BOYS
NO. 1 NORTH LITTLE ROCK AT CONWAY
WHERE Buzz Bolding Arena, Conway
RECORDS North Little Rock 6-1, 0-1 6A-Central; Conway 1-0, 2-4
COACHES North Little Rock: Johnny Rice; Conway: Salty Longing
NOTEWORTHY North Little Rock won both meetings during last year’s regular season by double digits, but Conway took the third meeting when it mattered most when the Wampus Cats won 72-57 in the quarterfinals of the Class 6A state tournament. … The Charging Wildcats suffered their first loss of the season Tuesday against Little Rock Central. … Conway had dropped four of its first five games of the year before pulling away to beat upstart Little Rock Southwest in its 6A-Central opener.
NO. 2 BRYANT AT LITTLE ROCK CATHOLIC
WHERE Rocket Gymnasium, Little Rock RECORDS Bryant 9-0, 1-0 6A-Central; Little Rock Catholic 6-5, 1-0
COACHES Bryant: Mike Abrahamson; Little Rock Catholic: Todd Ezzi
NOTEWORTHY The Hornets have rarely been tested in its previous nine games this season. The closest any team has come to beating Bryant was Pine Bluff, which lost 50-46 on Dec. 4. … Senior guard Camren Hunter is averaging 22 points, 7.5 rebounds and 4 assists per game for the Hornets. … Junior forward Beau Kronenberger had 21 points to help Catholic beat Cabot 67-47 on Wednesday in a game the Rockets trailed by 17 at one point in the first half. … Bryant won both meetings last season by a combined 51 points.
SEARCY AT NO. 3 MARION
WHERE Patriot Arena, Marion
RECORDS Searcy 5-5, 1-1 5A-East; Marion 8-1, 2-0
COACHES Searcy: Wayne Herren; Marion: David Clark
NOTEWORTHY Marion has won back-to-back games, including a 64-52 victory over Nettleton, on Tuesday. … Searcy had won four of its previous five games before being pounded at home by West Memphis 88-59 in its last outing. … Four of the Lions’ five losses were by at least 15 points. … Searcy will host a pair of games next week against Greene County Tech (Jan. 12) and Jonesboro (Jan. 15). … The two teams split two meetings last season, with each winning on their home floor.
NO. 4 LITTLE ROCK PARKVIEW AT NO. 10 MAUMELLE
WHERE Hornet Gymnasium, Maumelle RECORDS Little Rock Parkview 6-1, 1-0 5A-Central; Maumelle 9-2, 1-0
COACHES Little Rock Parkview: Scotty Thurman; Maumelle: Michael Shook
NOTEWORTHY Early season showdown between the No. 2 and No. 3 teams in Class 5A. … Maumelle won a pair of close games over Parkview last season, including a 61-57 victory in overtime in their last encounter. … Carl Daughtery, Josh Denton and Darvis Raspberry Jr. had 80 of the team’s 95 points in their overtime victory over Beebe on Tuesday. … Senior guard Keylon Harris had 23 points for the Patriots in their last game, a 73-63 comeback victory over Jacksonville.
FORT SMITH NORTHSIDE AT NO. 5 LR CENTRAL
WHERE Tiger Fieldhouse, Little Rock
RECORDS Fort Smith Northside 4-6, 0-1 6A-Central; Little Rock Central 9-3, 1-0 COACHES Fort Smith Northside: Eric Burnett; Little Rock Central: Brian Ross
NOTEWORTHY This is not only a conference showdown, but it’s the first time the teams have played each other since last season’s Class 6A semifinals. … Northside beat Central by 39 points and 19 points during the regular season, but the Tigers pulled a 40-37 upset in the postseason en route to earning a share of the Class 6A title. … Sophomore Bryson Warren is averaging 30 points over his past three games for Central.
