SCHOOL: Fort Smith Northside
NOTABLE: Northside went 29-3, made its 18th state semifinal appearance in Smith’s 22 years at the school and went 13-1 to win the 7A-West Conference title in outright fashion with a roster that, aside from Texas A&M signee Aahliyah Jackson and fellow senior Lauren Krissman, lacked any substantial varsity experience. … Lady Bears excelled in close finishes, going 7-2 in games decided by seven or fewer points and 4-1 in games decided by five or less. … Smith has won more than 600 games and Northside has won six state championships during his tenure.
HE SAID IT: “This group did exceed my expectations, they really did. Going in, we always expect to be pretty good. We’re Northside. But did I think we could win 29 basketball games? Absolutely not. My assistant Scott and I sat down at the beginning of the year and we were wondering about (winning) 20. Girls expected to win, a lot of tradition and luckily for us we won a lot of close ballgames. And if you keep the game close and you’ve got the best player on the floor, you’ve usually got a chance. And so that’s the way we looked at it.”