SPRINGDALE — It wasn’t pretty at times, but Springdale High boys basketball coach Brad Stamps will take the win.
That Figures
20 — Points the Bulldogs scored in the first quarter against Bentonville
6 — Points the Bulldogs scored in the first quarter against Van Buren
The Bulldogs (13-7, 5-2 7A/6A-West Conference) will ride a two-game winning streak into a weeklong break in the schedule following Friday’s 36-29 win over Van Buren.
Stamps admitted his team struggled to get its transition offense going against a Van Buren team determined to slow down the pace of the game. The Bulldogs scored only six points in the first quarter and 19 in the first half.
“Obviously, I didn’t think we played pretty well, (but) it’s one more game off the conference schedule,” Stamps said. “At the end of the night you put a ‘W’ up in the column and so that’s big.”
Springdale helped itself in the 7A/6A-West race by winning a pair of games last week, including a 57-50 victory at Bentonville that put the Bulldogs tied with Siloam Springs (15-3, 5-2) for second in the conference.
Stamps said his team will work on fixing “some things” before it returns to action next Friday at Rogers High, which Springdale has already beaten once this season.
PLAY OF THE WEEK: Springdale’s girls erased a 7-point deficit and briefly took a 41-40 lead against Van Buren, thanks to a flurry of shots from point guard Brittany Jurgens midway through the fourth quarter. In a span of 33 seconds, the senior hit back-to-back 3-pointers and a midrange jumper as part of an 8-0 run.
Jurgens finished with a team-high 18 points and left Van Buren coach Merrill Mankin impressed with her hot hand in the fourth quarter.
PLAYERS OF THE WEEK: Jurgens had a pair of impressive performances in losses last week. The senior scored 20 points in Tuesday’s 63-44 loss at Bentonville, then had 18 on Friday to help the Lady Bulldogs hang with Van Buren before suffering a 51-45 defeat.
Forward Alex Scharlau proved to be the Bulldogs’ most consistent scorer last week, averaging 12.0 points in wins over Bentonville and Van Buren. The senior’s layup extended Springdale’s lead to 32-29 over the Pointers with 3 minutes, 30 seconds remaining.
NOTABLE: Springdale forward DaShaun Stark followed up his 26-point performance at Bentonville with two points against Van Buren. His only points came in the first half. ... Springdale guard Baiyinnah Taylor didn’t dress out for Friday’s loss to Van Buren.
THE LINGO: “I told them they had to get their energy level up. They looked flat to me. It looked like Colors Day. It looked like we had a long day, and we’d been laying around at home and worried about our dresses.”
Heather Hunsucker
Springdale High girls coach
UP NEXT: Springdale will have a rare Tuesday off this week before returning to the floor next Friday with a pair of games at Rogers. It will be the second meeting between the Bulldogs and Mounties, who already faced each other on Jan. 4 at Springdale.