CONWAY -- Hot Springs boys basketball Coach Ant Lasker said he's been preaching to his team about overcoming adverse situations by sticking with the process.
He might have to come up with a different sermon after his Trojans pulled off an upset of North Little Rock.
Forward Caleb Campbell banked in a three-pointer with 5.1 seconds left as the Trojans stunned the Charging Wildcats 61-58 at the John Stanton Classic at Buzz Bolding Arena.
"We constantly tell them, over and over, it's a marathon and not a sprint," Lasker said. "To come back the way we did, especially after losing the way we lost last night to Pine Bluff. We came up short after fighting back from a 17-point deficit in that one.
"We trailed here most of the way but stayed with it. Now, it's a lot easier for me to sing that same sermon because they see what we've been talking about."
Hot Springs (4-5) had a lot to discuss after rallying from a 12-point, fourth-quarter deficit. Campbell scored 14 of his game-high 27 points in the final period, including the final seven points for the Trojans. He added 10 rebounds and five steals.
"He's got that in him," Lasker said of Campbell, who had 36 points Friday against Pine Bluff. "Campbell is one of those kids that can take over a game. We ride him every day and don't give him any slack because we know he can give us those kinds of performances.
"Sometimes he may not stand [out], and that's perfectly fine, but he's starting to see the rewards. When you do right by the game, the game does right by you."
Senior forward Santiair Thomas tossed in 14 points and eight rebounds for the Trojans.
Junior guard D.J. Smith scored a team-high 17 points for North Little Rock (7-2), which played without senior standout Spencer Simes and junior swingman Tracy Steele. Senior guard Craig Collier added 12 points.
North Little Rock turned the ball over 17 times, was outrebounded 35-26 and got just one field goal from its front-court players.
"We didn't rebound, had problems with ball screens, our bigs got in foul trouble. Hot Springs just played harder than we did," North Little Rock Coach Johnny Rice said. "They got that momentum there in the fourth, and I could see it coming."
The Charging Wildcats turned a 27-23 lead late in the second quarter into a 35-23 bulge by halftime. Another 8-0 rally at the end of the third quarter pushed North Little Rock's margin to 49-36.
Rice's team still led 52-40 at the 6:05 mark of the fourth quarter, but a three-pointer from Hot Springs junior guard Jadyn Walker started a 14-2 surge that tied the game at 54-54 with 2:38 remaining.
The teams exchanged leads over the next minute before a free throw from Campbell tied it at 58-58 with 57 seconds showing. North Little Rock milked the shot clock on the next possession before misfiring. Thomas grabbed the rebound, and the ball eventually found its way to Campbell, who launched the go-ahead three-pointer just before the shot clock expired. North Little Rock got off a final heave, but it sailed well short of the rim.
CABOT 66, SOUTHWEST CHRISTIAN ACADEMY 56
Cabot knocked down 10 three-pointers and held Southwest Christian Academy to just one field goal in the second quarter. Senior forward Jacob Hudson scored 17 points and junior guard Brayden Roberts hit 4 three-pointers to finish with 12 points for Cabot (7-2), which led 32-19 at the half.
Sophomore guard Jalen Nettles notched a team-high 16 points for Southwest Christian (3-4).
IZARD COUNTY 71,
BRYANT 58
Senior forward Justus Cooper tallied a game-high 25 points as Izard County (16-3) used a fourth-quarter burst to beat short-handed Bryant.
Caleb Faulkner, a senior forward, scored 20 points and junior guard Coby Everett finished with 17 points for the Cougars, who led 52-46 at the end of three quarters but outscored the Hornets 9-0 over the first three minutes of the fourth quarter.
Junior guard Camren Hunter had 17 points for Bryant (6-3), which was missing leading scorer Treylon Payne and starting guard A.J. Jenkins. The Hornets also were without head Coach Mike Abrahamson.
Sports on 12/22/2019