CLASS 6A

Siloam Springs holds off surge

— Peyton Henson scored a game-high 30 points to help Siloam Springs hold off Russellville’s three-point shooters in a 56-46 victory in the opening round of the Class 6A boys state tournament at H.B. Stewart Bulldog Arena.

Henson and the Panthers built a 43-28 lead heading into the fourth quarter, but the Cyclones battled back in the second half after they had failed to score in the first quarter.

Russellville hit eight three-point baskets in the second half and cut Siloam Springs’ lead to 52-46 with 1:22 left.

“They struggled from the three-point line in the first half and we hoped it would stay that way, but they got hot and hit all those threes in the second half,” Siloam Springs Coach Tim Stewart said. “Those can change the game.”

Henson set the tone early by scoring 19 points in the first half, but he was limited to 11 in the second half with two or three Cyclones guarding him at times.

“Peyton had a good first half and he was a little frustrated in the second half by them,” Stewart said. “We were in stand-and-watch mode for a little bit, but we got some guys getting some wide-open layups.”

Russellville didn’t make a three-pointer in the first half as it started slowly on offense. The Cyclones didn’t make afield goal until 6:30 left before halftime.

“We dug ourselves a big hole there in the first half,” Russellville Coach Codey Mann said. “We were wideeyed there for a bit, but that Henson is a special kid and controlled the whole game.”

Mann said he was thankful to be down just 6-0 heading into the second quarter and that he knew the three-pointers would eventually fall.

“We are a good shooting team, so we knew they would come eventually,” Mann said. “We just needed to move a little bit and getting some confidence. We did a good job attacking the zone, too.” LITTLE ROCK HALL 59, LAKE HAMILTON 33

Gregg Easter hit five three-pointers and led all scorers with 19 points as the Warriors pulled away early from the Wolves.

Hall came out hot offensively and led 24-9 heading into the second quarter. Bobby Portis, a University of Arkansas signee, added 17 points for the Warriors.

Lake Hamilton was led by Malik Blevins’ eight points, which included his 6-for-6 performance at the freethrow line.

BENTON 63, SEARCY 45

The Panthers had four players score 10 or more points as they picked up a first-round victory against the Lions on Tuesday night.

Rickey Gipson led Benton with 16 points, while Joshua Bowling added 13 points and Graham Gardner and Bryan Torres had 11 each. The Panthers took a 32-19 lead into halftime as those four combined for 28 of the team’s first-half points.

The Panthers extended their lead to 54-26 heading into the fourth quarter after allowing only seven points in the third.

Emaje Young hit four three-pointers and finished with 12 points to lead Searcy, while Madison Wright added 11.

Sports, Pages 25 on 02/27/2013

Upcoming Events