FAYETTEVILLE -- An overtime win against Conway in the first round of the Class 7A Tournament showed a lot about the Fayetteville boys' basketball season and just how far the Bulldogs had come.
Fayetteville made all the necessary plays down the stretch against the Wampus Cats late in the fourth quarter then turned to the right options on the court to help pull away in overtime to advance past Conway on its own Buzz Bolding Arena floor in a 54-49 win. The victory would be the Bulldogs' last of the season, losing to eventual state runner-up Springdale High in the second round. Just to get the win against Conway in the first place spoke volumes.
Fayetteville Bulldogs Schedule
Date^Opponent^Result/Time
Nov. 19^at Conway^W, 43-39
Nov. 25^Springfield (Mo.) Parkview^W, 47-39
Nov. 26^at Fort Smith Northside^L, 54-39
Conway Wampus Cat Invitational
Dec. 11^Pine Bluff^W, 65-53
Dec. 13^Harrison^L, 60-59
Dec. 14^North Pulaski^L, 61-59 (OT)
Dec. 20^at Fort Smith Southside^W, 52-33
Mountain Home Tournament
Dec. 26^Paragould^W, 55-45
Dec. 27^Sylvan Hills^W, 46-40
Dec. 28^Benton^L, 50-48 (OT)
Bulldog Classic, Fayetteville
Jan. 2^Springfield (Mo.) Kickapoo^L, 39-32
Jan. 3^Liberty, Mo.^L, 64-59 (OT)
Jan. 4^Tulsa (Okla.) McLain^W, 54-47
Jan. 10^at Rogers Heritage*^W, 51-45
Jan. 13^Van Buren*^L, 60-55
Jan. 17^Rogers High*^W, 56-48
Jan. 21^at Siloam Springs*^W, 51-42
Jan. 24^Springdale High*^L, 57-54
Jan. 28^at Springdale Har-Ber*^L, 49-43
Jan. 31^at Bentonville*^L, 52-49
Feb. 7^Rogers Heritage*^L, 51-44
Feb. 11^at Van Buren*^L, 59-55
Feb. 14^at Rogers High*^W, 67-49
Feb. 18^Siloam Springs*^W, 55-44
Feb. 21^at Springdale High*^L, 60-51
Feb. 25^Springdale Har-Ber*^W, 66-51
Feb. 28^Bentonville*^W, 54-50
March 6^vs. Conway at Class 7A Tournament^W, 54-49 (OT)
March 8^vs. Springdale at Class 7A Tournament^L, 54-40
- 7A/6A-West Conference game
"The first game of the state tournament is a game we probably would have lost earlier in the year," Fayetteville boys basketball coach Kyle Adams said. "Just not knowing who to go to and where to go in those situations towards the end of the quarters. In the early part of the year, we lost a lot of close games, some overtime games and a lot of last-second type games. A lot of that had to do with not understanding what they had in front of them.
"That's one thing I've seen with this group over the year. The leadership and confidence grew, and I was just so proud of them for that."
Fayetteville was almost an entirely new team this season. Seniors Mason Adams and Luke Renner were among the few who did see varsity time the year before but in limited action. The two mostly waited their turn on the bench as the Bulldogs featured a talented group that would finish as 7A state runner-up in both 2012 and 2013.
"For Mason, Luke, R.J. (Matthews) and Jared (Cozart) and all of our seniors, it really was a difficult situation," Adams said. "They had relied on such a talented group that had been ahead of them -- guys like Tyler McCullough, Manny Watkins, Ja'Wan (Smith) and Caleb (Waitsman) -- for the last two years.
"And I was really proud of the way they stepped up and did lead down the stretch. You could tell their confidence grew as the season went on in crucial situations. Possession basketball is what I call it at the end of a game, and it got so much better a month in the season to the end of the season."
Fayetteville's mix of seniors eventually blended well and began to develop with three talented younger Bulldogs. Junior C.J. O'Grady and sophomores Payton Willis and Blake Young were first-year varsity players but were all almost instantly inserted into the starting lineup.
Willis, a 6-foot-2 guard, took over as Fayetteville's top scorer right away. He scored 24 points in his first game at Bulldog Arena and then would tally nine points by himself in the overtime period in the win against Conway in the Class 7A Tournament.
Young, 6-5, gave the Bulldogs a tough inside presence with the losses of big men McCullough and Waitsman from the year before. O'Grady, coming off a stellar season of football, became one of Fayetteville's most reliable and consistent players near the end of the year.
Throughout the Bulldogs' 15-14 season -- which included a 14th consecutive postseason appearance -- Adams pointed to his seniors for making sure things continued on a steady path in the right direction.
"The thing I was most proud of with those guys is we had a chance to win every conference game late in the fourth quarter with the exception of maybe the Springdale game at their place," Adams said. "And we had that one down to a two-possession game at one point. So that's a tribute to these guys for sticking to it. Sometimes it got frustrating for them, but they always did what I asked them to do and they played extremely hard throughout the entire season."
With Willis, O'Grady and Young back next season, a strong nucleus returns. Fayetteville must replace seven seniors in all, but Adams likes what he sees overall as he looks to the future.
"Three starters coming back and we've got a JV bunch coming in that went undefeated this year," Adams said. "You really can't compare that, but we've got some athletes in there that we're definitely excited about.
"It will be hard to replace the shooting that we'll lose: guys like Mason and Luke, and guys like Jack who stepped up and shot the ball. We'll be more dribble oriented and more athletic, but I'm excited about the future."
Sports on 03/16/2014