Washington County Enterprise-Leader
Final Analysis
BREAKING DOWN STATE CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
LITTLE ROCK — Losses in championship games are not welcomed in the competitive world of sports, yet, with understanding comes acceptance.
Here is a breakdown of Prairie Grove’s 33-32 loss to Malvern in the 4A state girls basketball finals held at Barton Coliseum at Little Rock on March 9.
Shot Selection
Abby Smith’s 3- pointer pushed Prairie Grove (29-5) to a 25-21 lead a minute into the fourth quarter, but the Lady Tigers couldn’t shake Malvern (32-2) in the state final. Poor shot selection at times contributed to Prairie Grove’s undoing. At times, Malvern’s bump and bruise style of defense succeeded in getting Prairie Grove to take off-balance shots, which resulted in airballs.
Lacey Beeks adapted well with drives to the basket for layups going 6-for-8 from the field with 13 points.
Turnovers
Prairie Grove had nearly twice as many turnovers (15) as Malvern’s eight. A dozen turnovers were recorded in the first three quarters with three squandered scoring opportunities during the fourth quarter. Many turnovers were unforced including multiple double-dribble violations.
Shots On Goal
This is a hockey statistic, which had a tremendous bearing in the final frame. In the fourth quarter, Malvern made 5 of 12 shots while Prairie Grove took only four shots from the field, making two. For the game, the Leopards attempted 47 field goals - 14 more than Prairie Grove.
No Calls
The biggest no call of the game came late in the fourth quarter with Prairie Grove leading 30-29.
With 1:45 showing, Huber used her height to tip a pass intended for Malvern guard, Raven Baker, in the backcourt. Huber went after the tip and had her hands on the ball, appearing to have made a successful steal but Baker plowed her over and picked up the loose ball as Huber fell.
If the play was deemed “Incidental Contact,” by the officials, the question remains, did one team gain a clear advantage?
Was there no clear advantage gained through the contact initiated by Baker?
Free Throws
“This time of year - free throws, defense and rebounding is going to be very important,” said Prairie Grove coach Kevin Froud earlier in the week before the state final.
Prairie Grove shot well from the free throw line in the fourth, making 5 of 6 foul shots. Macie Kultgen went 2 for 2 to tie the game at 27-27 and break Malvern’s momentum after Shakara Penix hit back-to-back 3-pointers from the same spot. Huber coolly swished a pair to give the Lady Tigers their last lead, of 32-31, with 17 seconds to go.
Overall, Prairie Grove was 7 of 9 compared to Malvern’s 3 of 4 performance. The state championship marked only the third game of the season in which Prairie Grove had less than 10 free throw attempts. For the season, the Lady Tigers attempted an average of 21.4 free throws per contest, making 15.8 charity shots per game for 74 percent.
Defense
For most of the game Prairie Grove’s defense held up well. Whitnee Fitts forced an early turnover in the first quarter by getting in the face of a Leopard receiving an inbounds pass, which resulted in a traveling call.
There was a critical breakdown on the last Malvern possession with no rotation to stop the dribble penetration by Tiffany Murdock in the last 10 seconds. Once Murdock got past the guards no player got into position to prevent her from driving all the way to the goal or box her out for the rebound.
Rebounding
Callie Robinson twice secured offensive rebounds in the game’s first 1:30 but Prairie Grove failed to capitalize on either opportunity and wouldn’t score their first basket until Huber’s driving bank shot with 5:33 left in the first quarter.
Prairie Grove out - rebounded Malvern 31 to 24 but the Leopards had 13 second chances compared to only nine for Prairie Grove. None was bigger than Murdock’s putback of her own miss, which gave the Leopards the lead with six seconds to go with a timeout stopping the clock at 3.7 seconds.
Class 4A Arkansas
Girls Basketball State Championship
March 9, Barton Coliseum at Little Rock MALVERN 33, PRAIRIE GROVE 32 Malvern 8 4 9 12 — 33 Prairie Grove 6 5 11 10 — 32
Malvern (32-2): Tiffany Murdock 1-6 0-0 2, Raven Baker 2-11 0-0 5, Akasha Westbrook 2-6 0-0 4, Alivia Huell 2-7 2-2 7, Shakara Penix 5-16 1-2 15, Zoe Ollison 0-1 0-0 0. Totals
12-47 3-4 33.
Prairie Grove (29-5): Whitnee Fitts 1-6 1-2 3, Lacey Beeks 6-8 1-2 13, Justyne Huber 4-9 3-3 11, Macie Kultgen 0-8 2-2 2, Callie Robinson 00 0-0 0, Abby Smith 1-2 0-0 3. Totals 12-33 7-9 32.
3-point goals - Malvern 6-22 (Penix 4-13, Huell 1-2, Baker 1-7). Prairie Grove 1-6 (Smith 1-2, Kultgen 0-2, Fitts 0-2). Rebounds - Prairie Grove 31 (Huber 9). Assists - Prairie Grove 7 (Beeks 2, Huber 2). Turnovers - Malvern 8. Prairie Grove 15.