By Rob Patrick
Photos by Kevin Nagle
When the subject of maturity is brought up regarding a basketball team, what usually comes to mind is an emotional aspect. How tough minded are a team’s players? Do they panic under[more] pressure or do they remain calm? Do they play through adversity?
But sometimes it just comes down to physical maturity. The older the players, the stronger they are.
The Bryant Lady Hornets started three sophomores on Tuesday night and they all play beyond their years in their mental and emotional maturity.
The Conway Lady Wampus Cats started three seniors on Tuesday night against the Lady Hornets. They too played with emotional and mental maturity but, to top that, they had physical maturity, strength, particularly while setting solid traps, to go with experience in the rugged 7A-Central Conference wars.
Still, the game between the two teams was nip-and-tuck through two-and-a-half quarters. In fact, with 3:47 left in the third period, the Lady Hornets had forged a 38-34 lead. Trailing 34-32, sophomore Logan Davis nailed a 3 to put Bryant ahead then, moments later, sophomore McKenzie Adams turned in an old-fashioned three-point play to produce the advantage.
But Conway answered with a 17-2 run during which they’re trapping defense took a toll on the Lady Hornets. Though Conway led by as many as 15 points down the stretch, the Lady Hornets closed within 7 in the final minute only to absorb their second consecutive loss, 71-60.
“It’s not like we’re not close,” stated Bryant head coach Blake Condley. “It’s just those few possessions that totally turn a ballgame around. You let them get a run going because you don’t block out or you commit a turnover. Every possession, especially when you’re playing a good team, gets magnified.
“From start to finish, there were possessions where four girls might be doing their job and one girl would be taking that play off,” he explained. “Whether it was getting trapped and the girls not making themselves available at the right spots to be able to get out of there or maybe a shot goes up and four girls block out really well and one girl doesn’t and we give up an offensive rebound.
“Just thinking about those things — and we’ve talked about this the last month or two — as a team, we have to play every possession. We can’t take a possession off. We need all five girls on the floor, doing their job every possession. And we just took a few possessions off tonight.
“That’s coming from our youth, our inexperience, not understanding that these teams are bringing it,” he concluded. “They’re bringing their best and they’re going to punch you in the mouth for 32 minutes.”
Condley acknowledged that his team is in the midst of its most difficult stretch. After losing to Russellville (13-2) last Friday, they fell to Conway (now 14-1) going into games at Cabot (11-5 but with the lone win over Conway on the road) and at home against the defending State champion North Little Rock team (15-0).
The Lady Hornets are now 14-2 overall and 1-2 in league play.
The Lady Wampus Cats, now 2-1 in the conference, were led by senior Taylor Gault’s 31 points. Enjonae Chambers, a sophomore starter, added 18 points. Both totals were padded by late free throws as the Lady Hornets started fouling in order to try to catch up. Through three quarters, Conway was 6 of 17 at the line. The Lady Cats were 13 of 20 in the fourth. But the Lady Hornets were able to cut the margin to 7 thanks to a second-half scoring surge by Adams who finished with 26 points after being held to 3 in the first half when she, sophomore guard Kiara Moore and senior Abbi Stearns got into foul trouble. Adams also did a good job of driving, drawing the defense and feeding open teammates for baskets.
The game was tied four times in the first quarter including at 12 going into the second period. Bryant had a brief lead of 14-13 after Blundell hit two free throws at the 7:17 mark but Conway’s Madison Foster answered with a 3 and, before the half was over, the Lady Cats built the lead to 27-20.It didn't help that the Lady Hornets were without junior starter London Abernathy due to illness. A solid player defensively and on the boards, Abernathy is Bryant’s top threat from 3-point range and, according to Condley had been ripping the nets in practice on Monday before becoming ill that night.
Bryant got 12 points and 16 rebounds from Stearns, 12 points and 10 boards from Breanna Blundell. But the inside duo got cut off in the second half, scoring 2 points each down the stretch.
