SPRINGDALE -- Sophomore Pacious McDaniel was dominant on Senior Night for Springdale Har-Ber.
McDaniel scored 32 points and converted four 3-point plays to lead Har-Ber to a 52-46 victory over Rogers Tuesday in 6A-West action at Wildcat Arena. Har-Ber (8-4, 11-9) clinched third place in the league standings ahead of Rogers (15-8, 7-5), which forced a 45-45 tie on two free throws by Taylor Treadwell in the fourth quarter.
That's when McDaniel took over. Again.
McDaniel, who scored all eight of Har-Ber's points in the first quarter, added six more points in the final seconds to secure the home court victory. McDaniel was impressive with her ability to spin and finish shots after making aggressive moves from the baseline and near the free-throw line. McDaniel added to her point total by making 10 of 12 attempts from the line.
"(McDaniel) has great body control, especially for a kid who's 15," Har-Ber coach Kimberly Jenkins said. "She's got an innate ability to make plays around the basket. It's not something that you can practice or teach a kid. It's just a natural habit for her and it's kind of exciting to see that and knowing we can add so much more to her game."
Caylan Koons added 12 points for Har-Ber while Gracie Carr scored 10 points to lead Rogers, which led by five early and kept the game close until the final seconds.
Although McDaniel and Koons combined for 44 of Har-Ber's 52 points, the Lady Wildcats received big baskets from Mary Kate Martfeld and Maddux McCrackin with McDaniel on the bench for a few minutes in the fourth quarter. Martfeld found a lane to the basket and scored before McCrackin swished a 3-pointer from the corner to give Har-Ber a 45-39 lead with 3:48 left in the game.
"We've got two go-to players with Pacious and Caylan but it's been scoring-by-committee with the rest of them," Jenkins said. "Those were definitely big plays."
Rogers had its biggest lead, 13-8,before Har-Ber closed the gap behind McDaniel and Koons, who combined to score 15 of Har-Ber's first 20 points. The game was tied four times in the second half before Har-Ber pulled out the victory with McDaniel leading the way for Har-Ber, which continues league play at Fayetteville on Friday.
BOYS
SPRINGDALE HAR-BER 49, ROGERS 32
Har-Ber went on a 7-0 run at the end of the third quarter and pulled away from Rogers.
Mack Wright scored 16 points for Har-Ber while Marlan Rhame had 10 to lead Rogers.
Wright started the 7-0 surge with a 3-point basket to put Har-Ber ahead 34-26 late in the third quarter. Jermaine Tillford followed with a rebound basket and Rolfe banked in a shot with 5.5 seconds left to give the Wildcats (9-4, 17-6) momentum.
Rogers (5-8, 8-10) got to within 10 points before Har-Ber pulled away again.