HASKELL -- Jessieville and Mountain Pine will meet today at 4:45 p.m. in the third-place consolation game of the boys' bracket at the Bill Gibbs Memorial Tournament after both teams lost their second-round games on Thursday.
Mountain Pine (3-0) opened the season with three consecutive wins, including a 57-36 win on Monday against Glen Rose (1-4) in the first round of the tournament at Haskell Harmony Grove. The Red Devils fell, 51-40, to the host Cardinals (4-3) in the final game of the semifinals.
Jessieville (5-3) lost, 56-50, to Bauxite (4-4) in an earlier semifinal. The Lions defeated the Miners, 64-51, on Nov. 20 at the Jessieville Sports Arena.
Bauxite led, 13-9, after one quarter and the Miners took a 26-17 lead into the halftime break. Jessieville scored 25 points in the final quarter, but the Lions were unable to overcome the 41-25 deficit to start the finale frame.
"We dug ourselves a hole in the second quarter and then made it even worse in the third," said Jessieville head boys' basketball coach Jared White.
"Credit to Bauxite for being ready to play and playing well. We have to take care of the ball better and, when we do turn it over, it can't be for layups. I was proud of this team's fight in the fourth quarter."
Senior Braxton Shiflett led the way with 21 points. Junior B.J. Holloway scored 11 points and senior Tyler Holloway scored nine.
The Lions will follow up today's game with the rival Red Devils with another local rivalry game on Tuesday against Fountain Lake (7-1). The Cobras are in today's final of the Battle at the Cove tournament against host Magnet Cove (5-1) scheduled for 7:20 p.m.
Harding women down
UAM in GAC opener
SEARCY -- Harding weathered a late Arkansas-Monticello rally and defeated the Cotton Blossoms, 68-60, Thursday at the Rhodes-Reaves Field House in the Great American Conference opener for both teams.
Harding (5-1, 1-0) won its fourth straight overall and will host Southern Arkansas today in GAC action.
The Lady Bisons have won 15 straight over the Blossoms overall and 10 straight in Searcy. Arkansas-Monticello (0-4, 0-1) had its losing streak extended to 14 games dating to last season.
Harding led by as many as 28 points with 5:22 left in the third quarter, but Monticello outscored Harding 21-8 in the fourth. The Blossoms cut Harding's lead to six on a Mackenzie Johnson layup with 2:26 left, but Harding got layups down the stretch from Kellie Lampo, of Jessieville, and Kennedy Cooper to seal the victory.
Harding had four players score in double figures, led by junior Cheyenne Brown with 15 points. Carissa Caples scored 14, Lampo had 13 and Cooper added 10.
Mackenzie Johnson scored all 16 of her points in the second half to lead Monticello.
Sports on 12/01/2018