ROGERS — Ozark, Mo., had too much inside and out for Rogers Heritage Friday night in the semifinals of the First National Bank of NWA Great Eight Classic in King Arena.
The Lady Tigers guards helped fashion a first-half lead and the inside players dominated the glass in the final two quarters to push the lead out more for a 61-39 win over Rogers Heritage.
Macey Putt, a 6-foot junior, scored six of her 11 points in the third quarter as Ozark (2-0) dominated the boards to cruise to the win.
Senior guard Bre Johnson finished with a game-high 16 points. Freshman Madi Braden added 13 — including three 3-pointers — for the Lady Tigers, who will take on Rogers High in the tournament finals at 4:30 p.m. today.
Heritage coach Scott Moore said Ozark’s experience played a big part in the game.
“They are a really good team,” he said. “Coach has been around. They play in a good league. I think their experience was a big key and I think we just kind of ran out of steam. We’ve played better in the fourth quarter the last few games. This one didn’t really pan out for us.
“I’m proud of the effort,” he continued. “We didn’t question their effort, just sometimes question the execution. We need to make smarter passes. When we go to the basket, we’ve got to look to finish and not avoid contact. We gotta handle contact and finish through that.”
Meredith Lakis led Heritage (3-1) with 11 points and Brooke Menke chipped in 10.
The Lady Tigers took control with a 13-2 second-quarter run to claim a 36-25 halftime lead. Braden drained a 3-pointer and later came up with a steal and fed Addy Lesley for a layup to close the run.
Johnson and Braden combined for 19 of Ozark’s 36 first-half points.
Rogers High 43, Webb City, Mo. 29
Maddi McKinney hit a pair of big 3-pointers during an 11-2 second-half run to help the Lady Mounties pull away and grab a spot in today’s championship game.
Rogers (4-0) used balanced scoring led by Elise Randels, who finished with 12 points and a team-high eight rebounds. Keley Richmond added 10 and McKinney also chipped in eight for the Lady Mounties, who extended a four-point lead to 13 at 35-22 on Randels’ layup to start the fourth quarter.
Hannah Woodcock led Webb City (3-1) with 14 points. The Lady Cardinals trailed 19-16 at halftime.
Camdenton, Mo. 68, Alma 43
The Lady Lakers jumped out to a 14-0 lead and never looked back, cruising to a win.
Coley Rezabek led Camdenton (3-1) with 15, while Blair Kurtz added 14 and Tegan Shockley chipped in 10. Kailey Fagen led Alma (0-4) with 13, while Abbye Ostrander added 10.
Fort Smith Southside 53,
Siloam Springs 44
The Mavericks held off a fourth-quarter rally to pick up their first win of the season.
Southside (1-3) outscored the Lady Panthers 16-4 in the second quarter to grab a 39-14 halftime lead. Siloam Springs (1-4) pulled within 40-35 midway through the fourth quarter, but got no closer.
Kelly Carson led all scorers with 17 points for Southside, while Lynley Sharum added 11. Morgan Vaughan led the Lady Panthers with 13, while Chloe Price chipped in 10.
First National Bank of NWA
Great 8 Classic
At Rogers High
Thursday’s scores
Game 1: Webb City, Mo. 51, Alma 42
Game 2: Ozark, Mo. 68, Siloam Springs 43 Game 3: Rogers High 65, Camdenton, Mo. 39 Game 4: Rogers Heritage 54, Fort Smith Southside 51
Friday’s scores
Game 5: Fort Smith Southside 53, Siloam Springs, 44 Game 6: Camdenton, Mo. 68, Alma 43
Game 7: Rogers High 43, Webb City, Mo. 29 Game 8: Ozark, Mo. 61, Rogers Heritage 39
Today’s Games
Game 9: Siloam Springs vs. Alma, noon.
Game 10: Fort Smith Southside vs. Camdenton, Mo., 1:30 p.m. Game 11: Webb City, Mo. vs. Rogers Heritage, 3 p.m. Game 12: Rogers High vs. Ozark, Mo., 4:30 p.m.