Having big men like 6-foot-5 Devonta Walker and 6-4 Derrian Ford who can shoot from outside the arc and inside the paint can make a big difference for Magnolia.
But when their shots add up, the Panthers tend to prove why they're the top-ranked team in 4A boys basketball (and sixth-ranked overall).
The two seniors each scored 26 points and combined for seven 3-point baskets, helping the recently crowned King Cotton Holiday Classic bracket champions outlast Watson Chapel 80-64 on Tuesday night in the first Conference 4A-8 game for both teams.
"First, I want to give honor to God for letting me play this game," said Ford, the King Cotton Creed Bracket MVP and University of Arkansas signee. "We work hard on our shots, and a lot of our shots that we take in practice are what we take in the game. Our practice translates into the game."
The Panthers (10-0, 1-0) made 13 3-balls, with Walker nailing four of them, and Denevion Tell and Ford each sinking three. Tell finished with 15 points.
"This was probably one of the best games they've shot it," Wildcats Coach Marcus Adams said. "The gameplan was to try to keep them on the perimeter as much as possible. We had a couple of breakdowns leading to that, but there were a couple of times they shot some good contested 3s."
Watson Chapel (6-7, 0-1), which came off a strong defensive effort to win its final King Cotton game over Shreveport Calvary Baptist Academy, got 22 points from 6-3 junior Khamani Cooper, who hit four treys. But the Wildcats struggled to find an answer for cooling off the Panthers' shooting.
"Our focus was to let them shoot the ball, but it backfired," Cooper said. "But we just played hard. That's what we wanted to do. At the end of the day, we could have executed better and gotten more stops. Kudos to Magnolia and their shooting tonight."
Senior Christopher Fountain finished with 14 points, including three dunks, and Keshun Brown scored 13 points (including three 3s) for the Wildcats.
Magnolia led 41-31 at halftime, and Watson Chapel could only inch within 58-49 with 7:01 left in a game that saw its share of quick tempo.
"The up-and-down was not as quick as we normally like it to be," Panthers Coach Ben Lindsey said. "Now, there were quick shots once you got into the halfcourt, but we had a hard time guarding them. Cooper was wearing us out. When he gets hot, there's not a whole lot you can do about it. He reminds me of a Kobe Bryant or Paul Pierce; when you draw like a 3-foot-by-3-foot box, he's really good in that box."
GIRLS
Magnolia 52, Watson Chapel 43
The Lady Wildcats (0-12, 0-1 in 4A-8) pulled within 35-31 after trailing by 13 points at halftime, but the Lady Panthers (7-4, 1-0) went on a short run in the final 32 seconds of the third quarter to boost their lead to 40-31 and pick up a road victory.
Keyundra Sanders scored 15 points and Trinity Mitchner had 8 for the Lady Wildcats. Kishaliya Doss scored 16 points, Kelcy Lamkin had 15 (including four treys) and Janayi Baker scored 14 points for Magnolia.
Watson Chapel will visit Camden Fairview on Friday.
Keyundra Sanders of Watson Chapel glides to the basket against Bracelynn Glover of Magnolia in the second quarter Tuesday, Jan. 4, 2022, at Watson Chapel High School. (Pine Bluff Commercial/I.C. Murrell)