Little Rock Fair has ridden its defense to success over the past month, but it was big plays from its two offensive stars that carried the War Eagles to their biggest victory of the season.
Senior forwards Mickael Foust and Deaveon Bankston combined for 37 points and 22 rebounds as Fair overcame a late charge from Little Rock Christian guard Justice Hill to beat the host Warriors 57-52 in overtime Thursday night.
Foust finished with 22 points and 6 rebounds while Bankston had 15 points, 16 rebounds and 5 blocks for Fair (21-4, 11-3), which earned a share of the 6A/5A-4 Conference regular-season title with Little Rock Parkview.
"They fought and fought, and found a way to get outta here with a win," Little Rock Fair Coach Charlie Johnson said. "We made it hard on ourselves with some of the turnovers late, but we made some big plays when we had to have them."
The majority of those plays involved Foust and Bankston in the second half, but the two got some help down the stretch after Little Rock Christian (19-7, 10-4) appeared to poised to take control of the game thanks to Hill. The University of Arkansas, Fayetteville commit scored 14 of his game-high 24 points in the fourth quarter and overtime to help the Warriors erase a nine-point, third-quarter deficit.
The game was tied 46-46 at the end of regulation.
Senior forward Kalin Bennett's dunk to open the extra session gave Little Rock Christian a 48-46 lead. Foust followed with a three-point play on the ensuing possession and Bankston's free throw 15 seconds later pushed the War Eagles' cushion to two, but Hill's putback dunk again tied it at 50-50. A free throw from Little Rock Christian junior forward Cortez Finley with 1:01 left gave the Warriors a 51-50 advantage, but Little Rock Fair senior guard Kameron Stafford responded with a driving lay-up to give the Warriors the lead for good. Stafford and junior guard Jacori Cranford each hit two free throws over the final 16 seconds to help the War Eagles polish off their seventh consecutive victory.
"The ball just didn't bounced our way when we needed it," Little Rock Christian Coach Clarence Finley said. "We played hard and I'm proud of them, but I thought down the stretch, Bankston and Foust wanted it a little more than we did. Those two were able to get to the basket, get to rebounds. ... they made the difference."
LR FAIR (57)
Stafford 3 2-4 8, Cranford 2 2-2 6, Mbani 3 0-0 6, Sykes 0 0-0 0, Bankston 4 5-9 15, Foust 10 2-7 22. Totals 22 11-23 57.
LR CHRISTIAN (52)
Hill 7 9-12 24, Hightower 1 0-0 2, Moore 1 0-0 3, Finley 3 1-2 7, Chapple 2 1-2 5, Strickland 0 3-3 3, Bennett 4 0-0 8. Totals 18 14-19 52.
LR Fair (21-4) 11 14 10 11 11 -- 57
LR Christian (19-7) 8 12 13 13 6 -- 52
Three-point goals -- LR Fair 2 (Bankston 2), LR Christian 2 (Hill 1, Moore 1). Team fouls -- LR Fair 14, LR Christian 16. Fouled out -- Bennett, Chapple.
Sports on 02/16/2018