LITTLE ROCK — With about 4 seconds left, Little Rock J.A. Fair converted two free throws to send the game into overtime, but Pine Bluff prevented any further heroics by the War Eagles on Tuesday night to take a 51-48 victory in 6A-South Conference play.
Rickey Clements Jr. converted two free throws of his own late in overtime to give the Zebras (8-3, 2-0 in 6A-South) the final margin. But in regulation, Pine Bluff struggled to convert short-range baskets.
“We started out the game with a 7- or 8-0 run,” Pine Bluff coach Ronald Moragne said. “We had our opportunities to put them away and we didn’t. I think we outrebounded them by 15 or so. We missed a lot of chip shots.”
Darrian Kee led Pine Bluff with 16 points and Quentin Williams added 11.
J.A. Fair fell to 1-1 in the conference.
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
Watson Chapel 65, North Pulaski 50
JACKSONVILLE — Coming off two straight one-point defeats, the Wildcats (8-7, 1-1 in 5A-Southeast) picked up their first conference victory of the season.
JoviOne Bailey scored 24 points, three shy of his season high, to lead the Wildcats. T.J. Handley added 14 and Rodney Ollison collected 11 points and 10 rebounds.
“We just went back to the basics,” Watson Chapel coach Matt Busch said. “We worked on containing the basketball. We worked on situations all week, shooting a lot of free throws.”
The Wildcats shot 15 of 22 from the free-throw line.
North Pulaski fell to 0-2 in the conference.
Ridgway Christian 47, Columbia Christian 45
MAGNOLIA — Demetrius McCullough scored a go-ahead basket with 8 seconds left and converted the ensuing free throw, as the Eagles completed a comeback from eight points down to win.
Columbia Christian turned the ball over on its last possession, and Ridgway managed to run out the clock. The Eagles (9-4) took advantage of steals in the fourth quarter to make their comeback.
No further statistics were available.
Star City 60, Warren 42
WARREN — A strong defensive effort in the first quarter gave the Bulldogs (5-10, 2-1 in 8-4A) a boost in their victory over the Lumberjacks.
Star City led 12-2 through one period and 30-15 at halftime. The Bulldogs were led by Jemiel Thompson’s 21 points and Damar Reed’s 13.
Kaleel Thomas had 23 points and VonEric Gonder 10 for Warren (0-9, 0-2).
Drew Central 55, Smackover 46
MONTICELLO — A late charge by the Buckaroos wasn’t enough to overcome a 45-26 Drew Central lead after three quarters.
For the winning Pirates (13-5, 1-0 in 8-3A), Dominique Rhodes had 19 points and Damarius Thomas 16. The Pirates had expanded their lead from 29-19 at halftime.
GIRLS
Pine Bluff 47, Little Rock J.A. Fair 15
LITTLE ROCK — The Fillies (10-5, 2-0 in 6A-South) stayed atop the conference after blowing out the War Eagles by 32 points Tuesday.
Ajia Richardson and Jasmyn Eckermann led Pine Bluff with 17 and 11 points, respectively. Pine Bluff will host Little Rock McClellan on Friday.
Watson Chapel 52, North Pulaski 20
JACKSONVILLE — Behind Kamera Bozeman’s 17 points, the Lady Wildcats (8-7, 2-0 in 5A-Southeast) went back above .500 for the season blowing out the Lady Falcons.
Brianna Williams also scored 10 points for the Lady Wildcats, who opened up a 23-11 lead at halftime after being ahead just 6-4 through the first 8 minutes.
Watson Chapel will host Monticello (13-2, 2-0) in a battle for first place Friday.
Fordyce 64, Rison 38
FORDYCE — Freshman guard Lacie Hulse scored a career-high 34 points, shooting 14 of 17 from the field, in leading the Lady Bugs (12-5, 1-0 in 8-3A) to a rivalry victory over the Lady Wildcats (3-3, 0-1).
Hulse surpassed her previous high of 26 against Camden Harmony Grove last month at Parkers Chapel. She scored many of her baskets in transition off Fordyce’s defensive pressure. She also had seven rebounds and five steals and shot 3 for 4 from the foul line.
Another freshman, Alyssa English, added 11 and Lakitta Grandy 10 for Fordyce. Meca Rainey led Rison with 15 points.
Monticello 55, Crossett 6
CROSSETT — The Lady Billies only gave up two points in the first half and held the Lady Eagles to single digits in 5A-Southeast Conference play.
Chelsea Rhodes led Monticello (13-2, 2-0 in 5A-Southeast) with 12 points and Erin Campbell followed her with 10. Monticello led 37-2 at the break.
Star City 61, Warren 27
WARREN — Tyeshia Harris scored 22 points in leading the Lady Bulldogs (15-1, 3-0 in 8-4A) past the Lady Jacks.
Olydia Thornton finished with 11 points for Star City. For Warren, Alex Phillips led with 10.
Star City will host Dumas on Friday.
Dumas 47, DeWitt 22
DUMAS — The Lady Bobcats (8-6, 3-0 in 8-4A) set up Friday’s contest for first place at Star City with a decisive victory at home over the Lady Dragons.
Shabr’an Richardson scored 22 points and A’Diamond Johnson 13 for Dumas.
Drew Central 53, Smackover 28
MONTICELLO — The Lady Pirates took off after a 22-13 halftime lead in winning their 8-3A Conference opener.
Adruma Simpson had 18 points and Iesha Smith 10 for Drew Central (15-4).