Tigers Punch Ticket To Regionals

PRAIRIE GROVE — Prairie Grove took out Huntsville, 44-32, in the quarterfinals of the District 4A-1 boys basketball tournament, gaining opportunity to advance to Regionals on Wednesday, Feb. 19.

Free throw shooting in the fourth quarter helped the Tigers maintain the lead and put the game away. The Tigers were 7-for-9 at the foul line in the fourth.

The superior height of the Tigers bothered Huntsville in the early going. Several Eagle shots got rejected and Prairie Grove owned the defensive boards. Prairie Grove led 15-2 at the end of the first quarter.

“This year, we’ve been notoriously slow starters and we’ve worked our way from behind,” said Prairie Grove coach Steve Edmiston. “It was so imperative we get off to a fast start. I thought we clicked from the word go, defensively, and, offensively, we got a little loose. We knew Huntsville would come back, and they did. But we were able to hang on for the next three quarters.”

Sloan Smith led the Tigers with 14 points and generated an impact on offense along with Alex Edmiston with 10 points, Noah Ceniceros with 8, and Carl Von Bergon with 7. The Tigers were up 26-16 at halftime.

Each team scored nine points in the third period which ended with Prairie Grove in front by 10, at 35-25. The Tigers got a big bucket just before the horn sounded when John Mayers took an in-bounds pass and drove the baseline. He saw Smith cutting to the basket and handed out an assist.

Huntsville wouldn’t go away without a fight. The Eagles closed to within, 35- 29, a minute and 40 seconds into the fourth.

Prairie Grove answered with an 8-0 run over a 3:16 span. Smith converted both ends of a 1-and-1. Ceniceros added a pair at the foul line. Ceniceros cut to the basket and Von Bergon found him all alone for an easy bucket. Smith added more free throws to make it 43-29 at the 2:16 mark.

“A month ago, we were sitting at 6 and 11,” Steve Edmiston said. “We hit a little run and, at this point, I think we’ve won nine of our last 11. It’s just a matter of playing with confidence and catching momentum at the right time. Everybody wants to be playing their best at this time of year, and I think that’s where we’re at.”

The win advanced Prairie Grove into the district tournament semifinals versus Pea Ridge Thursday.

Hunter Davidson led Huntsville with 11 points while Kent Mayes added 8 and Hayden Dotson had 7.

PRAIRIE GROVE 44, HUNTSVILLE 32

Huntsville 2 14 9 7 — 32 Prairie Grove 15 11 9 9 — 44 Huntsville (17-10): Hunter Davidson 11, Kent Mayes 8, Hayden Dotson 7, Matthew Sisk 3, Reynolds 2, McDaniel 1. Prairie Grove (15-11): Sloan Smith 14, Alex Edmiston 10, Noah Ceniceros 8, Carl Von Bergen 7, Jake Webb 3, John Mayers 2. 3-Point Goals — Prairie Grove 3 (Von Bergen, Webb, Edmiston), Huntsville 3 (Mayes 2, Dotson).