Basketball: Stanley heads War Eagles

NWA Democrat-Gazette/JASON IVESTER
Rogers Heritage junior Seth Stanley drives around Rogers High senior Jake Benninghoff on Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2017, at Rogers High.
***NOTE: NOT FOR DAILY; FOR FEATURE ON STANLEY***
NWA Democrat-Gazette/JASON IVESTER Rogers Heritage junior Seth Stanley drives around Rogers High senior Jake Benninghoff on Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2017, at Rogers High. ***NOTE: NOT FOR DAILY; FOR FEATURE ON STANLEY***

ROGERS -- The basketball didn't feel right when it left Seth Stanley's right hand.

He was rushed. The clock was rapidly running out, and he was bottled up near the sideline with little time to set his feet before letting the shot fly.

At A Glance

Seth Stanley

SCHOOL Rogers Heritage

CLASS Junior

HEIGHT 6-5

WEIGHT 175

POSITION Guard

NOTABLE A two-year starter a shooting guard. … Averaged 10 ppg as a sophomore. … Leads the 7A-West Conference in scoring this season. … Averaging 17.9 points and 5.4 rebounds per game. … Hit the game-winning 3-point shot from near half-court against Bentonville West. … Scored a season-high 34 points against Logan Rogersville on Nov. 29. … Has scored 20 or more points 12 times this season. … Has two double-doubles this season. … Being recruited by John Brown University and Southwest Baptist University.

