PEARCY -- Lake Hamilton came up with just enough offense to hold off Kaleb Higgins and the Pine Bluff Zebras on Friday afternoon.
Senior guard Mondo Watkins scored a team-high 14 points, Lake Hamilton hit its final six free-throw attempts and the Wolves survived the quarterfinal contest when Higgins' three-pointer bounced off the rim as time expired, leaving the host team with a 48-45 victory.
Higgins, a 5-7 senior guard, scored 17 of his game-high 24 points in the fourth quarter, but the Wolves (25-2) never surrendered the lead. They avoided the overtime when Pine Bluff's final out-of-bounds play started with 0.7 seconds left and ended with Higgins getting an open look from 23 feet out.
Higgins scored 21 of Pine Bluff's final 26 points.
"We knew who the ball was going to," Lake Hamilton Coach Kyle Pennington said. "We didn't have to guard anyone inside the three-point line. We knew when they set that screen to switch. But they get the ball in and we don't switch. I held my breath, and I thank the good Lord up above the shot didn't find its way into the basket."
Lake Hamilton held a 27-25 lead after three quarters and scored seven of the first nine points in the fourth quarter. Pine Bluff pulled back to within one point of the Wolves five times in the final 3:56.
"We had our best shooters out there that final go-around, trying to give ourselves a chance," Pine Bluff Coach Billy Dixon said. "We got a chance to try to [tie] it, and that's all we could really ask for."
Although only 21 of 34 from the free-throw line for the game, Lake Hamilton was clutch in the final 47.1 seconds. Senior Kanaan Williams, junior Malique Hill and senior Lane Kersey all went 2 for 2 at the line during that time. Higgins responded twice, completing a three-point play with 31.2 seconds left and hitting three free throws with 10.8 seconds remaining.
Kersey's free throws came with 9.8 seconds left for the 48-45 Lake Hamilton lead. Pine Bluff gained control of a loose ball at midcourt and called a timeout with 2.2 seconds left. Watkins blocked the Zebras' first three-point attempt, leaving Pine Bluff 0.7 seconds to work with.
"It was an honor just to have the opportunity to play in this type of game," Dixon said. "Certainly, we wanted to win. That's what you play for. Today just wasn't our day."
The teams combined to attempt only 31 shots in the first half. Pine Bluff led 9-8 after one quarter and 16-15 at the half.
There were six lead changes in the first 4:30 of the second half, but the Wolves took the lead for good at the 3:17 mark when Williams hit two free throws for a 24-23 Lake Hamilton advantage.
Senior Berkarian Black added nine points for Pine Bluff, and he also had a team-high eight rebounds.
LITTLE ROCK HALL 73
HOT SPRINGS 47
Senior Jarrius Sharp came off the bench to score 22 points as the Warriors (22-6) belted the Trojans (25-5) in a quarterfinal game.
Sharp scored 13 of his points in the second quarter as the Warriors turned a 10-8 lead after the first quarter into a 32-19 advantage at the half.
Senior Kevon Cooper finished with 13 points and five rebounds. Senior Greg Johnson scored 11 points and had four rebounds.
Senior Eddie Miles led Hot Springs with 12 points while sophomore Jadyn Walker put in 11.
Sports on 03/02/2019