CLASS 5A

Pulaski Academy asserts itself early

ALMA - Pulaski Academy started the game strong and held off a late rally by Camden Fairview for a 57-44 victory in the first round of the Class 5A state tournament at Charles B. Dyer Arena.

The Bruins (21-5) used a 12-0 run to take a 14-5 lead heading into the second quarter, then used an 11-6 run at the end of the first half to take a 27-15 lead at the break.

Pulaski Academy extended the lead to 33-18 early in the third quarter and was never threatened.

“We are happy to get a good win against a really good team, because they do a super job,” Pulaski Academy Coach Roger Franks said. “I thought our guys made just enough plays. That early lead really helped us.”

Marcus Wallace finished with a game-high 23 points for Pulaski Academy and was 7 of 12 from the field. Lawson Korita added 20 points, making 9 of 10 free throws.

“I thought our guys did a really good job of getting to the basket early,” Franks said. “In the first half, our post defense was really good. We let up a little with that in the second half.”

Camden Fairview (19-9) cut the lead to 40-33 on a basket by Justin McCoy with 6:00 left in the game, but Pulaski Academy finished the game strong and never let it get close after that.

McCoy led the Cardinals with a team-high 13 points and a team-high 10 rebounds.

“McCoy is a tough guy to guard because he can score inside and outside,” Franks said. “He played really well for them, but we did finish strong.

“They didn’t just go away.” JACKSONVILLE 75, HOPE 64

Hope (15-10) kept it close early in the first quarter, but Jacksonville (24-4) put together a strong second quarter on its way to a first-round victory.

The Red Devils used a 23-point second quarter to help build a 37-27 lead going into halftime.

Hope cut the lead to 70-61 with 2:00 minutes left in the game on two free throws by Jaquez Smith, but it couldn’t get any closer.

Devin Campell scored a game-high 24 points for Jacksonville and finished 7 of12 from the field and 10 of 18 from the free-throw line. Sergio Berkley added 15 points and Tyree Appley 11.

Smith led Hope with 20 points, making 5 of 11 shots from the field.

LR MCCLELLAN 73, WATSON CHAPEL 60

Watson Chapel (19-7) held a 34-31 lead at halftime, but it didn’t last for long in the third quarter against Little Rock McClellan (16-11).

The Wildcats opened the second half with a three-pointer by Calvin Robinson but didn’t score again in the quarter until 22 seconds remained.

McClellan used an 18-1 run to grab a 49-38 lead going into the fourth quarter and never looked back.

Keith Hayes, who had a team-high 17 points, scored 10 points and made all eight of his free throws in the fourth quarter. Andre Jones finished with 14 points, Quawn Marshall had 11 and Greg Hollis scored 11.

Ben Marcus scored 18 to lead Watson Chapel. Datreon Lindsey added 16 and Tevin Brown had 11.

Sports, Pages 24 on 03/08/2014

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