Basketball: Greenland rallies past Gentry

GENTRY -- Greenland is starting to peak at just the right time, and that's bad news for the rest of Class 3A.

The Lady Pirates rallied from an early 17-point deficit to earn a 55-43 win against Gentry in 3A/4A District 1 girls basketball action Tuesday night.

Girls

Greenland^5^22^13^15^—^55

Gentry^16^15^8^4^—^43

Greenland (19-5): Redmond 16, Wilson 15, Osburn 8, Pickett 8, Rogers 4, Boone 3, Renfrow 1.

Gentry (12-13): Fuamatu 11, Boss 7, Jarnagan 7, Hosteter 6, Hays 6, Ward 6.

Boys

Greenland^14^22^13^17^—^66

Gentry^12^18^12^25^—^67

Greenland (3-17): Wolfe 39, Anderson 12, Tincher 7, Overton 4, Wilson 1.

Gentry (12-9): Cripps 24, Morris 20, Folker 10, Faulkenberry 4, Kilgore 4.

Junior Varsity: Greenland 25, Gentry 21

Greenland (19-5) used a 14-0 run in the third and fourth quarters to erase a nine-point Gentry lead by using a swarming defense that allowed the Lady Pioneers (12-13) just four points in the final eight minutes.

Lady Pirates coach Alan Barton said Gentry was able to get the ball inside to its post players early, and when Greenland tried to pack in the lane, the Lady Pioneers hit several open 3-pointers.

"We got stuck down trying to help on the bigs and they got some open shots at the top," Barton said. "We made some adjustments, quit asking our players to help from behind and start guarding their shooters. That changed the game."

Gentry's Chastery Fuamatu (11 points) and Hannah Boss were dominant in the paint in the first quarter, helping the Lady Pioneers to a 16-5 lead at the end of the quarter. When Greenland sagged inside, Eden Hosteter and Jaydon Jarnagan made the Lady Pirates pay with big 3-pointers. Jarnagan's 3-pointer midway through the second quarter gave Gentry its biggest lead at 25-8.

Greenland got a spark off the bench from sophomore Fiona Wilson, who was able to get to the basket for nine points in a 19-5 run. When Gentry tried to help on Wilson's drives, she was able to kick the ball out to McKayla Redmond, who drained three 3-pointers as Greenland cut the deficit to 30-27 at halftime.

"Greenland started walling up and making our finishes a little more difficult in the second quarter," Gentry coach Toby Tevebaugh said. "I think the big thing was, we got in foul trouble and it was harder to get position. We were worried about getting a cheap one called. So really, I felt like the foul trouble kind of took away from their edge and made them play a little bit more timid."

Despite the Greenland barrage in the second quarter, Gentry seemed to withstand the attack and built a 39-30 lead when Fuamatu drove the lane for a layup with 3 minutes, 26 seconds left in the third quarter.

It was Gentry's last points until the midway point of the fourth quarter as Greenland ran off 17 straight points to take a 47-39 lead, capped by Hayleigh Pickett's steal and layup with 5:21 left.

Redmond finished with a game-high 16 points for Greenland and Wilson added 15 -- 12 in the second quarter when Greenland appeared to be buried by the early deficit.

"That's what that sophomore does," Barton said. "She can attack the basket, she loved to shoot the three and she can get to the free-throw line, so she's got ice water in her veins. She's going to be a good one."

The Lady Pirates have secured the No. 1 seed from the 3A-1 for next week's district tournament in Charleston, and have already secured a spot in the 3A Region I Tournament the following week, also in Charleston.

Tevebaugh said the Lady Pioneers would likely be a No. 5 seed at the 4A-1 Conference Tournament in Berryville next week, but coaches from the 4A-1 are scheduled to meet today to determine seeding in the blended conference format.

Boys

Gentry 67, Greenland 66

Austin Morris drove the length of the court and hit a layup with seconds left to lift the Pioneers to a come-from-behind win.

Gentry (12-9) trailed by double-digits late in the game, but rallied at the end. Greenland missed a pair of free throws with 12 seconds left, and Morris rebounded the second miss. His layup teetered on the rim before falling through the net.

Cole Cripps scored 24 and Morris added 20 for Gentry. Greenland's Zac Wolfe put on a show offensively, scoring 39 points. Austin Anderson added 12.

Sports on 02/08/2017

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