CONWAY — The Bryant White Lady Hornets eighth grade team of Bryant Middle School held Conway White’s Lady Cats to just three field goal over three quarters and, despite a slow start offensively, rode a 21-2 run to their 10th win in a row this season, 34-20, on Thursday night at Buzz Bolding Arena.
Tiyanna Robinson scored 14 points and Ivory Russ 9 to lead the offense. Fourteen players got into the game for Bryant, six contributed to the scoring. Tierra Trotter and Celena Martin had 4 each. Alivia Allen added a basket and Madalynn Thompson hit a free throw.
Defensively, the Lady Hornets forced 22 turnovers and actually held Conway White without a field goal from the 3:45 mark of the second quarter until the 3:54 mark of the fourth. The result was turning a narrow 9-6 lead into a 31-10 advantage.
The Lady Hornets will test their unbeaten record next on a trip to Russellville set for Tuesday, Jan. 12.
“We got off to a slow start – probably because we had not played in about 3 weeks – but we picked up our defense in the second and third quarters to put the game away,” noted Bryant coach Kenny Hays. “We showed more patience on offense in this game, which helped us get some open looks in our half court offense. We have also improved as a team from the free throw line. We still need to do a better job of staying out of early foul trouble. Overall, I was again proud of our team effort.”
Martin scored the first two baskets of the game, one off an offensive rebound and then other off a steal by Trotter. Russ converted two free throws to make it 6-0.
The Lady Cats cut the margin to 7-4 by the end of the first quarter.
The teams traded baskets early in the second period before the Lady Hornets started ratcheting up the defense. Conway White managed one free throw over the final 3:45 of the half. Robinson contributed a pair of field goals as Bryant built the lead to 16-7 at the half.
The defense was even tougher in the second half, which started with a steal by Robinson that led to a layup for Russ. That duo combined to force another turnover and Russ got to the line, hitting one of two shots.
Conway’s countered with a free throw but a three-point play by Robinson continued Bryant’s blitz. Robinson had two more layups and Russ drove for a bucket. With just under two minutes left in the quarter, Hays brought in a new five. Kendall Scott fed Allen for a basket to make it 30-8.
Two free throws in the final minute made it a 30-10 game going into the fourth quarter.
The starters returned for the first half of the fourth quarter and Robinson added a free throw to create the largest lead. Conway White finally hit a field goal but Robinson drove for a layup in return to make it 33-12.
The Bryant reserves returned to close out the game.
