Held to 15 points in the first two quarters, Bryant shed the shackles in the second half Friday to take a 54-49 victory over Little Rock Central at Oliver B. Elders Fieldhouse.
The teams combined for 41 points in the fourth quarter alone, but they scored only 32 in the first half with the Tigers (7-9, 0-3 6A-Central) holding a 17-15 edge over the Hornets (10-6, 2-1) at halftime.
"We wanted to pick up the pace in the second half, because the first half was so slow," Bryant Coach Mike Abrahamson said. "We prefer a faster pace of offense, and that eventually paid off for us in the second half.
"Every team in this conference is tough, and they all have their strengths. That is a real good club, and they are going to find their stride."
Foul trouble plagued Bryant in the first quarter when the Hornets scored only five points but were called for six fouls. The Hornets scored their fourth and fifth points with 5:46 left in the opening quarter.
Little Rock Central was called for only one foul in the quarter and built a 10-5 advantage after one quarter.
The tables turned in the second quarter when seven fouls were levied on the Tigers compared to three for Bryant. The Hornets had a 10-7 margin in points in the quarter, but still went into the break behind 17-15.
The Hornets came alive in the second half, thanks to Bryant pressuring Little Rock Central with a half-court trap. That defense helped the Hornets grab the lead when Treylon Payne hit a field goal with 57 seconds left in the quarter for a 30-28 edge.
Camren Hunter added another field goal for a 32-28 lead before Jeremiah Jones trimmed the margin to 32-30 on a field goal with 12 seconds left in the quarter.
Bryant pushed its lead to as many as 12 with two minutes left when Arlon Jones made two free throws for a 49-37 lead.
The Tigers cut the Bryant lead to 51-45 with 44.2 seconds remaining on a three-point field goal from Jones. Bryant pushed the lead back to 54-45 with 27.9 seconds left before two Central field goals in the final 12 seconds set the final margin.
Abrahamson was disappointed in the Hornets' free-throw shooting after they hit 12 of 21.
"That's not like us," he said. "We are better than that."
Hunter had a game-high 21 points to lead the Hornets, while Jones led the Tigers with 19.
6A-CENTRAL GIRLS
BRYANT 41, LR CENTRAL 36
The Lady Hornets (10-6, 2-1 6A-Central) outscored Little Rock Central (4-8, 0-3) 13-5 in the third quarter to overcome a 27-22 halftime deficit.
Bryant held a 37-32 lead after three quarters, then held the Lady Tigers to four points in the final quarter. The Lady Hornets also were held to four points, and they didn't score until only 12.3 seconds remained in the game when India Atkins hit two free throws for a 39-34 lead.
Paris Atkins paced Bryant with 18 points while Lauryn Pendleton had 11 for the Lady Tigers.
Sports on 01/18/2020