OZARK — Even when his team had a 15-point lead early in the first half Saturday afternoon, Gravette boys basketball coach Dustin Peters knew his players needed to stay on alert.
He knew what he was talking about. Waldron made an impressive comeback and even took its first lead in the fourth quarter, but the Lions held on for a 57-52 victory in the consolation finals of the 4A North Regional Tournament.
Gravette (21-9) will be a No. 3 seed in the Class 4A State Tournament, which starts Wednesday in Pine Bluff.
“We really did well with our execution,” Peters said. “We were patient and got several good looks at the basket. But eventually, Waldron’s size showed up and we couldn’t keep them off the board game. They killed us.”
Gravette led 22-7 with 1 minute, 23 seconds left in the first quarter before Waldron reeled off a 14-2 scoring run to pull within three points. During that run, senior Lucas Pennington hit a 3-pointer as the buzzer sounded to end the quarter.
Gravette, who were outscored 27-19 in second and third quarters, played zone defense to keep Waldron from getting easy shots. The Bulldogs, however, still found ways to score, especially from perimeter shooter Ryan Harrison.
“It’s not easy when you start the game down 22-7,” Waldron coach Joey Curtis said. “We put ourselves in a hole, but we still came back. Late in the game, I thoughtwe were going to win the game.”
The Bulldogs, who made 9 of 15 foul shots, also committed 13 turnovers to give Gravette extra offensive possessions.
The Lions will play Dollarway in Pine Bluff at 2:30 p.m. on Wednesday. If they win, they will play Jonesboro-Westside at 5:30 p.m. Thursday.
Sports, Pages 9 on 02/29/2012