FORT SMITH -- Fort Smith Northside showed again there is a huge gap between the first- and second-place teams in the 6A-Central Conference.
Northside took control early with a fast-paced attack and defeated Cabot 66-36 Tuesday at Kaundart-Grizzly Field House. Jersey Wolfenbarger scored 20 points and Tracey Bershers 19 for the Lady Bears (17-3, 6-0), who extended their winning streak to 12 games.
Cabot began the night tied for second place in the 6A-Central with Conway, a team Northside whipped 75-56 last week in Fort Smith. Conway led Northside 23-16 after one quarter in that game, but Northside led but all but the first few minutes against Cabot.
Cabot (16-3, 4-2) couldn't keep up the pace despite a fine effort from guard Izzy Arnold, who made a trio of 3-pointers and finished with 13 points. Nine players scored at least two points for Northside, which led 35-18 at halftime and 52-29 after three quarters.
"That's the third really, really good team we've played in three games," Northside coach Rickey Smith said after wins over Conway, North Little Rock and Cabot. "We had a very dominating performance tonight, both offensively and defensively. I'm pretty pleased after that performance."
[Don't see the video above? Click here to see Coach Smith's post-game remarks.]
Northside got quickly into transition, including a handful of times when a Lady Bear threw downcourt after grabbing a rebound. Haitianna Releford provided an early spark with a rebound basket, followed by a steal and a layup to give Northside a 16-6 lead with 2 minutes, nine seconds left in the first quarter.
"(Releford) was very active," Smith said. "She got some second-chance points with rebounds, got some steals and made some great full-court passes. She's a very athletic kid."
Jazz Coleman added a basket before Northside's biggest stars began to heat up from outside. Wolfenbarger hit a 3-pointer in the second quarter, followed by two 3-pointers from Bershers. Wolfenbarger and Bershers opened the second half with baskets before Bershers made her fifth 3-pointer of the night to help Northside to a 54-29 lead after three quarters.
Cabot 10 8 9 9 -- 36
Northside 19 16 19 12 -- 66
Cabot (16-3, 4-2): Arnold 13, Christopher 9, Belin 7, Ogilvie 5, Reynolds 1.
Northside (17-3, 6-0): Wolfenbarger 20, Bershers 19, Tillery 7, West 5, Releford 5, Coleman 2, Fleming 4, Harris 2, Taylor 2.
[PHOTO GALLERY: FS Northside vs Cabot HS Girls and Boys Basketball]
Fayetteville 68, Rogers Heritage 47
The Lady Purple Bulldogs finished the third quarter on a 14-3 run and pulled away for a 6A-West Conference road win.
Fayetteville (14-4, 5-1 6A-West) held Rogers Heritage (11-9, 3-3) without a field goal over the final 5 minutes of the third quarter and led 50-26.
Coriah Beck led all scorers with 21 points for Fayetteville, while Caroline Lyles added 19, including four 3-pointers. Sophomore Loren Lindsey added 11.
Quiara Jones led Heritage with 10 points, while Maddie Lynge chipped in nine.
Springdale Har-Ber 55, Rogers High 49
Har-Ber went on 15-5 run over the final 6 minutes of the third quarter then held off Rogers to earn a win in Wildcat Arena.
The Lady Wildcats (15-4, 5-1) never trailed, but their third-quarter run helped turn a one-point lead into a 42-31 cushion. Rogers (12-7, 3-3) did get within 52-49 on a Presley Risenhoover bucket with 1:30 remaining before Har-Ber closed out the game with a free throw by Pacious McDaniel and two more by Maddux McCrackin.
Caylan Koons led the Lady Wildcats with 16 while McDaniel added 11. Gracie Carr had 16, and Aubrey Treadwell added 11 for Rogers.
Van Buren 51, Bentonville West 27
Van Buren owned a 16-8 lead after one quarter and continued to build to it as the Lady Pointers picked up their first 6A-West win of the season.
Brooklyn Kannady had 15 points and Emmalee Grebe added 13 for the Lady Pointers (7-12, 1-5), who led 29-16 at halftime and 45-20 after three quarters.
Maysa Willis and Chloe Jones had six points each for West (5-15, 1-5).
Bentonville High 70, Springdale High 35
Bentonville jumped out to a 23-3 lead after one quarter and remained unbeaten in 6A-West play with a win in Tiger Arena.
The Lady Tigers (17-1, 6-0) had 12 different players score in the game as they led 41-20 at halftime and 60-28 after three quarters.
Jada Brown led Bentonville with 11 points while Maryam Dauda chipped in 10.
Mary Haskins led Springdale (3-15, 0-6) with 14 points.
Preps Sports on 01/29/2020