Junior Mustangs looking for strong conference finish
Three more games and the Forrest City Junior High basketball teams will wrap up the basketball season.
The Junior Mustang teams will play two of the final three games on the road and close out by hosting Stuttgart on Thursday, Feb. 4, a team they beat by more than 30 points Jan. 14, at Stuttgart.
What was originally scheduled as a five- game road schedule, leading up to the Feb. 4 finale, turned into a threegame road trip when eStem cancelled its final two scheduled games.
Overall this season, the eStem junior high teams were part of the 4A-5 conference but amid fears from family members, all of the eStem junior high games were cancelled and became forfeit victories for the Forrest City junior girls and junior boys.
The junior high district tournament, scheduled to begin on Feb. 13, at Lonoke has also been cancelled per Covid restrictions.
The Junior Mustangs begin the final three game stand at 13- 1 overall and unbeaten in the conference at 9- 0, with three forfeit wins, and very likely on their way to claiming a conference title under first year head Darius Williams.
In a recent interview, Williams talked about Kylan Williams who has stepped up his game this season for the Junior Mustangs, scoring 15 points and 10 rebounds to go along with a couple of blocked shots and steals in the victory over Wynne.
"He kept us going as did Terrion Burgess," Williams added. "That game against Wynne was a big game for us."
Unfortunately, the Junior Mustangs failed to keep the momentum flowing in the following game when they hosted Lonoke, a 72-15 loss for the Junior Mustangs, which ended with the starting five on the bench.
Williams' goal from the start of the season was to dominate each game from start to finish.
"I feel like we have done exactly that," Williams said. "It has been the lockeroom talk before all of the games. They understand we compete at practice in order to dominate in the games. Our practices are very competitive and from one through 12 they all play."
That has turned into the norm for Williams since the Dec. 10 Pulaski Robinson game.
Thursday's away game at eStem was cancelled. The junior boys and junior girls will next face Pulaski Robinson on Monday followed by Wynne and Stuttgart.
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The Forrest City Mustangs and Lady Mustangs will host Pulaski Academy tonight in a 4A- 5 conference doubleheader at Mustang Arena.
The Pulaski Academy Bruins, going into tonight's game, are sitting in third place in the conference standings, behind league leading Little Rock Mills and second place Wynne.
The Mustangs, still looking for their first conference win of the season, are sitting in last place in the conference.
Pulaski Academy leads the girls side of the conference standings while the Lady Mustangs are sitting in fifth place behind Lonoke and Wynne.
Tonight's doubleheader is the fourth home game of Forrest City's current five game home stand.
Both Forrest City teams will host Pulaski Robinson on Tuesday before beginning the second time through the conference, which will end with the final five games of the conference schedule on the road.
Both Forrest City teams lost to Lonoke in a doubleheader played Tuesday while the Pulaski Academy Lady Bruins defeated Stuttgart 76- 47 and the Pulaski Academy boys eased past Stuttgart 56-40.
••••• Palestine- Wheatley makes the conference road trip to DeWitt tonight for a junior boys game as well as varsity girls and varsity boys.
P-W is coming off a Tuesday home loss to Central Arkansas Christian in 3A- 6 conference action. Thursday's scheduled game against White County Central, a nonconference variety, was cancelled.
Following tonight's game at DeWitt, Palestine-Wheatley has six regular season conference games remaining on their schedule.
If able to be held the 3A- 6 junior high district tournament will be played beginning Feb. 8 and the senior high district will begin on Feb. 15, barring being sidelined by Covid restrictions.