Kelvin Robinson did not single-handedly defeat Arkansas Baptist on Saturday night, but there were times when it seemed that the junior guard was providing all of Episcopal Collegiate's offense.
Robinson scored 26 points, including his team's first 10 points of the fourth quarter, as the Wildcats picked up a 57-46 victory over the visiting Eagles in a regular-season finale that featured two unbeaten conference champions.
Leading 40-35 entering the fourth quarter, Episcopal used Robinson's efforts to expand the Wildcats' advantage to 47-37 in the quarter's first two minutes. Arkansas Baptist managed to pull within 49-44, but Robinson's 5-foot bank shot with 2:15 to play started the finishing touches in the Wildcats' 14th consecutive victory.
"I'm glad he came out with some energy at some point," Episcopal Coach Micah Marsh said. "We were lacking it there for a bit. He made some big buckets when we needed him to."
Episcopal (18-5, 12-0) is the top seed for this week's 3A-5 Tournament at Benton Harmony Grove. Arkansas Baptist (20-6, 14-0) is the top seed for the 4A-4 Tournament at Dardanelle.
Turnovers and missed free throws caused almost as much damage to the Eagles' efforts as Robinson's scoring. Episcopal came up with 11 steals -- including six by senior post player Justin Gooseberry -- and the Eagles made only 4 of 14 free throws, including a 1-of-7 effort in the fourth quarter.
Connor Vanover, Arkansas Baptist's 7-2 freshman, led his team with 15 points and nine rebounds, and junior guard Chad McGonigal added 14 points and three assists. But the Eagles had their 16-game winning streak snapped.
"One of the reasons I'm glad we played this game is that we haven't played a team with that much speed in a while or that kind of full-court press," Arkansas Baptist Coach Brian Ross said. "It was a good experience for us, and it took us that first quarter to adjust."
Episcopal pounced on the Eagles early, jumping out to a 15-6 lead five minutes into the contest, with Mahlon Martin connecting on 3 three-pointers. Martin, however, got into foul trouble and did not score again. Robinson took up the slack, scoring 13 points during the final 10 minutes of the first half.
Arkansas Baptist made its biggest push midway through the third quarter, drawing to within 37-35 when Vanover hit a layin with 2:05 left in the quarter. Episcopal responded by scoring 10 of the next 12 points.
Martin and Allie Freeman each finished with nine points for Episcopal. Gooseberry had a team-high nine rebounds.
Episcopal held a 31-26 advantage on the boards while hitting 21 of 48 shots. Arkansas Baptist was 19 of 36 from the floor.
ARKANSAS BAPTIST (46)
Co. McGonigal 2 0-1 4, Kauffman 0 0-0 0, Ch. McGonigal 5 2-6 14, C. Vanover 6 2-4 15, B. Vanover 4 0-2 8, Hogan 2 0-1 5, Riddle 0 0-0 0. Totals 19 4-14 46.
EPISCOPAL (57)
Robinson 11 4-7 26, Martin 3 0-0 9, Freeman 3 2-2 9, Becton 0 2-2 2, C. Gooseberry 1 3-4 5, J. Gooseberry 3 0-4 6, Brasfield 0 0-0 0, Baker 0 0-0 0. Totals 21 11-19 57.
Ark. Baptist;10 13 12 11 -- 46
Episcopal;20 12 8 17 -- 57
Three-point goals -- Arkansas Baptist 4 (Ch. McGonigal 2, C. Vanover, Hogan). Episcopal 4 (Martin 3, Freeman). Team fouls -- Arkansas Baptist 14, Episcopal 17. Fouled out -- C. Gooseberry.
Sports on 02/15/2015