FORT SMITH -- Just one minute, 28 seconds into the Fayetteville-Fort Smith Northside girls' basketball showdown, coach Rickey Smith had doubts about his Lady Bears' chances.
With star senior Aahliyah Jackson sent to the bench with two quick fouls, Northside did its best to hang close without Jackson. When the Texas A&M signee came back on the floor at the beginning of the second quarter, she and her Lady Bears' teammates slowly took control in a 52-45 win at Kaundart-Grizzly Fieldhouse on Friday.
How They Scored
Girls
Fort Smith Northside 52, Fayetteville 45
Fayetteville^12^8^15^10^—^45
Northside^9^14^18^11^—^52
Fayetteville (9-5, 0-1): Franklin 10, P. Jones 9, Mayberry 9, Spangler 8, Breathitt 4, B. Jones 3, Morgan 2.
FS Northside (16-1, 1-0): Jackson 20, Bandimere 7, Krissman 6, Kinnard 6, Hardesty 6, Webster 5, Hawkins 2.
Boys
Fayetteville 67, Fort Smith Northside 48
Fayetteville^18^12^24^13^—^67
Northside^9^12^16^11^—^48
Fayetteville (12-2, 1-0): Breathitt 21, Brown 16, Willis 8, Wymer 7, Carlson 7, Rainey 2, Roth 2.
FS Northside (8-7, 0-1): Brewer 17, Forsey 11, Lewis 8, Joe 6, Norwood 3, Taylor 2, Phillips 1.
"I'm not going to lie. When Aahliyah was on the bench, I had my doubts," Smith said. "Neither team played really well, but Jackson was on a mission when she came back in."
Fayetteville led 12-9 after one quarter before Jackson scored 11 points in the second to help Northside (16-1, 1-0 7A-West) respond for a 23-20 halftime lead. Jackson, who finished with 20 points, six rebounds and four blocked shots, was supported by some timely 3-pointers as the Lady Bears built a 48-36 lead with 3:02 to play.
But Fayetteville coach Vic Rimmer didn't put Friday's 7A-West Conference opener on the defense.
"I thought we did very well defensively," Rimmer said. "Aahliyah Jackson is a McDonald's All-American nominee and going to Texas A&M. A player like that is going to get their spurts. But I thought defensively we did well.
"If we could have taken advantage of our offensive opportunities, we could have won the game."
Fayetteville got three 3-pointers from Maya Mayberry and another pair of 3's from Grayce Spangler. But the 3-ball could keep the Lady'Dogs only so close, as unforced errors and Jackson on the other end were a bit too much to overcome.
"We've had a lot of great battles with Fayetteville through the years, but I really didn't know about this one," Smith said. "We're such a new team and I just wasn't sure. So this is a big win."
Sophomore Jasmine Franklin came off the bench and led Fayetteville with 10 points and 12 rebounds.
"For a sophomore to come in there and be strong and physical in the 7A-West, that was big," Rimmer said. "That's what we've been waiting to see from Jasmine, and we're really pleased with her performance."
Fayetteville returns home to host Fort Smith Southside on Tuesday. Northside plays host to Bentonville on Tuesday.
Boys
Fayetteville 67, Fort Smith Northside 48
The Bulldogs were hitting on all cylinders in their 7A-West opener, shooting nearly 60 percent while limiting Northside to close to 30 percent in an impressive 19-point win to open conference play.
Josh Breathitt led the Purple'Dogs (12-2, 1-0) with 21 points and six rebounds and Spencer Brown found the outside shooting touch to add 16, as Fayetteville controlled the game from start to finish.
"I thought it was a total team effort," Fayetteville coach Kyle Adams said. "We took what they gave us.
"We've never come down here and won like this in double digits. Northside is a good team. We just played really well."
Tevin Brewer finished with 17 for the Grizzlies (8-6, 0-1).
Sports on 01/09/2016