7A-West Statistical Leaders

Boys

TEAM OFFENSE^G^PTS^AVG

Springdale Har-Ber^13^792^60.9

Bentonville^13^759^58.4

Fayetteville^13^748^57.5

Bentonville West^13^614^47.2

Van Buren^13^605^46.5

Rogers Heritage^13^566^43.5

Rogers High^13^537^41.3

Springdale High^13^523^40.2

TEAM DEFENSE^G^PTS^AVG

Van Buren^13^578^44.5

Bentonville^13^587^45.2

Rogers Heritage^13^592^45.5

Springdale High^13^599^46.1

Bentonville West^13^656^50.5

Springdale Har-Ber^13^662^50.9

Fayetteville^13^686^52.8

Rogers High^13^784^60.3

LEADING SCORERS^^^

PLAYER, SCHOOL^G^PTS^AVG

Stanley, Rogers Heritage^13^231^17.8

Hemphill, Bentonville^13^214^16.5

Perry, Springdale Har-Ber^13^207^15.9

Roth, Fayetteville^13^186^14.3

Fitch, Springdale High^13^178^13.7

Beckner, Van Buren^13^174^13.4

Finney, Fayetteville^13^170^13.1

Garrett, Springdale Har-Ber^11^132^12.0

West, Van Buren^13^153^11.8

Kindrix, Van Buren^13^152^11.7

Cooper, Fayetteville^13^128^9.8

Shanks, Bentonville^13^126^9.7

Hornsby, Bentonville West^13^126^9.7

Muldrew, Bentonville West^13^118^9.1

King, Springdale Har-Ber^13^110^8.5

Akbar, Bentonville^13^108^8.3

Taylor, Springdale Har-Ber^13^105^8.1

Olsen, Rogers Heritage^13^104^8.0

Benninghoff, Rogers High^13^96^7.4

Casey, Rogers High^13^94^7.2

Lewis, Fayetteville^13^93^7.2

Bilyeu, Springdale High^13^91^7.0

Barron, Bentonville West^13^76^5.8

Dake, Rogers High^13^73^5.6

Kaunitz, Sprindale Har-Ber^13^72^5.5

Collier Blackburn, Bentonville West^13^71^5.5

Williams, Springdale Har-Ber^13^70^5.4

Collin Blackburn, Bentonville West^13^70^5.4

Constantini, Bentonville^13^63^4.8

Aquino, Springdale High^13^62^4.8

A-Ron Jones, Rogers High^13^62^4.8

Estrada, Bentonville^13^59^4.5

Rutherford, Bentonville West^13^57^4.4

Girls

TEAM OFFENSE^G^PTS^AVG

Fayetteville^13^903^69.5

Van Buren^13^687^52.8

Springdale High^13^673^51.8

Bentonville^13^671^51.6

Rogers High^13^657^50.5

Springdale Har-Ber^13^591^45.5

Rogers Heritage^13^419^32.2

Bentonville West^13^419^32.2

TEAM DEFENSE^G^PTS^AVG

Van Buren^13^466^35.8

Fayetteville^13^503^38.7

Rogers High^13^561^43.2

Springdale Har-Ber^13^606^46.6

Bentonville^13^649^49.9

Springdale High^13^664^51.1

Bentonville West^13^780^60.0

Rogers Heritage^13^791^60.8

LEADING SCORERS^^^

PLAYER, SCHOOL^G^PTS^AVG

Davis, Springdale High^13^196^15.1

Clark, Bentonville^13^195^15.0

Kinney, Van Buren^13^193^14.8

Randels, Rogers High^13^178^13.7

Goforth, Fayetteville^13^165^12.7

Mains, Springdale Har-Ber^5^58^11.6

Franklin, Fayetteville^13^149^11.5

Richmond, Rogers High^13^142^10.9

Hargus, Bentonville^13^138^10.6

Loyd, Rogers High^13^130^10.0

Mayberry, Fayetteville^13^125^9.6

Snowden, Van Buren^13^123^9.5

Jones, Van Buren^5^44^8.8

Sandor, Rogers High^12^102^8.5

Wilson, Bentonville West^13^106^8.2

Kinnamon, Rogers Heritage^13^92^7.1

Juliza Brown, Springdale Har-Ber^13^91^7.0

Jackson, Springdale High^13^90^6.9

Hughes, Bentonville^13^90^6.9

Jennen, Van Buren^13^85^6.5

Minchew, Springdale High^13^85^6.5

Montgomery, Bentonville West^13^85^6.5

Dougan, Springdale High^13^84^6.5

Vogel, Springdale High^13^84^6.5

Lauren Holmes, Fayetteville^13^81^6.2

Myers, Van Buren^13^77^5.9

Jeniya Gause, Springdale High^13^77^5.9

Whaley, Springdale Har-Ber^13^77^5.9

Taylar Sutton, Van Buren^13^75^5.8

Roberts, Bentonville^13^72^5.5

Collins, Springdale Har-Ber^13^71^5.5

Smith, Springdale Har-Ber^13^71^5.5

Breathitt, Fayetteville^13^71^5.5

Posey, Fayetteville^13^61^4.7

Henry, Bentonville West^13^58^4.5

7A-West Conference Basketball Standings

Girls

Team^Conference^Overall

Fayetteville^13-0^26-2

Van Buren^12-1^21-4

Springdale^7-6^13-13

Rogers^8-5^16-10

Springdale Har-Ber^5-8^15-12

Bentonville^5-8^12-14

Bentonville West^2-11^4-21

Rogers Heritage^0-13^6-20

Tuesday’s Scores

Fayetteville 73, Springdale High 39.

Van Buren 50, Springdale Har-Ber 42.

Rogers High 51, Bentonville West 16.

Bentonville High 74, Rogers Heritage 33.

Today’s Games

Rogers High at Springdale High, 6 p.m.

Springdale Har-Ber at Rogers Heritage, 6 p.m.

Fayetteville at Van Buren, 6 p.m.

Bentonville High at Bentonville West, 6 p.m.

Boys

Team^Conference^Overall

Springdale Har-Ber^11-2^20-7

Bentonville^11-2^16-10

Van Buren^8-5^15-11

Rogers Heritage^7-6^15-11

Fayetteville^7-6^12-13

Bentonville West^6-8^12-14

Springdale^3-10^6-19

Rogers^0-13^7-19

Tuesday’s Games

Fayetteville 40, Springdale High 32.

