MARION -- West Memphis used its size advantage to dominate the glass in a 52-43 victory over Marion on Friday.
West Memphis (11-3, 1-0 5A-East) saw its leading scorer, Auburn signee Chris Moore, held to 9 points, but the 6-foot-7 forward hauled in a game-high 17 rebounds. He also had 5 blocks and 3 assists.
The Blue Devils won the rebounding battle 34-18.
"I'm very proud of the way our guys attacked the glass tonight," said West Memphis Coach Marcus Brown. "Our pace on offense was a little stagnant, but the way we rebounded and defended was the difference in the game."
West Memphis threatened a couple of times to run away from the Patriots (4-9, 0-1) with a pair of 10-point leads, but Marion senior guard Detric Reeves, who led all scorers with 23 points, wouldn't allow it.
A three-point play by senior guard Immanuel Hoard gave West Memphis a 20-10 lead with 5:54 to play in the second quarter, but the Patriots scored the next nine points to get back in it.
West Memphis led 28-24 at the half.
The Blue Devils broke open a tight game in the final two minutes after Reeves made a layup to cut Marion's lead to 43-40.
But senior guard Kylan Sykes, who scored six points, made a three-pointer, which ignited a 9-0 West Memphis run until Reeves meaningless last-second three-pointer at the buzzer.
"Even though Reeves got his points I thought we defended him well all night," said Brown. "He made some tough shots because we contested almost every shot he took."
The Blue Devils defense limited Marion to 3-of-11 shooting from the field in the final quarter. West Memphis finished 20 of 47 for the game.
Hoard paced the winners with 15 points while junior point guard Jordan Mitchell joined Moore with 9 points.
GIRLS
WEST MEMPHIS 50, MARION 48
MARION -- Senior center Tiera Bradley stuck back a missed shot with five seconds left to lift West Memphis (11-3), 1-0 5A-East) over Marion (7-9, 0-1).
In a game that went back and forth in the final minute, the Lady Patriots tied the score at 48-48 on a 15-foot jumper by Jala Henderson.
West Memphis' Aryah Hazley missed a layup on the other end, but after a scramble for the ball, it landed in the hands of the 6-foot-2 Bradley, who calmly put in the rebound basket
The Lady Devils survived 26 turnovers but built a big enough early cushion behind 12-of-18 shooting from the field.
Freshman Janiya Tucker led the Lady Devils with 15 points, 13 of which came in the first half, while Hazley added 13.
Keiana Delaney and Joi Montgomery paced Marion with 11 apiece.
Sports on 01/11/2020