CROSSETT AT NO. 6 MAGNOLIA
WHERE Panther Arena, Magnolia
RECORDS Crossett 4-4, 0-2 4A-8; Magnolia 8-0, 2-0
COACHES Crossett: Dominic Lincoln; Magnolia: Ben Lindsey
NOTEWORTHY Magnolia ripped Crossett twice in 2019-20 by an average of 37.5 points. … After winning its first four games of the season by a combined 106 points, Crossett has lost if past four games, including a 57-36 setback at Monticello three days ago. … Magnolia passed a stiff test Tuesday when it held on to beat Watson Chapel 58-47. … The Panthers’ winning streak stands at 39 games.
NO. 7 BENTONVILLE AT FORT SMITH SOUTHSIDE
WHERE Ramsey Junior High Gymnasium, Fort Smith
RECORDS Bentonville 7-1, 1-0 6A-West; Fort Smith Southside 2-10, 0-1
COACHES Bentonville: Dick Rippee; Fort Smith Southside: Stewart Adams
NOTEWORTHY Bentonville has beaten its past two opponents (Fort Smith Northside, Har-Ber) by nearly 23 points each. … Sophomore guard Jaylee Lee scored 17 points and junior guard Abel Hutchinson had 16 points in Bentonville’s impressive 60-36 victory over Springdale Har-Ber on Tuesday. … Southside has lost seven of its past eight games.
NO. 8 MILLS AT eSTEM
WHERE Arkansas School for the Deaf, Little Rock
RECORDS Mills 6-2, 1-0 4A-5; eStem 6-1, 1-0
COACHES Mills: Raymond Cooper; eStem: Nathan Pottorff
NOTEWORTHY After recovering from a foot injury, junior forward Javion Guy-King played for the first time this season Tuesday when he scored 17 points to help Mills hold off Pulaski Academy. … eStem hasn’t lost since its 62-37 defeat at Hot Springs on Dec. 8. Since then, the Mets have won four games in a row.
NO. 9 FAYETTEVILLE AT ROGERS
WHERE Rogers Arena, Rogers
RECORDS Fayetteville 10-2, 1-0 6A-West; Rogers 4-1, 1-0
COACHES Fayetteville: Brad Stamps; Rogers: Lamont Frazier
NOTEWORTHY Fayetteville lost twice to Rogers last season, but the Bulldogs are playing well during their six-game winning streak. … C.J. Williams had 20 points for Fayetteville in a 95-67 rout of Bentonville West on Tuesday. … Rogers opened its new arena with a hard-fought 50-45 victory over Fort Smith Southside.
GIRLS
NO. 1 FORT SMITH NORTHSIDE AT LITTLE ROCK CENTRAL
WHERE Tiger Fieldhouse, Little Rock
RECORDS Fort Smith Northside 11-1, 1-0 6A-Central; Little Rock Central 5-6, 0-1 COACHES Fort Smith Northside: Rickey Smith; Little Rock Central: Marlon Williams
NOTEWORTHY Today’s game with be the fourth consecutive contest that Northside will have played away from home. … Central lost two games to Northside last season by a total of 63 points. … Northside continued its dominant run by beating Bryant 70-33 on Jan. 5 behind an 18-point night from senior forward Tracey Bershers. … Since whipping Mills 68-11 on Dec. 18, Central has lost two games in a row.
NO. 9 NORTH LITTLE ROCK AT NO. 2 CONWAY
WHERE Buzz Bolding Arena, Conway
RECORDS North Little Rock 8-3, 1-0 6A-Central; Conway 9-2, 1-0
COACHES North Little Rock: Daryl Fimple Conway: Ashley Hutchcraft
NOTEWORTHY The last time these teams met, North Little Rock escaped with a 94-89 victory in three overtimes on Feb. 11 … Sophomore guard Chloe Clardy had 42 points for Conway in its previous game vs. North Little Rock. The Lady Wampus Cats won the first game between the two last season. … Conway has won seven games in a row, including a 59-point drilling to Little Rock Southwest on Tuesday. … North Little Rock will bring a four-game win streak into the game.
