FORT SMITH -- Fort Smith Northside shook off a two-game losing skid in a big way, blowing out city rival Fort Smith Southside 82-37 on Friday night at the Stubblefield Center.
The Grizzlies (13-6, 4-2 7A-Central) stayed a game behind league leader North Little Rock with the victory. Northside has two games against Bryant next week, starting with a road makeup game Tuesday before hosting the Hornets on Friday.
"Every game is a big game in this conference," Northside Coach Eric Burnett said. "Southside had a chance to beat Bryant a week ago. I really feel good about our team and our chances in the second half because the top teams will come to our place. We won't have to take as many three-hour bus rides on Tuesday in the second half. That is a huge advantage for us."
Southside (6-11, 1-5), which suffered its worst defeat ever against Northside in the 52-year history of the series, has a home makeup game with Conway on Tuesday. The Grizzlies lead the overall series over the Mavericks 71-42.
The game hinged on a dominant second quarter by Northside, which turned an 24-16 edge into a 50-21 halftime blowout.
The first quarter was a back-and-forth battle with Northside leading 21-16 after Mavericks guard Zion Releford made a three-pointer with 36 seconds left.
The Grizzlies dominated the rest of the half, outscoring the Mavericks 29-5 to build a commanding 50-21 halftime lead. Northside used a 14-0 run and a 15-2 run to pull away. Perry had 16 of his game-high 21 points in the second quarter for the Grizzlies.
The Northside defense forced nine second-quarter turnovers to fuel its offense.
"In the huddle, Tevin [Brewer] told everyone that we needed to step up our defensive effort and intensity," Burnett said. "I thought that showed a lot of leadership and the team responded. We played very well defensively in the second and third quarter. Besides the turnovers, we were forcing them to make five-six passes before they could take a shot. We were very active and had hands tipping a lot of passes."
The Grizzlies put to rest any idea of a second-half comeback, opening the third quarter with an 11-3 spurt to build a 61-24 advantage midway through. Northside led 70-28 after three quarters.
Brewer added 17 for Northside while Gary Johnson scored 12. Taye Gatewood's 10 points paced Southside.
SOUTHSIDE (37)
Jackson 0 0-1 0, Gatewood 2 6-9 10, Moore 2 0-0 4, Coleman 0 0-0 0, Solomon 1 0-1 2, Simpson 0 3-4 3, Hamilton 2 0-0 4, Jones 1 1-1 3, McLellan 1 0-0 2, Releford 2 0-0 6, Smith 0 0-0 0, Keller 0 3-4 3. Totals 11 13-20 37.
NORTHSIDE (82)
Watson 0 0-2 0, Brewer 4 7-7 17, Whitfield 2 0-2 4, Joe 3 1-2 8, Johnson 4 2-4 12, Mondier 1 0-0 3, Travis 0 2-4 2, Perkins 0 0-0 0, D. Myers 0 0-0 0, Jacobs 0 0-0 0, K. Myers 0 0-0 0, Perry 8 3-5 21, Forsey 2 4-4 9, Taylor 2 0-2 4, Young 1 0-0 2. Totals 27 19-32 82.
Southside (6-12) 16 5 7 9 -- 37
Northside (13-6) 24 26 20 12 -- 82
Three-point goals -- Southside 2 (Releford 2), Northside 9 (Brewer 2, Johnson 2, Perry 2, Joe, Forsey, Mondier). Team fouls -- Southside 23, Northside 17.
Sports on 01/28/2017