CENTERTON -- Levi Rutherford could be considered a battle-tested warrior on the basketball court, and he even has the scars to prove it.
Bentonville West boys basketball coach Greg White has a photo on his cell phone of the junior forward, depicting some of the hits he's taken this season. It includes the typical bloody nose and a scratch below one of his eyes, but he's also had a finger run into one of his eyes and even suffered a gash on the top of his head.
On The Web
For more on this story, see the video at arpreps.com and nwadg.com
At A Glance
Levi Rutherford
SCHOOL Bentonville West
CLASS Junior
HEIGHT 6-1
WEIGHT 180
POSITION Forward
NOTABLE Averages 5 points and 5 rebounds per game and is a 70 percent free-throw shooter this season. … Scored a season-high 13 points last week against Springdale High. … Recorded a double-double with a season-high 10 rebounds — 8 on the offensive end — and 11 points in a victory over County Line during the H.B. Stewart Classic in Greenwood. … Has not missed a practice or a game despite a number of injuries this season.
7A-West Conference Basketball Standings
Girls
Conference^Overall
Fayetteville^4-0^17-2
Van Buren^4-0^13-3
Springdale^3-1^9-8
Rogers^2-2^10-7
Bentonville^2-2^9-8
Springdale Har-Ber^0-3^10-7
Rogers Heritage^0-4^6-11
Bentonville West^0-4^2-14
Tuesday’s Scores
Fayetteville 55, Rogers Heritage 17
Van Buren 47, Rogers High 32
Springdale Har-Ber 55, Bentonville West 30
Bentonville 54, Springdale High 52
Today’s Games
Bentonville West at Rogers Heritage
Springdale High at Van Buren
Rogers High at Bentonville
Fayetteville at Springdale Har-Ber
Boys
Team^Conference^Overall
Springdale Har-Ber^4-0^12-5
Bentonville^3-1^7-9
Bentonville West^2-2^9-8
Rogers Heritage^2-2^10-7
Van Buren^2-2^9-8
Springdale High^2-2^5-11
Fayetteville^1-3^6-10
Rogers High^0-4^7-10
Tuesday’s Scores
Rogers Heritage 50, Fayetteville 46
Springdale Har-Ber 75, Bentonville West 49
Bentonville High 50, Springdale High 35
Van Buren 56, Rogers High 33
Friday’s Games
Rogers High at Bentonville High, 7:30 p.m.
Fayetteville at Springdale Har-Ber, 7:30 p.m.
Springdale High at Van Buren, 7:30 p.m.
Bentonville West at Rogers Heritage, 7:30 p.m.
7A-West Statistical Leaders
BOYS
TEAM OFFENSE^G^PTS^AVG
Springdale Har-Ber^4^260^65.0
Fayetteville^4^216^54.0
Bentonville^4^215^53.8
Van Buren^4^198^49.5
Bentonville West^4^196^49.0
Rogers High^4^173^43.3
Rogers Heritage^4^173^43.3
Springdale High^4^161^40.3
TEAM DEFENSE^G^PTS^AVG
Springdale High^4^170^42.5
Springdale Har-Ber^4^180^45.0
Rogers Heritage^4^187^46.8
Bentonville^4^187^46.8
Van Buren^4^193^48.3
Bentonville West^4^201^50.3
Fayetteville^4^218^54.5
Rogers High^4^256^64.0
INDIVIDUAL LEADERS
PLAYER, SCHOOL^G^PTS^AVG
Perry, Springdale Har-Ber^4^82^20.5
Fitch, Springdale High^4^71^17.8
Stanley, Rogers Heritage^4^71^17.8
Beckner, Van Buren^4^60^15.0
Hemphill, Bentonville^4^59^14.8
West, Van Buren^4^53^13.3
Roth, Fayetteville^4^48^12.0
Hornsby, Bentonville West^4^46^11.5
Kindrix, Van Buren^4^44^11.0
Casey, Rogers High^4^44^11.0
Lewis, Fayetteville^4^42^10.5
Finney, Fayetteville^4^39^9.8
Collin Blackburn, Bentonville West^4^37^9.3
Kaunitz, Sprindale Har-Ber^4^33^8.3
Hutchinson, Bentonville^4^33^8.3
Bilyeu, Springdale High^4^32^8.0
Muldrew, Bentonville West^4^32^8.0
Shanks, Bentonville^4^31^7.8
Dake, Rogers High^4^30^7.5
Cooper, Fayetteville^4^29^7.3
Benninghoff, Rogers High^4^28^7.0
Williams, Springdale Har-Ber^4^27^6.8
T.Garrett, Springdale Har-Ber^4^27^6.8
Estrada, Bentonville^4^26^6.5
Rutherford, Bentonville West^4^26^6.5
Simon, Fayetteville^4^24^6.0
Akbar, Bentonville^4^24^6.0
Olsen, Rogers Heritage^4^22^5.5
Peek, Rogers Heritage^4^22^5.5
King, Springdale Har-Ber^4^20^5.0
Moss, Rogers Heritage^4^20^5.0
Collier Blackburn, Bentonville West^4^20^5.0
Jibke, Springdale High^4^18^4.5
GIRLS
TEAM OFFENSE^G^PTS^AVG
Fayetteville^4^260^65.0
Springdale High^4^224^56.0
Van Buren^4^222^55.5
Springdale Har-Ber^4^196^49.0
Rogers High^4^196^49.0
Bentonville^4^172^43.0
Rogers Heritage^4^114^28.5
Bentonville West^4^111^27.8
TEAM DEFENSE^G^PTS^AVG
Fayetteville^4^104^26.0
Van Buren^4^136^34.0
Springdale High^4^162^40.5
Springdale Har-Ber^4^194^48.5
Rogers High^4^198^49.5
Bentonville^4^213^53.3
Rogers Heritage^4^241^60.3
Bentonville West^4^247^61.8