NO. 4 MELBOURNE AT SLOAN-HENDRIX
WHERE Greyhound Gymnasium, Imboden RECORDS Melbourne: 12-2, 3-0 2A-2; Sloan-Hendrix 4-7, 0-3
COACHES Melbourne: Eric Teague; Sloan-Hendrix: Josh Cagle
NOTEWORTHY Melbourne had to fight to slip past Salem 43-41 on Thursday after trailing by as many as eight points in the first half. … Sloan-Hendrix lost 88-24 and 73-26 to Melbourne in two meetings last season. … The Lady Greyhounds had Monday’s game against Buffalo Island Central canceled, one of many that have had to be altered around the state due to covid-19 precautions. … Melbourne, ranked No. 1 in Class 2A, is slated to face conference rival and No. 2-ranked Tuckerman on Jan. 11.
NO. 5 BATESVILLE AT PARAGOULD
WHERE Doc Paynter Court, Paragould RECORDS Batesville 11-0, 2-0 5A-East; Paragould 5-2, 0-1
COACHES Batesville: Stan Fowler; Paragould: Sonja Tate
NOTEWORTHY Paragould will play its next two games away from Doc Paynter Court following tonight’s clash. … Batesville has beaten its last six opponents by 27, 33, 24, 35, 33 and 47 points. … The only game the Lady Pioneers have won that wasn’t by a margin of at least 10 points was their 82-73 victory over Tuckerman on Dec. 2. … Batesville took a nonconference victory over Paragould 49-47 last season before the two became league foes.
NO. 6 GREENWOOD AT STAR CITY
WHERE Bulldog Arena, Star City
RECORDS Greenwood 6-3; Star City 12-2 COACHES Greenwood: Clay Reeves; Star City: Becky Yarbrough
NOTEWORTHY Greenwood’s 5A-West game against Russellville was postponed, allowing this showdown between top teams in Class 5A and Class 4A to take place. … Both teams were named co-champions of their respective classes last season (Greenwood in 5A, Star City in 4A). … Greenwood dismantled Green-brier 84-48 on Tuesday ,while Star City blistered Hamburg 51-9. … Four of Star City’s ensuing five games are on the road.
NO. 7 LITTLE ROCK CHRISTIAN AT BENTON
WHERE Panther Arena, Benton
RECORDS Little Rock Christian 9-1, 0-0 5A-Central; Benton: 8-4, 0-1
COACHES Little Rock Christian: Ronald Rogers; Benton: Jerry Chumley
NOTEWORTHY Little Rock Christian is getting a late start on league play after its game with Little Rock Hall was canceled Tuesday. … The Lady Warriors have won three consecutive games. … Benton dropped a 65-62 decision to Sylvan Hills in its first 5A-Central game. Prior to that the Lady Panthers had won four of their last five, including a 46-43 victory over Hot Springs Lakeside on Jan. 2. … Today is the first of five consecutive away games for Little Rock Christian.
NO. 8 VILONIA AT ALMA
WHERE Charles B. Dyer Airedale Arena Alma
RECORDS Vilonia 11-1, 1-0 5A-West; Alma 6-5, 0-1
COACHES Vilonia: Jeremy Simon; Alma: Codey Mann
NOTEWORTHY Vilonia has beaten Alma six consecutive times. … The last time Alma won a game in the series was in 2017. … Vilonia has won five of its six road games. … The Lady Airedales had won three games in a row before suffering a 34-25 setback at conference newcomer Mountain Home on Tuesday. … The 25 points were a season-low for Alma. … Vilonia is averaging 60 points and giving up just over 43 in its past two contests.
FARMINGTON AT NO. 10 HARRISON
WHERE Goblin Arena, Harrison
RECORDS Farmington 9-2, 1-0 4A-1; Harrison 8-0, 2-0
COACHES Farmington: Brad Johnson; Harrison: Kristian Williams
NOTEWORTHY Arguably, the top girls game in the state today between two fierce conference rivals. … Farmington won all three meetings between the teams last season, including a 63-52 decision during the 4A-North Regional tournament. … Both teams have played Prairie Grove in their previous two games as a common opponent. Farmington grabbed a 74-43 victory over the Lady Tigers on Tuesday while Harrison took a 61-44 decision over Prairie Grove on Dec. 18.
*No. 3 Bentonville’s game at Fort Smith Southside was canceled.