SILOAM SPRINGS
Panthers, Goblins battle for first place
Once Siloam Springs announced Tuesday morning that its game against Van Buren that night had been postponed, it gave Panthers coach Tim Stewart the opportunity to turn his team's attention to Harrison.
The two teams meet tonight in a 5A-West Conference showdown in the Panther Activity Center, and they will be battling to keep their share of first place in the league standings.
"It's a fun deal to be able to reunite this rivalry," Stewart said of Harrison, whose basketball team moved up to Class 5A this season. "Both teams are very good. We were joking that the kids remember playing Harrison, but the parents remember having some hard-fought games against Harrison.
"It's fun to rekindle this rivalry. It's going to be a tough game, and a good 5A-West Conference game.
Siloam Springs (12-7, 4-1) and Harrison (14-6, 4-1) enter tonight's game tied with Greenbrier (10-9, 4-1) for the conference lead. Greenbrier handed Siloam Springs its only conference loss two weeks ago, then Harrison handed the Panthers their only conference defeat four days later.
Siloam Springs, meanwhile, kept pace with victories over Greenwood and Russellville last week.
"I've been telling our players that this is where we want to be," Stewart said. "Every night in the 5A-West is going to be a dogfight. I just want our players to be a little better with each game and keep on improving.
"The win at Russellville is a big deal because we haven't beaten them in a while. Getting those 10-point wins is a big deal, too, but sometimes the games don't play out like they should. It's going to be a close conference race, and that fourth seed in the state tournament may be determined by those tie-breaker points. It's going to be close all the way."
-- Henry Apple
SPRINGDALE HAR-BER
Wildcats, Bulldogs set to renew rivalry
Colors Day in basketball is a festive affair and Har-Ber can add to it with a win against rival Springdale tonight at Wildcat Arena.
To do so, Har-Ber must play better than it did on Monday when the Wildcats needed a third-quarter surge to overtake Rogers, which has yet to win a league game.
Kase Chambless came off the bench and scored three consecutive baskets to spark the Wildcats, who trailed 25-19 at halftime. Chambless finished with 10 points and his spin move to the basketball early in the fourth quarter put Har-Ber ahead 39-35.
"Kase was huge for us against Rogers," Har-Ber coach Tommy Deffebaugh said. "We know he's capable of playing like that in just about every game. We're a much better team when he comes in and gives us positive numbers on offense, defends, and gets rebounds."
Jaxon Conley led Har-Ber with 15 points against Rogers while Nate Kingsbury followed with 11.
Har-Ber and Springdale battled it out at Bulldog Arena on Jan. 10 before the Bulldogs secured a 52-48 victory over the Wildcats. Isaiah Sealy turned a dunk into a three-point play then Courtland Muldrew drilled a 3-pointer with 7.5 seconds for Springdale, which trailed by five with less than four minutes to play.
A win tonight will knock the Bulldogs out of a first-place tie and extend Har-Ber's winning streak to five consecutive. Because of the Colors Day festivities, the boys game will be played first tonight.
Har-Ber can be excused for its lackluster performance on Monday following a huge win over Bentonville West three days earlier. But the Wildcats will have to pick up the intensity to have a chance against the rival Bulldogs.
"We know we need to play better (tonight) than we did against Rogers on Monday, and I believe we will," Deffebaugh said.
-- Rick Fires
THADEN SCHOOL
Snow extends lengthy wait to play
The battle for first place in the 1A-1 West Conference girls basketball standings is on hold for now.
Thaden School (12-4, 6-0) currently owns the top spot, but the Lady Barnstormers' chance to solidify their grip on that position was delayed when Tuesday's game at Mulberry (14-12, 7-1) was postponed because of weather.
"We don't have a makeup date set," Thaden coach Sarah Sagely said. "We thought we had a couple of dates in mind, but we had trouble with finding referees."
When the Lady Barnstormers take the floor tonight at Founders Classic Academy, it will be their first game in two weeks. In fact, they have played only three games so far this month as Thaden lost games against The New School, which didn't have enough players to start the season, and Decatur.
Thaden already picked up a forfeit win for a scheduled Jan. 6 game at Decatur, and the Lady Barnstormers will get another one for a home game scheduled for Tuesday.
"It really stinks because I hate losing games," Sagely said. "It's been a long two weeks, but we've been practicing every chance we can get. I know the girls are itching to play again.
"Every game right now is a battle, regardless of the standings. It's a matter of who wants it more."
Sagely credits the team's success from five seniors on the roster and how they have had led the team, even when they don't get as much playing time. Natalya Davis, one of those seniors, is labeled as a "deadly" 3-point shooter, while Ella Wise is a good all-around player.
The key, though, may be freshman Samantha Whitaker, the youngest of three sisters to join the Lady Barnstormers this year.