INDIVIDUAL LEADERS
PLAYER, SCHOOL^G^PTS^AVG
Kinney, Van Buren^4^79^19.8
Davis, Springdale High^4^72^18.0
Clark, Bentonville^4^53^13.3
Goforth, Fayetteville^4^52^13.0
Loyd, Rogers High^4^44^11.0
Sandor, Rogers High^4^42^10.5
Collins, Springdale Har-Ber^4^39^9.8
Randels, Rogers High^4^36^9.0
Hargus, Bentonville^4^36^9.0
Hughes, Bentonville^4^35^8.8
Mayberry, Fayetteville^4^34^8.5
Richmond, Rogers High^4^34^8.5
Jennen, Van Buren^4^33^8.3
Whaley, Springdale Har-Ber^4^33^8.3
Snowden, Van Buren^4^32^8.0
Franklin, Fayetteville^4^32^8.0
Minchew, Springdale High^4^31^7.8
Gause, Springdale High^4^29^7.3
Wilson, Bentonville West^4^27^6.8
Bailey Jones, Van Buren^4^26^6.5
Posey, Fayetteville^4^26^6.5
Dougan, Springdale High^4^26^6.5
Jul.Brown, Springdale Har-Ber^4^26^6.5
Kinnamon, Rogers Heritage^4^26^6.5
Breathitt, Fayetteville^4^25^6.3
Jackson, Springdale High^4^23^5.8
Richardson, Rogers Heritage^4^23^5.8
Vogel, Springdale High^4^22^5.5
McKinney, Rogers High^4^22^5.5
Weber, Springdale Har-Ber^4^20^5.0
Roberts, Bentonville^4^20^5.0
Smith, Springdale Har-Ber^4^19^4.8
Montgomery, Bentonville West^4^19^4.8
Yet Rutherford goes on without hardly missing a beat.
"I guess it's just inside of me," Rutherford said. "I just push through. The team just keeps me going."
He hasn't missed a single practice or a game this season, although he might have limited action in some of them. He even led the Wolverines with 13 points in last week's game against Springdale High despite suffering a sprained ankle in the previous game against Fayetteville.
It's that kind of physical toughness West needs in its inaugural season, and White considers Rutherford -- who is constantly guarding bigger opponents and plays larger than his 6-foot-1 frame -- to be the team's heart and soul.
"He's a throwback player," White said. "When you think of the late '80s and early '90s NBA, when it was rough and physical, Levi's that type of player. There's nothing he does that is pretty, other than the outcome.
"His toughness can't be matched. He's undersized at his position, and there are times in the year when we thought we couldn't play him there because he's overmatched. Now every time we see a team with a big scoring post, we say we have Levi. What he brings to our program is what we've preached from day one -- a toughness that won't be matched."
Some of the hits Rutherford has taken this season might be considered a result of "friendly fire" -- in other words, from his teammates. His bloody nose came from an elbow during a Wolverines practice, and so did the incident where a player's finger went into his eye and scratched the sclera but didn't affect Rutherford's vision.
The most gruesome incident, however, came last month when West played Greenwood. Rutherford actually took a elbow from teammate Gabe Hornsby in the head, and it caused a bloody gash that had to be temporarily patched and later glued.
"I was going up for a block and blocked it," Rutherford said. "Gabe came down with this elbow and hit me in the head. I realized the ball was on the floor, so I had to grab the ball first. I was running down the court and not realizing my head was bleeding.
"I started holding my head and coach subbed me out. He told me not to grab my head, and I asked why before I grabbed my head. I just saw this big patch of blood on my hand. It got scary from there, but once the trainer patched me up I was ready to play."
It's that never-say-quit attitude that has inspired his teammates, and White admits these things didn't cross his mind when he met the team shortly after being named the Wolverines' coach. Now he knows his team wouldn't enjoy the success it's had without Rutherford on the floor.
"When it's time to compete, there's nobody you would rather have," White said. "He sets bone-jarring screens, and he dives after loose balls. He's a guy that, every day, he gives you every ounce of what he has.
"He's the first guy we talk about when others want to talk about our team. We have some good players and some that can really shoot the ball, then there's Levi. He does everything for us, and some coaches call it 'the dirty work.' That would be his everyday job. There's no way to describe him except call him a warrior."
Sports on 01/20/2017