LITTLE ROCK — Jerrica James and Kayla Brown combined for six three-pointers in leading the North Little Rock Lady Charging Wildcats to a 63-45 victory over host Little Rock Hall in the championship game of the Wendy’s Invitational on Saturday night.
James, the tournament’s MVP, scored a game-high 21 points and Brown scored all but two of her 12 points in the second half as the Lady Charging Wildcats (4-0) won their 35th consecutive game.
“Jerrica and I play off of each other and once we got started we didn’t stop,” Brown said. “In practice, we are going against each other all the time. It’s made us both better.”
The two teams traded the lead eight times in the first half, but North Little Rock outscored Hall 10-1 in the final 2:48 of the first half to take a 31-23 halftime lead.
North Little Rock hit 10 of its first 17 shots in the second half and was ahead by as many as 20. The Lady Charging Wildcats finished the game by hitting 25 of 54 from the field.
“We didn’t come out of the dressing room and play the second half like we should have,” Hall Coach Selita Farr said. “And they shot the ball extremely well.”
Hall (2-1) was 18 of 57 from the field, and Warriors sophomore Tyler Scaife was held to a season-low 15 points, which was a team high for the Lady Warriors on Saturday. Scaife also had four assists and four steals.
“We didn’t have any one person on her,” Brown said. “If she beat somebody, we just made sure we had someone else pick her up. We weren’t going to let her do what she wanted to do.”
Early on, North Little Rock seemed intent on getting the ball inside to 6-2 post player Lexus Williams, who finished with 13 points and nine rebounds.
“That was a concern for us early because Lexus is a beast down there,” Farr said. “We just tried to front her.”
Williams finished the first half with nine points, but North Little Rock turned to its guards to start the final 16 minutes. James hit a threepointer 30 seconds into the second half and scored her team’s first six points.
In the next two minutes, Brown hit a pair of two-pointers - both from just outside the lane - and a three-pointer.
With 9:57 to play, James hit another three to give the Lady Charging Wildcats a 49-30 advantage.
LITTLE ROCK HALL (45) Scaife 5 4-4 15, McFergerson 0 2-4 2, P. Cole 0 0-0 0, Ford 2 0-0 5, Austin 4 0-0 8, Miller 2 0-0 5, Ti. Coffey 2 0-2 4, Weber 1 0-0 2, Dozier 0 0-0 0, Tanner 0 0-0 0. Totals 18 6-10 45.
NORTH LITTLE ROCK (63) Taylor 1 0-0 2, Slocum 0 0-0 0, King 1 0-1 2, Bridwell 0 0-0 0, K. Brown 5 0-0 12, Jackson 3 0-0 6, Patterson 0 1-2 1, Hale 2 0-0 4, James 8 1-2 21, A. Brown 0 0-0 0, Williams 4 5-10 13, Brooks 0 0-2 0, Giles 1 0-0 2. Totals 25 7-17 63.
Halftime - North Little Rock 31, Hall 23. Three-point goals - Hall 3 (Scaife, Ford, J. Cole); NLR 6 (James 4, K. Brown 2). Team fouls - Hall 14, NLR 12.
Wendy’s Invitational Championship North Little Rock 63, Little Rock Hall 45 Third place Little Rock Parkview 60, Cabot 39 Consolation finals Little Rock Central 53, Little Rock Christian 38 Seventh place Lonoke 67, Conway Christian 65 Heavenly Hoops Championship Russellville 47, Star City 44 Third place Watson Chapel 46, Mount St. Mary 23 Consolation finals Beebe 46, Sylvan Hills 37 Seventh place Forrest City 59, North Pulaski 26 Consolation roundups on Page 15C
Sports, Pages 29 on 11/21/2010