When Bentonville hosted Fort Smith Northside in a non-conference basketball game earlier this season, there was no way to know at the time that meeting would serve as a prelude to the girls Class 6A State Championship.
Yet, those two teams will meet again this afternoon, and the state title will be on the line inside Bank OZK Arena in Hot Springs.
“We knew Bentonville was a really good team, and they had all the pieces to the puzzle,” Northside coach Rickey Smith said. “You knew they would go deep in the playoffs, but the odds of both of us making it to the state championship were slim — for both of us, really.
“We’re thankful to still be playing and thankful to be one of two teams left. I know Bentonville feels the same way. I don’t think there’s that much difference in the two teams between December and now. “
Northside (28-1) claimed a 56-47 victory in Tiger Arena in that December meeting, one of several that featured the experimental 35-second shot clock this season. Four Lady Bears — Jersey Wolfenbarger, Tracey Bershers, Sara Bershers and Tiya Douglas — all scored 12 points in that game to provide a balanced offensive attack.
Northside built a 35-18 halftime cushion and never allowed Bentonville (26-3) to get any closer than nine points en route to the Lady Tigers’ first of only three losses this season. The two teams then won their respective conference championships with 13-1 marks, with Northside’s only loss coming in overtime to North Little Rock while Bentonville’s loss came against Fayetteville on a shot at the buzzer by Coriah Beck.
“We were always hoping we would get another chance to compete with them,” Bentonville coach Tom Halbmaier said. “After that loss, my whole mindset was there were some holes to be filled. As the season went along, our players did a good job of filling those holes. Once we got those pieces in the right spot, we continued to improve and continued to get better.
“Right now, our girls are playing with a lot of confidence and playing a lot of unselfish ball. They’re fun to watch, and they’re looking forward to the challenge. It will be a tough challenge; don’t get me wrong. Northside’s a talented team, and they deserve a lot of credit.”
Both teams had first-round byes to start the state tournament and enjoyed easy quarterfinal victories as Northside earned a 55-37 victory over Bryant while Bentonville breezed past Little Rock Central by a 65-35 margin. The semifinal games Saturday, however, were completely different outcomes.
Northside had its mettle tested against Fayetteville and had to play three overtimes before the Lady Bears came away with a 64-62 victory. Northside never led through regulation play and trailed by 11 points at one point before Jazzlyn Coleman, who was scoreless up to that point, hit a 3-pointer in the third overtime to give the Lady Bears the lead for good.
“Over the years, our teams have survived one of those types of games when you don’t feel like you played your best basketball or you run into somebody pretty hot,” Smith said. “You just have to survive and advance. We didn’t play really good basketball, but Fayetteville had every reason to do with that. They really locked us down and had us flustered.
“We didn’t have a good flow offensively in the first half, but we found a way to win. What I’m really proud of is Jersey and Sara Bershers played all 44 minutes. To play that much without a break and still be the go-to players tells you they’re pretty tough kids, and Tracey Bershers played 43½ minutes.”
Meanwhile, nobody — especially Smith and Halbmaier — expected what transpired in the second semifinal as Bentonville rolled to its 12th consecutive victory with a 66-37 romp over Conway. The Lady Wampus Cats were forced to call two timeouts before they scored their first points as the Lady Tigers jumped out to a 17-0 lead.
Even with senior guard Avery Hughes — experiencing some foul trouble, Benton-ville’s lead never dropped below eight points, and the Lady Tigers eventually extended their lead to a 30-point margin and forced the running clock to be used. Natalie Smith led Bentonville with 19, followed by Maryam Dauda with 14 and Hughes with 12.
“I don’t think anybody saw that coming,” Halbmaier said. “I thought we had the ability to play well and get the victory. Just the way we did it, I was really impressed and even surprised in the terms of how they did it.
“It was probably the perfect storm. Our kids did a great job of not pounding the ball or dominating the ball. They did a great job of passing and cutting without the ball and looking inside. When you have the perimeter game going and shooting the ball well, then you have a player like Maryam who is an offensive threat, then things can go well.”
Class 6A girls state
championship
Fort Smith Northside vs. Bentonville
WHEN 2:30 p.m. today
WHERE Bank OZK Arena, Hot Springs
ON AIR Game will be televised by AETN and live-streamed at www.bentonvillesportsnetwork.com.
RECORDS Northside 27-1; Bentonville 26-3 HOW THEY GOT HERE Northside won the 6A-Central Conference title, earned a first-round bye in the state tournament, then defeated Bryant 55-37 and Fayetteville 64-62 (3 OT). Bentonville won the 6A-West Conference title, earned a first-round bye in the state tournament, then defeated Little Rock Central 65-35 and Conway 66-37.
NOTABLE Northside defeated Bentonville 56-47 in a nonconference game Dec. 14 in Tiger Arena. … This is Northside’s 12th appearance in a state championship game under Rickey Smith, who recorded his 600th win with the Lady Bears’ in their season opener and is currently 626-119 in 25 years at Northside. The Lady Bears have won six state championships under Smith’s guidance, with the last one being in 2013. … Bentonville is making its first appearance in a state championship game since 2003 and only the second one as Tom Halbmaier as head coach. The Lady Tigers also appeared in a state title game in 1997, but they are seeking their first basketball state crown. … Halbmaier needs five more victories to reach the 300-win mark since he became Bentonville’s head coach before the 2001-02 season.
PROBABLE STARTING LINEUPS
Northside
NO. PLAYER, CL., HT. PPG 4 Jersey Wolfenbarger, So., 6-1 15.5 10 Deairah Mays, Sr., 5-9 3.4 24 Tracey Bershers, So., 6-1 8.5 25 Tiya Douglas, Sr., 5-10 8.7 33 Sara Bershers, Sr., 6-0 11.9 KEY RESERVES: 44 — Jazzlyn Coleman (Jr., 5-10, 5.6); 2 — Eriel West (Jr., 5-5, 1.9)
Bentonville
NO. PLAYER, CL., HT. PPG 00 Avery Hughes, Sr., 5-7 13.3 12 Natalie Smith, Jr., 5-7 8.7 14 Bella Irlenborn, Jr., 6-1 4.4 24 Emily Sanders, Jr., 5-9 6.6 30 Maryam Dauda, So., 6-4 12.8 KEY RESERVES: 22 — Rylie Hayes (So., 5-6, 4.9); 21 — Katie Kultgen (So., 5-7, 3.9); 10 — Millie Skidmore (Sr., 5-11, 2.9)
Henry Apple can be reached at happle@nwadg.com or on Twitter @NWAHenry.