Regional Standings Play Set To Begin

Monday, January 13, 2014

Winter weather wiped out much of last week for Northwest Arkansas Conference basketball teams, leaving them little time to prepare for the upcoming regional standings games that start counting on Thursday.

Bentonville Gold, Fayetteville Woodland and Springdale Southwest took part in the annual Kenny Whitson Memorial Tournament over the weekend in Fort Smith, albeit with a revised schedule.

The tournament was originally supposed to run Thursday to Saturday but was changed to a two-day event except for the championship games, which will take place Tuesday at Chaffin Junior High. The girls begin at 5 p.m. with the boys set to follow at 6:30.

Both Woodland teams are in the finals with the Cowboys (7-2) advancing thanks to 50-36 and 38-30 victories over Fort Smith Ramsey and Chaffin. They will encounter undefeated Fort Smith Kimmons in the final.

“Our victory over Ramsey on Friday was a great team victory,” Woodland coach Jeff Boogaart said. “We had 11 different players score.”

The Cowgirls (9-0) moved past Fort Smith Darby 33-22 and Southwest 38-25 and will take on Ramsey in the championship tilt.

“That Southwest game was probably the best we have played so far,” Woodland coach Marilyn Bauer said. “Overall, we’ve played really good coming out of the roller coaster holiday and school schedule. Our post play has become a big part of our game with great guards making good decisions and passes within the game, which is making us a well-balanced team. We’re looking forward to tomorrow night.”

Southwest’s boys had lost only one time before the tournament, but head coach Steve Price said it was important for his Cougars (7-2) to play those games because of missed practice time.

They opened with a 40-32 defeat at the hands of Darby but rebounded with a 56-40 triumph over Russellville East on Saturday.

“We were very sloppy, and our conditioning was poor,” Price said. “We got some good work from several players. Cole Phillips made the all-tournament team and Parker Weiser shot the ball good on Saturday. We have a lot of work to do with our defense.”

Southwest’s girls followed the same pattern as their male counterparts, although in reverse order. They beat Kimmons 56-43 Friday before the loss to Woodland.

“We competed well against two quality teams, especially considering the limited gym time we’ve had.” Southwest coach Cameron Walker said. “Out of the eight quarters we played, I’m really only disappointed with the third quarter against Woodland.”

Walker said his team is led by Khanni Shannon and Savanna Collins, who are both averaging 11 points a game. Maci Mains and Krislyn Smith are averaging 8 points each.

“AJ Powell and Emily Wilson are also making positive contributions,” Walker said. “I’m excited about our chances entering conference play. I think our best basketball is still yet to come.”

Both Gold teams also went 1-1 over the weekend with the boys falling to Chaffin but upending Ramsey. The girls dropped one to Ramsey but cruised past Russellville East 37-17.

Springdale Central and Springdale George are staring down a busy week. Not only will the schools have games on Monday and Thursday nights, but they are also participating in the Huntsville tournament on Tuesday and Friday.