Har-Ber Uses Size To Down Springdale

Springdale Har-Ber fans attempt to distract Springdale sophomore Javonda Daniels as she inbounds the ball against Har-Ber during the second half on Tuesday at Springdale High.
Springdale Har-Ber fans attempt to distract Springdale sophomore Javonda Daniels as she inbounds the ball against Har-Ber during the second half on Tuesday at Springdale High.

— Springdale Har-Ber girls basketball coach Sandy Wright is trying to work Marleeya Montgomery into her rotation after the post player recently joined the team.

Montgomery got off to a slow start Tuesday in her second game this season for the Lady Wildcats. But so did everyone else for Har-Ber and Springdale High in their rivalry game at Bulldog Gymnasium.

Montgomery finally found her footing, and with the junior using her noticeable size advantage in the paint, the Lady Wildcats got just enough offense in the final 66 seconds to pull out a 42-40 win over the Lady Bulldogs.

“We planned to go inside all night because we had the size advantage,” Wright said. “We just didn’t do a real good job of executing.”

At least not at first.

SPRINGDALE HAR-BER 42, SPRINGDALE HIGH 40

Har-Ber 5 14 12 11 — 42

Springdale 7 7 21 5 — 40

Springdale Har-Ber (12-7, 3-1): Montgomery 17, Wright 11, Neal 6, Schalk 4, Weber 2, Redmond 2.

Springdale (6-10, 1-3): Jurgens 13, Wood 8, Perez 7, Taylor 5, Long 4, Daniels 2, McPherson 1.

Montgomery scored 13 of her game-high 17 points in the second half, including a bank shot in the lane with 1 minute, 6 seconds remaining to give Har-Ber a 41-40 lead. The Lady Wildcats (12-7, 3-1 7A/6A-West Conference) never relinquished the lead.

Caylee Wright hit one of two free throws to extend Har-Ber’s advantage to 42-40 with 22 seconds left, but Springdale (6-10, 1-3) had a chance to either knock off their crosstown rival in regulation or force overtime with a last-second shot.

But point guard Brittany Jurgens, who scored 10 of her team-high 13 points in the second half, missed a jumper with less than 10 seconds remaining. The Lady Bulldogs hustled for the rebound, but couldn’t get off another shot before the final buzzer.

“In those type of games, it really comes down to possessions, one possession at a time,” Springdale coach Heather Hunsucker said. “The last 2 1/2 minutes we had shots that we were making in the third quarter and fourth quarter, and they weren’t going in. And Har-Ber got a couple of nice possessions where we could not get a stop.

“And in those tight games, you have to get stops on the defensive end.”

Wright added 11 points for Har-Ber, with all but two of her points coming at the free-throw line.

Both teams struggled to find an offensive rhythm early on as they committed turnovers and missed shots around the basket. Springdale led only 7-5 after the first quarter, and Har-Ber got a boost from its post players in the second quarter to take a 19-14 halftime lead.

“We did not play our best game. I feel quite sure of that because we missed a lot of shots and we missed some free throws,” Sandy Wright said. “But we did what we had to do to win, and that’s all that matters right now.”

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