FORT SMITH -- Little Rock Catholic knew it could keep its postseason hopes alive early in the season with a win on the road Friday night. The Rockets did just that at Southside Gym.
Catholic played solid defense and found high-percentage shots on the other end early to help pull away with a 64-44 victory against Fort Smith Southside in a 6A-Central Conference matchup.
"Every game in this conference is going to be a tough one," Catholic coach Todd Ezzi said. "Winning one here is huge. This keeps us in the playoff picture. We are going to keep fighting and see what happens at the end."
Catholic, which picked up its first conference win of the season, jumped out to a 10-2 lead after the first quarter of the game then made it a 27-14 edge heading into the break. The Rockets were able to make 10 of 24 first-half shots, while the Mavericks were limited to just 6-of-24 shooting.
Southside (5-14, 0-5) made just one of its initial 13 shots to start the game in the first quarter, which allowed Catholic (7-10, 1-4) to build a small edge heading into the second quarter.
The Rockets were able to push out their advantage after that. Catholic made it 23-9 with a three-point play from Jordan Edington under the basket that capped a 9-2 run in the second quarter.
The Mavericks were limited to just two points in the first quarter then bounced back to put together a 12-point second quarter. Catholic improved on offense as well though, following a 10-point first quarter with a 17-point second quarter.
"I think the key to the game was defensive rebounding," Ezzi said. "That was the game plan coming into this one. We know shots always aren't going to fall on the road. We wanted to defend and rebound. We did a good job getting a hand in their face often."
Brian Flanagan took over the Catholic offense after halftime in the third quarter. After eight first-half points, he scored 12 of the team's 17 third-quarter points. That helped the Rockets take a 44-25 lead heading into the fourth quarter.
"He just plays so hard and does exactly what we want him to do," Ezzi said of Flanagan. "He has come along in the last six games. I'm really proud of what he is doing. He played a great game."
Southside was able to put together its best quarter of the night in the fourth with 19 points. Catholic was able to keep pace with its best quarter as well, scoring 20, to maintain its big lead.
"In this conference, it is tough to get wins," Ezzi said. "I thought our guys played well and Southside did as well. We were able to do what we wanted to pull this one out."
Flanagan finished with a game-high 24 points for Catholic. Sam Hannah also chipped in 11 points for the Rockets.
Southside was led by Mykale Franks' team-high 13 points, while Elijah York added 10 points as well for the Mavericks.
Cath;10;17;17;20;--;64
South;2;12;11;19;--;44
Catholic (7-10, 1-4): Flanagan 24, Hannah 11, Kleine 7, Heird 5, Johnson 5, Edington 4, Biernat 2, Washington 2, Racher 2, Anwar 2.
Southside (5-14, 0-5): Franks 13, York 10, Mitchell 8, J. Washington 3, LaRoche 3, Phonesouphan 3, Merrell 2, Washington 2.
Girls
Mount St. Mary 52, Fort Smith Southside 26
Mount St. Mary's Catherine Althoff checked out of the game with about six minutes left in the fourth quarter to a cheer from the fans who made the trip on the road at Southside Gym.
She earned it, scoring a game-high 19 points, to help lead the Belles to their first conference win of the season. Kaitlin Tarini also added 13 points for Mount St. Mary.
Southside was led by Dylan McCord, who finished with a team-high nine points all behind the arc.
Mount St. Mary (7-11, 1-4) was able to jump out to a 19-4 lead after the first quarter of the game with some hot shooting, making seven of 16 shots. Southside (0-17, 0-5) missed its initial three shots and had six turnovers before its first points of the game. That allowed the Belles to build an early 9-0 lead.
Mount St. Mary took a 32-16 lead heading into the break. Southside was able to find its way after the first frame on offense, using a 12-point second quarter. That included three shots made from behind the arc.
Mount St. Mary outscored Southside 14-4 in the third quarter to take a 46-20 advantage heading into the final quarter to put the game well out of reach.
Mount;19;13;14;6;--;52
South;4;12;4;6;--;26
Mount (7-11, 1-4): Althoff 19, Tarini 13, Smith 8, Allgood 6, Wilcox 4, Meadors 2.
Southside (0-17, 0-5): McCord 9, Norwood 6, Rice 5, Redding 3, Grist 1, Johnson 1, Gramlich 1.
Preps Sports on 01/25/2020