JONESBORO – It took a while for North Little Rock to get going Friday night, but when it did, the Charging Wildcats never slowed down.
The defending Class 6A champs wiped out a third-quarter deficit during a pivotal three-minute stretch in the third quarter and got another all-around effort from University of Arkansas signee Nick Smith to beat Bartlett, Tenn., 82-69 in the semifinals of the Hurricane Classic at Don Riggs Gymnasium.
Smith had 27 points, 8 assists and 5 rebounds for North Little Rock (5-0), which scored nine of the last 12 points of the second quarter to tie the game at 36-36 at halftime before using a 12-0 run in that third period to wipe out the Panthers' 37-36 cushion and carve out a path to the tournament title game.
"[Bartlett] was picking us up, and we were having trouble with that," said North Little Rock Coach Johnny Rice, who also got 12 points from Charles Maris. "Once we got in a half-court deal, we wanted to go through Kel'el [Ware]. When we did that, we started to get going. We hit some shots, and then Nick got going.
"All of that ended up being the difference in the game."
Ware added 19, points, 15 rebounds and 5 blocks and Tyler Fredrick had 12 points for the Charging Wildcats, who'll play Jonesboro today at 5:30 p.m. in the final. The Golden Hurricane got 24 points from Jesse Washington to outlast Bentonville 63-58.
"This will be the fourth or fifth time we've played them in the final," Rice said of Jonesboro. "They're super well-coached, and they're going to do everything they can to get you to play their way. Plus they'll be at home so we know it's going to be a tough one."
The Golden Hurricane certainly received a tough test against the Tigers.
Jonesboro (2-0) hit its first five shots of the game and forced Bentonville to play catch-up the rest of the way. Amarion Wilson had nine points in the opening quarter, six coming off straight-line drives to the basket. The one shot he made that wasn't inside – a pull-up jumper from 15 feet – gave the Hurricane a 15-5 lead with less than three minutes remaining in the period.
Jonesboro held a 25-12 advantage early in the second until Bentonville (2-1) scuffled back. Jaylen Lee, who finished with 26 points and five rebounds, scored eight points during a lightning-quick 12-2 run. His dish inside to Abel Hutchinson cut the Hurricane's advantage to 25-22 by the 4:24 mark. Still, a running one-hander from Jonesboro's Deion Buford-Wesson began a late rush that led to the Hurricane's 36-28 margin at the half.
The Tigers, though, continued to hang around in the second half and had some chances to move out front, but turnovers cost them. Trailing 49-46 with 4:29 left in the game, Lee was whistled for a charging call after hitting a floater. Moments later, Jonesboro's Isaac Harrell drilled a three-pointer from the left wing to extend the Golden Hurricane's lead to 53-48.
Bentonville would get another chance to take the lead with just under two minutes to go when it was down 55-54 but threw the ball away. On the ensuing possessions, the Tigers were then called for an intentional foul on Washington, who calmly hit both free throws. Bentonville was also assessed a 10-second violation and a technical foul during the final 1:20, both of which Jonesboro capitalized on.
Harrell and Wilson both finished with 12 points for the Hurricane. Hutchinson aided the Tigers with 12 points as well.
MANILA 71, BROOKLAND 48
A 21-2 run that spanned the third and fourth quarters pushed Manila (3-2) in the consolation round.
Jake Baltimore scored 19 points and Brayden Nunnally had 17 points and seven rebounds for the Lions, who were ahead 46-42 with just under two minutes left in the third quarter. But a three-pointer from Nunnally started an 11-2 run to end the period. Manila then notched the first 10 points of the fourth to extend its cushion.
Luke Kirk scored 14 points and Dax Davison had 10 points and seven rebounds for the Lions. Cole Kirby finished with 10 points and David York tallied all nine of his points after halftime for Brookland (1-4).
BEEBE 53, RIDGEFIELD CHRISTIAN 41
Conley Herekamp had all 13 of his points in the first half to lift Beebe (2-4) to a bounce back victory.
Rylie Marshall had 9 points, 5 rebounds and 3 steals while Daniel Clemons had eight second-half points for Beebe, which faced a 10-3 deficit in the first quarter before closing the period on a 7-0 run to tie it. The Badgers later trailed 14-10 in the second, but a 10-2 spurt allowed them to assume control. Brooks Nail also added 7 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists and 3 steals for Beebe.
Noah Stracener had 23 points and 5 rebounds while Doss McDaniel scored 14 points for Ridgefield Christian (7-6). The Warriors were down 32-28 with 3:19 to go in third until a quarter-ending, eight-point burst by the Badgers put them in a 40-28 hole.