Springdale Har-Ber 53, Van Buren 45.

Bentonville West 63, Rogers High 53.

Bentonville High 49, Rogers Heritage 34.

Today’s Games

Rogers High at Springdale High, 7:30 p.m.

Springdale Har-Ber at Rogers Heritage, 7:30 p.m.

Fayetteville at Van Buren, 7:30 p.m.

Bentonville High at Bentonville West, 7:30 p.m.

On The Web

For more on this story, see the video at nwadg.com or arpreps.com.

As the basketball hit the backboard with a thud, the chances of it actually going through the goal seemed unlikely. But sometimes even hurried prayers are answered, and as the ball clanged around the rim, then off the board again, it found its way into the nylon net as the buzzer sounded.

Stanley was mobbed by Rogers Heritage teammates and coaches after his shot gave the War Eagles a 47-46 win against Bentonville West. It's been that kind of season for the junior shooting guard, who chose an unlikely path last summer to a breakout season this winter.

Most high school basketball players flock to AAU teams in the summer, playing every weekend from June to the end of the summer in tournaments around the country. The exposure to college coaches at these events often leads to scholarship offers. Stanley chose a different route.

"I just got into the gym and worked on my own game," he said.

He and his older brother, Marek, spent hours in the gym working on shooting and ball-handling drills, areas Seth said he felt like needed the most attention.

"Every single day, I had a number of shots I had to make," he said. "I had to make at least 20 threes, make 30 mid-range shots, make 30 mid-range off one dribble, make 30 mid-range off two dribbles. And that was every day and that repetition adds up over time."

The work is evident when looking at Stanley's numbers this season. Although he started as a sophomore last season, his opportunities were limited. This season the scoring burden is greater, and the 6-foot-5, 175-pounder has responded by leading the 7A-West Conference in scoring at just under 18 points per game. Overall, Stanley is averaging 17.9 points and 5.4 rebounds per game with a pair of double-doubles.

In 25 games, Stanley has been held under double figures just once, scoring 9 against Bishop McGuinness. He has a high of 34 points, and has scored 20 or more points a dozen times.

Heritage coach Tom Olsen said Stanley's decision to skip AAU basketball last summer was the right call.

"I think it can be kind of over-viewed a little bit," Olsen said of summer basketball. "Summers are a time, I think, you get better skill-wise. He spent time on his own shooting the ball. The most critical element for any kid in the sport we play is putting the ball in the basket.

"He's a good 3-point shooter, he's a good mid-range shooter, he's a good free-throw shooter, he can get to the rim. He's one of Northwest Arkansas' elite players."

Stanley's confidence has also spiked this season as one of the more experienced returning players on the Heritage roster, he said.

"I have more opportunity this year," he said. "I've improved shooting the ball a little bit, my ball-handling has improved and it's helped me get to my spots, but mainly my opportunities have increased."

Stanley is also getting to the free-throw line a lot more this season, which he credits with increasing his scoring numbers. A year older and stronger, he's able to drive the ball more and draw fouls.

The War Eagles (15-11, 7-6 7A-West) are tied with Fayetteville for a No. 4 seed in next week's Class 7A state tournament in Van Buren, each one game behind the Pointers. Heritage hosts Springdale Har-Ber tonight in the final game of the regular season.

Stanley credits his older brother for pushing him to excel on the court, even as a youngster. Marek used to have his way with the younger Seth in driveway hoops, which occasionally led to some bloodshed. But that's not the case anymore. Seth said their 1-on-1 battles have gone his way the past couple of years.

"When I was younger, he always kicked my butt," he said. "When I was in the ninth and 10th grade, I finally started beating him. He always wanted to play again. And I beat him again.

"He's the one who influenced me and encouraged me to go to the gym and work out last summer. And he came up with me a lot to shoot and play 1-on-1. That encouragement helped me a lot."

Stanley is drawing college interest from several programs, including John Brown University. He plans to be an engineer when his playing days are over.

Sports on 02/24/2017

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