Fayetteville's boys assume top spot in 7A-West

Seven unanswered points in the first quarter shouldn't make a big deal in a game with first place in the 7A-West Conference boys basketball standings on the line. Fayetteville, however, used that short spurt to take a lead it would never relinquish, and the Bulldogs made a major step toward the league title Friday night with a 78-59 victory over Springdale Har-Ber on the Wildcats' home floor. The win not only gives Fayetteville (17-7, 10-2) a one-game lead in the conference standings with two to play, but the Bulldogs enjoy a series sweep over Har-Ber (20-6, 9-3). That means Fayetteville can clinch the league's top seed in the Class 7A State Tournament with one more win next week. "It was a big game in a lot of respects," Fayetteville coach Kyle Adams said. "I just love to see the improvement of our kids. It's not always about the wins and the losses, but the improvement of our kids from where we were a month ago to now. "That's especially on defense. All my staff has done an unbelievable job of getting those guys where we need to be on the defensive end. Offensively, I thought RJ Johnson was the difference. He came in and came a huge lift off the bench, which he has done on many, many occasions." Collin Cooper, who finished with 30 points, hit two free throws to cause the seventh and final lead change with 3 minutes, 4 seconds left in the first quarter. Quinn Schach followed that with a bucket and Johnson's 3-pointer put Fayetteville ahead 14-8 with 1:32 remaining. It was a lead that eventually grew as much as 37-29 at halftime, thanks to Johnson's 3-pointer that went around the rim and in with 2 seconds left. "I never realized that because we are always stressing to treat each possession like it is the first or the last one," Adams said. "We just want to make sure we're competing on every possession, and I thought we did that." Har-Ber, however, used the third quarter to pull within 47-46 on Tylor Perry's 3-pointer with 1:40 left in the third quarter. Fayetteville led 54-51 at the end of the third quarter, then the Bulldogs pulled away with 10 straight points during a stretch where Perry fouled out on a charge and the Wildcats picked up four technical fouls. Johnson finished with 12 and Frank Morgan 11 for Fayetteville, which returns to action Tuesday at Springdale. Perry had 17 for Har-Ber, while Zack Peck chipped in 13. Girls: Fayetteville 49, Springdale Har-Ber 36 Sasha Goforth started it, Coriah Beck took over to start the second half and Jasmine Franklin finished it. The trio combined for 45 of Fayetteville's points as the Lady Bulldogs clinched the outright 7A-West title with a victory over Har-Ber. "I told our girls that we never take for granted what's in front of us," Fayetteville coach Vic Rimmer said. "I know Fayetteville has a pretty good history of what's going on statewide, but I just really enjoy our enthusiasm for the 7A-West. "The 7A-West is a great conference. It was a great conference before I got here, and it will be a great conference after I leave Fayetteville. Winning a conference championship here is a big deal." Goforth scored 14 of her 16 points in the first half as Fayetteville (20-3, 12-0) went on a 10-0 run to close out the second quarter and claim a 26-18 lead. Beck then took over, scoring 9 of her game-high 18 points in the third quarter and the lead grew to 37-24. Franklin sealed the victory when she scored nine of her 10 points in the fourth quarter after Har-Ber (13-13, 5-7) pulled within 37-29 after Krislyn Smith's three-point play. "A lot of it was what was just given to us," Rimmer said. "Sasha created some stuff, and Coriah created some stuff that wasn't there. In the overall picture, those three are so good that they get a chance they're going to score. "The other kids did a good job in their roles and getting them the basketball. None of that is game-planned. That stuff was given to us in those phases of the game." Savanna Collins had 12 of her 17 points in the first half to lead Har-Ber (13-13, 5-7), while Smith added 13.

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FAYETTEVILLE'S BOYS ASSUME TOP SPOT IN 7A-WEST

HERNEY APPLE

Northwest Arkansas Democrat Gazette | 2/18/2018

PHOTO CREDIT: Charlie Kaijo