FORT SMITH - Tereke Eckwood got a pair of Jordan shoes for his 17th birthday Thursday.
He made sure the big day ended well, shaking off a tough outing at the freethrow line by making 3 of 4 foul shots in the final 40 seconds as Springdale High pulled away for a 64-55 win over Bryant in the fi rst round of the Coke Classic.
Eckwood and junior Chris Owens each scored a gamehigh 19 points to lead the Bulldogs (6-0). Eckwood entered the game shooting 72 percent from the line this year, but was just 2 of 10 before knocking down the key foul shots late to seal the victory.
“I did feel like I was going to make them,” Eckwood said of the late foul shots. “I was just thinking, ‘I’m better than this.’ I don’t know how I was missing them.”
Springdale survived and moved on to play Fort Smith Northside in the second round of the tournament at Arkansas-Fort Smith despite hitting just 13 of 26 free throws and allowing Bryant to shoot 53 percent from the fi eld.
“In tournament play, regardless of what kind of tournament, where you’re playing, what you’re doing, it’s win and advance,” Springdale coach Brad Stamps said. “I expect us to be better than we were (Thursday). I think everybody’s in the same boat. Day after Christmas, everybody’s coming back. Didn’t execute very well. Defensively, I was disappointed. But a lot of that has to do with lack of practice.”
Springdale jumped out to a 17-7 lead early, but the Hornets responded with an 11-0 run and the game was back and forth the remainder of the way. Senior forward Brendan Cook scored 11 of his 12 points in the first half to help Springdale keep pace and head to halftime tied 28-all despite struggling for much of the second quarter.
“We weren’t really executing our plan early and they were getting everything at the rim, which they’re so good at,” Bryant coach Michael Abrahamson said. “Once we started playing a little better and getting comfortable out there, we caught up.”
The game was tied at 42 entering the fourth quarter. Bryant took the lead 44-42 and 46-45 before Springdale went on a quick 6-0 run sparked by an Owens putback basket.
Bryant (3-5) never recovered. The Hornets kept it close, but couldn’t tie or take the lead playing a young lineup down the stretch.
Freshman Desmond Duckworth, senior CJ Rainey and senior Cedarrian Crosbyeach scored a team-high 13 points for Bryant, while senior Greyson Giles had 11. The Hornets played two freshmen and a sophomorein their rotation.
“We’re eight games in and that shouldn’t matter as much anymore,” Abrahamson said. “They never got rattled. And some of our kids did. We had some turnovers, not getting rebounds, just little things. They just seemed so steady throughout the whole game, which is a compliment to those players and coach Stamps. I would imagine they’re going to be at the top of the 7A West. It is somewhat encouraging to know that we played with them for most of the game.”
The Springdale-Northside game will tip off at 7:45 p.m. in a matchup of two of the top Class 7A teams in the state.
Sports, Pages 6 on 12/27/2013