"She just has a nose for the ball," Sagely said. "She's a quiet person on the floor, but she works hard. In games where we needed somebody to step up, she did it with steals or whatever we needed her to do."
-- Henry Apple
VALLEY SPRINGS
Ketchum receives plenty of help
Valley Springs has build a strong supporting cast around Savannah Ketchum, a junior forward who averages over 10 points and 10 rebounds per game.
The evidence can be found in the past several games for Valley Springs (22-9, 7-1), which remains tied with Bergman for first place in the 3A-1 Conference. Camie Moore led Valley Springs with 14 points against Lincoln and 20 against Green Forest, Macy Willis had 25 points against Flippin, and Willis and Tayla Trammell each scored 21 points in a 76-74 loss in double overtime to Bergman.
"We've got four girls who average in double figures and Macy Willis is averaging 16 points a game in conference play," Valley Springs coach Ryan Johnson said. "Katey Henson is doing a great job at point guard and we know we can rely on Savannah, who averages a double-double and does a great job of scoring and defending the rim."
Valley Springs hopes it can get back on the court tonight after being hit hard by a winter storm that produced up to 10 inches of snow in north-central Arkansas. Guy-Perkins is scheduled to provide the opposition on Senior Night, where the Lady Tigers will honor Aidan Gorton, the lone senior on the team. Gorton is a standout athlete who'll play softball next season at Arkansas Tech.
Guy-Perkins is a traditional power in girls' basketball in Arkansas. The game was originally scheduled in the fall but postponed because of Valley Springs' involvement in postseason volleyball.
"We like to play tough non-conference games, which helps us in the long run," Johnson said. "So, we're going to try and do everything we can to get this game in, especially with it being Senior Night."
-- Rick Fires
More News
NoneRIVER VALLEY REPORT
Tigers, Bearcats ready to clash again
Leland Barclay
Special to the NWA Democrat-Gazette
Even though it’s not the state championship in football, it’s a big game anytime Booneville and Charleston play against each other.
Charleston welcomes Booneville for the second meeting between the two schools for a 3A-4 clash in basketball today.
Charleston (7-2, 7-0) leads the conference at the halfway mark of the regular-season double-round robin schedule.
The Tigers are coming off close road wins at Paris and Hackett last week, and a win on Monday at home over Two Rivers.
Booneville (8-5, 4-3) fell late, 55-54, on two late free throws at Hackett on Monday ahead of Tuesday’s winter storm.
The game started a brutal four-game road swing for the Bearcats, who play at Cedarville on Saturday with varsity boys starting at 5 p.m. followed by varsity girls, and then at Paris on Tuesday.
The Booneville Lady Bearcats (11-4, 7-0) are also in first place in the conference, just a game ahead of Cossatot River (14-8, 7-1) in the loss column.
Charleston (5-9, 1-5) is coming off a 68-37 win over Two Rivers on Monday.
SOUTHSIDE
Southside has canceled its nonconference game at Little Rock Southwest today and will play its makeup game at home against Rogers on Saturday.
No junior varsity games will be played. Varsity girls will tip at 4 p.m. immediately followed by the boys.
Today is Southside’s scheduled open date in the nine-team 6A-West and had scheduled a nonconference doubleheader at Little Rock Southwest.
On Jan. 31 Southside hosts Northside in the second round of the Battle of Rogers Avenue.
5A-WEST
The full slate of 5A-West games that were snowed out on Tuesday will be made up on Jan. 31, which is the date that the conference builds in at the beginning of the schedule for make-up games.
Today, Van Buren travels to Russellville, Alma hits the road to Mountain Home, Greenbrier is at Greenwood, and Harrison is at Siloam Springs.
Tuesday, Alma hosts Greenwood, Van Buren host Siloam Springs, Russellville travels to Harrison, and Mountain Home is at Greenbrier.
Harrison (14-6, 4-1), Greenbrier (10-9, 4-1) and Siloam Springs (12-7, 4-1) are tied at the top of the boys standings, a game ahead of Van Buren (12-9, 3-2).
Greenwood (18-2, 5-0) leads the girls’ standings, a game ahead of Siloam Springs (4-1, 11-8).
GOOD COMPETITION
Two players that played in the inaugural Big Show Tip Off Classic Northside in February were named to the McDonald’s All-American game, which was released this week.
Baye Fall of Accelerated Prep, Co., and Ja’Kobe Walter of Link Academy, Mo., were named to the West team.
Fall will play collegiately at Arkansas while Walter is headed to Baylor..
THAT FIGURES
63 Rebounds by Northside Lady Bears in 67-38 win over Springdale
30 Wins with no losses for County Line Indians after Monday’s 80-13 win at Decatur
9 Wins with losses in the 2A-4 for the Lavaca Golden Arrows