Hornets one win away from post-season bid
EDITOR’S NOTE: Because the look back at each day in Bryant athletic history has been so favorably received during the time when there was no sports during the COVID-19 shutdown, BryantDaily.com will continueposting past stories of Bryant athletics either posted on BryantDaily.com (from 2009 to the present) or published in the Bryant Times (from 1998 to 2008).
By ROB PATRICK
BRYANT TIMES
The Pine Bluff Zebras basketball program has a rich tradition of winning. Seasons like the 2007-08 campaign have been rare. They came into their eighth 7A-Central Conference game at Bryant still seeking their first win in the league and just their third of the season.
No doubt, because of that tradition, they didn’t go down easily against the Hornets, turning up the pressure late in the game and whittling a 10-point deficit down the 3.
Bryant, however, despite playing without starting point guard Brandon Cowart who was out with a strained knee, withstood the rally with Zach Lewis and Chad Knight converting key free throws down the stretch. The Hornets extracted a 52-44 win to get one more step closer to a return trip to the Class 7A State Tournament.
At 4-5 in the league, the Hornets were set to travel to Russellville on Tuesday, Feb. 5 with a chance to clinch that post-season berth against the last team that could still catch them and knock them out.
Earlier this season, the Hornets edged the Cyclones 53-51 at home.
Bryant needed to get by Pine Bluff to set up that possibility.
“We really needed to win tonight,” acknowledged assistant coach Chad Withers. “It wasn’t pretty but we’ll take it.”
In recent games, the Hornets have struggled at the line on the relatively few opportunities they’ve had there. But, against Pine Bluff, they were 29 of 39 for the game and 16 of 22 in the fourth quarter.
“It’s kind of been our nemesis the last couple of weeks and we really stepped up and made the ones we needed to make tonight,” Withers noted.
Knight, who led Bryant with 15 points, was 10 of 10 at the line. Tim Floyd was 7 of 8 on his way to 13 points and Lewis was 7 of 12 as part of his 10-point performance while handling the bulk of the ballhandling in Cowart’s stead.
Through three quarters, the Hornets had suffered just six turnovers but, in the fourth quarter alone, they had 10 as Pine Bluff scrambled in hopes of getting that first league victory.
“We had some guys out there that had to handle the ball in that situation that really aren’t put in that position a lot,” Withers observed. “For the most part, we did okay. We did what we needed to do.
“I thought defensively, we did a good job,” he added. “We got tired. Brandon being out, our depth was affected. When we got tired late we gave up some stuff but, for the most part, we did pretty good.”
Two free throws by Taylor Masters with 3:38 left in the game had the Hornets up 43-33. Cordara Frazier hit a 3 for Pine Bluff then the Zebras forced two quick turnovers that resulted in baskets that had them within 43-40.
Bryant called timeout with 2:30 to go to regroup. When play resumed, they got the ball to Knight who was fouled. He came through with both free throws but, moments later, Cameron Luckett hit a driving jumper to trim the margin to 3 again.
And when the Hornets turned it over again, Luckett, who hit four 3’s in the game, had a shot at tying it from the corner. But the shot rimmed out and Lewis was fouled.
He converted twice and the Hornets, in turn, forced a turnover, one of 25 they forced in the contest. Knight sank two more free throws and the margin was back to 7. And when Lewis made a steal, Knight cashed it in with a layup and the Zebras were all but done with :52 left.
At the start of the game, it looked like the Hornets were still playing at the Little Rock Catholic gym where, in their previous outing, they had an atrocious night shooting the ball.
Both teams struggled, in fact. Bryant was 2 of 10 from the field in the first quarter, Pine Bluff just 1 of 10. The result was a 6-6 tie going into the second period. Luckett hit a 3 to put his team ahead but after Floyd posted up for a turnaround jumper and Knight hit a pair of free throws, the Hornets were ahead to stay.
Knight’s free throws were set up by a charge taken by center Hunter Sample, one of four the Hornets absorbed. Dijon Benton stood in four two of them, Masters the other.
Benton fed Masters for a bucket inside to extend the Bryant lead then Floyd hit an 8-foot jumper to make it 14-9.
But the lead was just 14-13 at the half.
The Zebras were still within 21-18 with 3:30 left in the third quarter when Benton drained a 3 that started an 11-2 push by the Hornets. Floyd added a pair of free throws and, after Luckett hit a reverse layup, Lewis popped a triple, Knight canned two free throws and Benton hit one to make it 32-20, the largest margin of the game, with 1:24 left in the period.
The teams traded points after that. Pine Bluff got within 7 but free throws by Floyd and Knight bumped it back to 10. Luckett hit a 3 but Lewis and Masters converted to make it 10 again before the Zebras’ last-ditch assault.
After visiting Russellville on Tuesday, the Hornets were set to host Conway on Friday, Feb. 8.
