CLASS 5A BOYS

Lions gets technical, wins by KO

Little Rock McClellan players Karson Hayes (left) and Andre Jones help Coach Chris Threatt show off the Class 5A state championship trophy Saturday after the Crimson Lions defeated Maumelle 82-73 at Bank of the Ozarks Arena in Hot Springs.
Little Rock McClellan players Karson Hayes (left) and Andre Jones help Coach Chris Threatt show off the Class 5A state championship trophy Saturday after the Crimson Lions defeated Maumelle 82-73 at Bank of the Ozarks Arena in Hot Springs.

HOT SPRINGS -- Little Rock McClellan was called for a technical foul late in the opening quarter when the Crimson Lions had only four players on the court during play.

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Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

Little Rock McClellan’s Keith Hayes (right) tries to shoot around Maumelle defender Tyshun Robinson. Hayes finished with 26 points.

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Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

Little Rock McClellan’s Andre Jones finished with 24 points for the third time in four state tournament games.

It was about the only time McClellan gave Maumelle a chance Saturday.

Keith Hayes and Andre Jones combined for 50 points as McClellan cruised by the Hornets, 82-73, in the Class 5A boys state championship game at Bank of the Ozarks Arena.

McClellan (24-6) hit six of its first eight shots and its first five three-pointers on its way to claiming its first state title since 2010.

McClellan's lead was never under eight points after the first four minutes, and one of the few early mistakes by the Lions came with 2:18 in the first quarter when they had only four players on the court.

"I've never had that happen," McClellan Coach Chris Threatt said. "I told the official 'I know you can get a technical for having too many people, but you told him to step off the floor.' ... I just had to own that one for not thinking."

The technical was the only hiccup to McClellan's great start. The Lions scored 16 of the game's first 19 points. Hayes connected on three consecutive three-pointers midway through the first quarter.

"Coach is always giving us a good pep talk before every game," Hayes said. "He tells us not to take any team lightly. We just encourage each other and keep pushing and punching."

Maumelle (22-9) came back from 10-point plus deficits to defeat Jacksonville and Hot Springs earlier in the state tournament, but the Hornets had no such magic left for the Lions.

"They made shots," Maumelle Coach Michael Shook said of the Lions. "They were 61 percent in the first half, 63 from three-point range. It's tough to beat somebody when they shoot like that."

The Hornets trailed by 10, 26-16, after the first quarter and by 11, 46-35, at the half. A three-point play at the start of the second half pulled the Hornets to within eight, but McClellan responded by scoring the next nine points.

McClellan's advantage had swelled to 67-51 by the start of the fourth quarter.

Hayes finished with 26 points on 8 of 16 shooting. He was 4 of 6 on three-pointers -- all in the first half -- and 6 of 7 from the free-throw line. Jones scored 24 points, which included 10 of 15 from the free-throw line.

Jones also pulled down a game-high 16 rebounds.

Junior forward Demarian Johnson led the Hornets with 21 points, Blake Conner added 17 points and grabbed a team-high 12 rebounds. Senior guard J.B. Minix finished with 11.

McClellan started the season by winning only six of their first 11 games. The Lions finished by winning 18 of their final 19.

The Lions hit 26 of 45 field-goal attempts Saturday, including 7 of 11 from three-point range.

McClellan had nine players score. The Lions got nine points from junior Karson Hayes and seven from sophomore Pierre Strong.

"We grew over the course of the season from one who I did not think was a playoff team to one who I thought played ultimate team basketball," Threatt said. "I told them I was so proud of them because they bought into the team aspect and that the team was so much bigger than any one individual."

MVP

ANDRE JONES, LR MCCLELLAN

Little Rock McClellan’s Andre Jones finished with 24 points for the third time in four state tournament games. The 6-4 junior hit 6 of 12 field-goal attempts, 2 of 3 three-point attempts and 10 of 15 free-throw attempts in Saturday’s victory over Maumelle. Jones also finished with 16 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals. “I was proud of the way I crashed the boards,” Jones said. “If I don’t hit the boards, we don’t get as many opportunities to score.”

AND ONES

The game started with Little Rock Mc-Clellan attempting free throws. Maumelle was caught dunking during the pregame and was assessed a technical. … Keith Hayes hit 1 of the 2 free-throw attempts. … There were a combined 49 fouls called in the game. Maumelle attempted 41 free throws; McClellan went to the line 33 times. … Andre Jones grabbed 14 defensive rebounds, which is among the top five best performances since State Finals records have been kept. Three players (Spencer Caraway from Izard County, Isaac McCoy of Alma and Ben Vaillancourt of Guy-Perkins) share the record with 16.

— Tim Cooper

Quotable

“I told the guys I was so proud of them because they didn’t win the state championship by default. They earned the championship on the floor.We were a team and we grew over the course of the year from one who I did not think was a playoff team to one who I thought played ultimate team basketball. They bought into the team aspect and that the team was so much bigger than any one individual.”

Little Rock McClellan Coach Chris Threatt

Sports on 03/15/2015

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