SPRINGDALE -- Bentonville High's definitive size advantage paid big dividends in the second half Tuesday night at Springdale.
Playing their third road game in five days, Bentonville won its second straight in 7A-West play with a 50-35 win against the Red'Dogs. Senior Jordan Hemphill led the Tigers with a team-high 20 points.
7A-West Conference
Boys
Bentonville High 50, Springdale High 35
Bentonville^10^12^14^14^–^50
Springdale^12^6^10^7^–^35
Bentonville (7-9, 3-1): Hemphill 20, Shanks 15, Hutchinson 8, Blackmon 3, Constantini 2, Akbar 2.
Springdale (5-11, 2-2): Fitch 20, Jibke 9, Robinson 4, Bowman 2.
Girls
Bentonville High 54, Springdale High 52
Bentonville^13^11^12^18^–^54
Springdale^15^6^19^12^–^52
Bentonville (9-8, 2-2): Hargus 16, Clark 16, Hughes 13, Roberts 5, Kash 2, Clifton 2.
Springdale (9-8, 3-1): M. Davis 13, Dougan 10, Vogel 10, Minchew 9, Jackson 6, Thaly Sysavahn 2, Gause 2.
Bentonville led by as many as 14 in the second half behind Hemphill's steady night. Drawing interest from a number of mid-major programs across the country, he came out aggressive in the second half, scoring 14 of his 20 after the break.
"He looked really good in the second half as our point guard controlling tempo," Bentonville coach Jason McMahan said of his 6-5 guard. "We got the right shots at the right time, and I thought our defense in the second half disrupted them just enough."
Hemphill finished 7 of 13 shooting. As a team, the Tigers shot 54 percent (19 of 35) from the floor.
"(Attacking the basket) was definitely my goal," Hemphill said of his second-half play. "I just made it a point to go at them. And Michael (Shanks) has been pretty consistent for us all year. We're both capable of scoring like that."
Shanks added 15 points for Bentonville on 6 of 9 shooting, teaming up with Hemphill as the Tigers opened the second half on a 12-2 run to grab a 34-20 lead. Asa Hutchinson contributed a pair of 3-pointers in the win, finishing with 8 points.
Springdale's Carl Fitch wasn't bothered by the Tigers' size early, scoring nine of the Red'Dogs' 12 first-quarter points as Springdale took a 12-10 lead into the second quarter. Fitch scored a team-high 20 points in the loss, his second 20-point outing in 7A-West play. With another strong performance, Fitch upped his scoring average to 18 points per night in league play.
Springdale missed junior forward Justin Bilyeu's presence early on as he was on the bench with foul trouble. Joe Jibke, though, provided a spark with nine points, six in the second half on back-to-back possessions.
But following a tough start to its season, Bentonville appears to be finding its stride.
"To put the two road wins with this one and the win at Fayetteville on Saturday is good," McMahan said. "This is always a hard place to play. They're really hard to prepare for."
The Tigers return home Friday for the first time since Jan. 10 to host Rogers. Springdale travels to Van Buren Friday.
Girls: Bentonville High 54, Springdale High 52
Springdale High led Bentonville by as many as nine in the fourth quarter, but the Lady Tigers owned the final five-plus minutes of the game.
Krista Clark and Lauren Hargus each scored 16 points in Bentonville's come-from-behind win Tuesday night. The Lady Red'Dogs held a 45-36 lead with 5:31 to play in the fourth thanks to a 17-3 run, but turnovers and second chances for Bentonville allowed the Lady Tigers to hang around.
Down one, Avery Hughes drove and got her layup to fall with 10 seconds left, giving Bentonville a 53-52 lead. Marquesha Davis led Springdale with 13 points while Haley Dougan and Sarah Vogel each added 10.
Sports on 01/18/2017