MAUMELLE 100, FORREST CITY 71
MAGNOLIA -- Maumelle wasn't looking for revenge against Forrest City on Wednesday.
Instead, Hornets Coach Michael Shook said his team wanted redemption and a first-round victory in the Class 5A boys state basketball tournament.
Led by John Word's 21 points and 10 rebounds, the Hornets dispatched the Mustangs 100-71 at Panther Arena.
Maumelle (27-4) used a 36-19 second-quarter to pull away from Forrest City, which defeated the Hornets 91-85 in overtime in last year's Class 5A state championship game.
"There wasn't any trouble getting motivated for this one," Shook said. "They were ready for this one. I was pleased with the way they played."
The Hornets, the No. 1 seed from the 5A-West Conference, will face Mills or Magnolia in a quarterfinal game at 8:30 p.m. Friday. Mills faces tournament host Magnolia at 5:30 p.m. today.
Along with Word, three other Hornets scored at least 10 points Wednesday. Quan Richardson finished with 17 points, Tremont Robinson had 15 and Darius Tate chipped in with 12 as Maumelle made 38 field goals -- 35 coming inside the three-point line.
The Hornets led 25-17 at the end of the first quarter, then scored 36 points en route to a 61-36 halftime lead. They were able to gain separation from the Mustangs thanks to a 14-0 run in the quarter's first 2:32. Robinson and Richardson scored 11 of Maumelle's 14 points in the run, Richardson with six.
Maumelle stretched its lead to 85-62 by the end of the third quarter. With 6:00 remaining, Maumelle invoked the Arkansas Activities Sportsmanship rule with a three-pointer from Tate. Terrell Curtis' jumper with 1:25 left put the Hornets at 100 points.
The Hornets' performance impressed Forrest City Coach Dwight Lofton.
"I like them as a team," Lofton said. "They'll have something to say as far as the eventual state champion will be. They're a team that could be making their third trip to the final. We can't throw shade on that. That's tremendous. That program has been to the final twice and they have guys who have been there twice.
"Much luck to them."
In addition to Wednesday's victory, Maumelle also defeated Harrison 84-65 in the 5A-West Conference championship game last Friday in Greenbrier. Shook said the Hornets are playing their best basketball of the season at postseason time.
"Everybody has bought in, mindful of their role," Shook said. "They're understanding the team is bigger than me. Hopefully we can keep winning."
Trajon Norment led Forrest City (10-19) with 24 points. Blayton Williams added 13 points.
HARRISON 84, GREENE COUNTY TECH 52
Tanner Curry scored 20 points and Harrison (24-5) routed Greene County Tech (12-14).
The Goblins, the 5A-West Conference's No. 2 seed, will face 5A-Central champion Little Rock Parkview at 8:30 p.m. today in a quarterfinal game.
Jackson Marseilles had 18 points and Trevor Atwell poured in 15 points for the Goblins, who led 25-15 at the end of the first quarter, 36-28 at halftime and 64-38 at the end of the third quarter.
With his team trailing 56-34, Greene County Tech Coach Jeff Guiot was ejected with 1:27 left in the third quarter for arguing with the officiating crew.
Logan Sapp led the Golden Eagles with 14 points.
MORRILTON 72,
BLYTHEVILLE 58
Xavier Wright scored 22 points and made six three-pointers as Morrilton (20-9) defeated Blytheville (16-13).
Wright was one of five Devil Dogs to score at least 10 points. Keiondre Jefferson finished with 14 points; Donald Jones had 13 points; Juwan Moore poured in 12 points; and Laken Dillard added 11 points.
Morrilton outscored Blytheville 48-33 in the second half after trailing 25-24 at halftime. The game was declared a final with 12.2 seconds left after Blytheville’s Malik Smith committed an intentional foul.
A.J. Love led the Chickasaws with 18 points. Trey Newmy scored 14 points and Treay Jamison had 10 points.
Sports on 03/02/2017