Huntsville girls basketball coach Charles Berry said his Lady Eagles are playing their best basketball at exactly the right time.
"You know, we've probably played our best three ballgames of the season in the state tournament," Berry said. "We started the season 0-3. But we've seemed to put everything together lately. We really didn't have a close game in the state tournament."
The Ticket
What: Huntsville vs. Paragould Class 5A girls state championship game
When: Today, 6 p.m.
Where: Summit Arena, Hot Springs
Notable: Huntsville has won two state titles (1997, 2008) and is appearing in its fourth state title game. … Paragould will be appearing in its third consecutive state title game, finishing as state runnerup the past two years. … Huntsville coach Charles Berry also coached the mother and father of senior Vanessa Burgess and the mother of senior Brittanie Gragg.
Senior Vanessa Burgess has definitely carried the load offensively, averaging more than 23 points per game in the state tournament. But point guard Brittanie Gragg and 6-foot post player Kara Cagle also drew praise from Berry.
"The biggest thing is our depth," Berry said. "We play about nine kids and they all come in and seem to contribute in some way."
The 79-year-old Berry, who has been coaching for more than 50 years with the last 46 being at Huntsville, will be taking the Lady Eagles to their four state championship game, having won state titles in 1997 and 2008. Huntsville lost to Batesville in the finals in 1983. This is also Huntsville's final season in Class 5A, as it moves back to Class 4A next season.
Huntsville's depth definitely came into play in the Lady Eagles' quarterfinal victory over Pulaski Academy. The Bruins trailed by only two after three quarters, but went without a field goal for the first 6-plus minutes of the fourth quarter.
Pulaski Academy coach Rick Treadway acknowledged his team ran out of gas against the deeper Lady Eagles.
"I told the girls afterward, I think we just got tired," Treadway said. "Coach Berry's been doing this a long time and I think he probably knew that. It's tough against a physical team like them, they get into your legs."
Paragould coach Jay Cook said the Lady Eagles (21-7) look like a typical Charles Berry-coached team.
"They are very fundamentally sound, tough and physical," Cook said. "They aren't going to help you by making mistakes and they execute their stuff to a 'T.' If you take something away, they have a counter. They also look like they are playing extremely well this week.
"They have the one kid who scores more than the others, but they can all score. That makes them tough to defend."
Paragould is appearing in its third consecutive state title game, having lost the last two. The Lady Rams, the 5A-East champions, have won 19 consecutive games since starting the season 3-5.
Huntsville is the No. 2 seed out of the 5A-West, but the Lady Eagles knocked off the 5A-Central and 5A-South champions on their way to the finals.
Berry said his team will need to play well to knock off the Lady Rams and win the title.
"I really thought they were the favorite coming into the tournament, them and Vilonia," Berry said. "They beat Vilonia and Vilonia beat us twice."
Sports on 03/15/2014