I played in, so walking out were with over 1,000 blows my mind,” he said. “Our administration. our school board, the patrons of our school district have by building this facility have given us everything we need to build this program and make it want we need it to be in the 6A and at the top on the conference.”

“If anything I put more pressure on myself. There are no excuses anymore. We’ve got the nicest dressing room in the state, we probably have one of the nicest arenas in the state, we’ve got multiple baskets to shoot on. We have everything, so there are no excuses. It’s time to get it done.”

The Wolves play home games tonight and Saturday in the Lake Hamilton Classic, facing Bauxite about 7:30 p.m. after Kirby plays Sylvan Hills. Lake Hamilton and Sylvan Hills meet on Saturday after Bauxite plays Sheridan at 1 p.m.

Both Lake Hamilton squads play Monday at Hot Springs and face Alma Dec. 1 at home. The Lady Wolves play Dec. 3-5, in the Battle of the Border at Branson, Mo.

Sophomore Elena Burkholder scored all of her 15 points, leading the Lady Wolves to a 46-21 rout of Mena.

“She’s a really good shooter,” Lake Hamilton girls coach Blake Condley said. “She’s a hard worker. I’m never surprised at her hitting five three-pointers.”

Anna Ledbetter, the team’s lone junior, had nine points and nine rebounds. Relying on a young player is nothing new for the Lady Wolves, who have opened 3-1 with two senior starters; sophomore Hannah Walker had eight points — all in the first half — while leading the offense and defense.

“Their attitude, their coach ethic,” Condley said of this youthful lineup. “Their chemistry has been really good…. They play together really well.”

He expressed the similar feeling as Pennington about Wolf Arena, the Lady Wolves also playing their first game there Tuesday.

“Like I told the kids before the game, from the dressing room to the weight room it’s one of the best facilities in the state,” Condley said. “Our administration and our community made sure we have what we need to contend in 6A.”