Stearns scored off the offensive glass then Blundell was fouled pulling down a defensive rebound. She converted to make it 27-24. With time running out, Conway’s Alexus Clardy missed twice and Stearns had collected the carom off the second try only to have Conway’s Bre Hobbs muscle it away from her as Stearns was bumped from behind. Hobbs scored to make it 29-24. A free throw by Adams with :01.7 showing set the halftime score at 29-25.
The game was tied at 30 and 32 before Gault skied for an offensive rebound and scored. That led to Davis’ triple and Adams’ three-point play to give Bryant the lead.
Hobbs started the Conway surge with a basket inside off a feed from a teammate’s drive that drew both inside defenders for Bryant.
The Lady Hornets suffered a turnover and Gault got a layup. Again, Bryant turned it over but, at that point with 2:25 left in the third quarter a key play occurred. Stearns had inside position on a Conway miss and, in the battle for the rebound, got bumped out of the way again as Clardy collected the carom. Stearns went back after it only to foul as Clardy scored.
It was Stearns' fourth foul, picking up one after being denied one. She came out.
And, after Clardy completed the three-point play, Gault made a steal and layup.
It was 47-38 before Bryant scored again. Adams hit a driving jumper to cut the lead to 7 but Gault's running jumper gave Conway a 49-40 lead going into the fourth quarter.
And when Chambers popped a 12-footer to start the scoring in the fourth, Conway had its first double-digit lead.
Adams answered with a 3 then Bryant had three chances to close the gap further but missed two shots and turned the ball over. Clardy knocked down a 3 and the lead eventually built to 58-43.
Moore had fouled out, limited to just one 3-pointer during the third quarter. Trailing 60-45, Adams hit a jumper then added a pair of free throws. Gault converted twice at the line but so did Davis. Foster missed one of her two tosses so when Stearns scored off the offensive glass, Bryant was within 10 with 1:12 to go.
At the 1:09 mark, Gault was fouled. It was the 10th team foul on Bryant so she got two shots. She missed both. But Clardy found a way to claim the rebound off the second miss.
Bryant’s Callie Hogancamp appeared to have a steal but stepped on the sideline and, with 1:02 left, Gault hit a free throw. Adams countered with a drive that resulted in free throws. She converted twice to whittle the lead to 9.
It was 67-57 with :40.1 showing. Adams hit a 3 that got the Lady Hornets as close as they’d been since the third-quarter run by Conway. Foster hit a free throw with :24.3 showing and, on her missed second shot, Clardy somehow rebounded again much to the Lady Hornets’ frustration. In the final 20 seconds, Foster added a free throw and Gault knocked down two to set the final score.
LADY CATS 71, LADY HORNETS 60
Score by quarters
Conway 12 17 20 22 — 71
BRYANT 12 13 15 20 — 60
LADY CATS (14-1, 2-1) 71
Player fg-fga ft-fta reb fls pts
o-d-t
Foster 1-4 3-6 3-2 5 4 6
Allen-Smith 1-4 2-4 2-1 3 5 4
Chambers 5-12 7-12 5-0 5 4 18
Gault 12-21 6-12 2-4 6 3 31
Hobbs 3-8 0-2 2-7 9 3 6
Clardy 2-8 1-2 4-5 9 1 6
Team 1-0 1
Totals 24-57 19-38 19-19 38 20 71
LADY HORNETS (14-2, 1-2) 60
Player fg-fga ft-fta reb fls pts
o-d-t
Moore 1-4 0-0 0-3 3 5 3
Adams 7-18 10-13 2-2 4 4 26
Davis 1-8 2-2 1-1 2 2 5
Stearns 6-9 0-0 7-9 16 4 12
Blundell 4-7 4-6 6-4 10 2 12
Hogancamp 1-5 0-0 0-1 1 3 2
Meyer 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 1 0
Davidson 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 1 0
Team 0-1 1
Totals 20-52 16-21 16-21 37 22 60
Three-point field goals: Bryant 4-10 (Adams 2-3, Davis 1-4, Moore 1-1, Blundell 0-1, Hogancamp 0-1), Conway 4-10 (Gault 1-4, Chambers 1-3, Clardy 1-2, Foster 1-1, Allen-Smith 0-1). Turnovers: Bryant 16, Conway 8.
