Henderson hosts Harding in regional showdown
ARKADELPHIA — Early frontrunners in the Great American Conference are set to duel today at the Duke Wells Center when Henderson State faces off against Harding.
The women’s game is scheduled to tip off at 1 p.m. with the men’s game to follow at 3 p.m. All fans who bring a toy for donation will receive free entry to both contests as part of Henderson’s annual Angel Tree game.
Henderson (6-1, 2-0) checked in at No. 8 in the most recent Division II Sports Information Directors of America Central Region Poll with Harding (6-1, 2-0) at No. 6. The top eight teams in the regional rankings at the end of the year will earn bids to the NCAA Tournament.
The Reddies coasted past NAIA opponent Wiley College (2-5), 61-45, in their home opener on Tuesday.
Today’s meeting is the 56th all-time between Henderson and Harding. The Lady Bisons lead the series, 29-26.
Men
Henderson’s men’s basketball team is looking for its third straight win against Harding.
The Reddies (6-2, 1-1) swept the Bisons (4-3, 2-0) last season for the first time since the 200506 season.
Henderson scored 58 points in the paint and 31 points off of turnovers in the team’s home opener on Tuesday, a 97-58 win against Oklahoma Panhandle State (6-2). All 12 Reddies to play in the game scored.
Harding’s Jeff Morgan is the long-tenured coach in the GAC. He has won 421 games in 26 seasons with the Bisons.
Junior Wolves’ record remains unblemished
CONWAY — Lake Hamilton’s junior Wolves earned a 6844 road win on Thursday against Conway’s Blue team.
Gavin Robbins led all scorers with 22 points and Chase Jessup scored 15. Zac Pennington, Ethan Watson and Cade Robinson added 12, nine and eight points, respectively.
The junior Wolves will be at home on Monday in a battle of unbeatens against Lakeside. Girls
Lake Hamilton’s junior high girls’ basketball team lost, 47-36, at Conway Blue.
The junior Lady Wolves faced a 16-5 deficit after the first quarter. They trailed, 31-16, at the halftime break.
The junior Lady Wampus Cats shot 50 percent in the first half from behind the 3-point line. The hosts did not miss a shot in the opening quarter.
“We came out stronger in the second half and won the second half by four points, but Conway is such a good team, and a 15 point deficit is so hard to come back from in a junior high game against a team like them,” said Lake Hamilton junior high coach Maribeth Richards.
Hayleigh Wyrick led all scorers with 16 points as Conway Blue finished with four players in double figures. Ginny Higginbotham added eight points for Lake Hamilton.
The junior Lady Wolves have a home game on Monday against Lakeside.
Centerpoint clips FL to close Poyen tourney
POYEN — Centerpoint’s junior high girls’ basketball team topped Fountain Lake, 36-26, on Thursday in Poyen’s tournament.
The junior Lady Cobras (7-3) carried a lead into the fourth quarter. They trailed, 9-5, after the opening quarter, but they surged ahead, 18-13, by the end of the half.
Centerpoint made it a onepoint game, 24-23, by the end of the third quarter. The junior Lady Knights won the fourth quarter, 11-2, to take the win.
Fountain Lake almost shut out Magnet Cove on Wednesday in the tournament. The lead was
10-0 after the first quarter and it doubled to 20-0 by halftime.
Magnet Cove got its only points of the game in the third quarter. The margin was 25-2 by the end of the quarter before Fountain Lake finished off the
33-2 win.
Kara Martin was the leading scorer with 15 points. Elizabeth Roark added six points.
Boys
Fountain Lake (7-3) also won the boys’ game between the two teams on Wednesday.
The junior Cobras inched ahead, 11-0, after one quarter and took a 15-12 advantage into the halftime break. The won the third quarter, 15-1, and pulled away for a 40-21 win.