DECATUR -- The Decatur Bulldog senior boys' basketball team had a busy week in preparation for the upcoming 2015-16 district tournament Feb. 17-20 in Decatur. In the next to last week of regular season play, the Bulldogs took on the Hackett Hornets and Leftwich Rattlers at home and the Mountainburg Dragons on the road in Mountainburg.
These would be the last meetings between all these teams in the final 2A-4West regular season before the Bulldogs drop to the 1A North conference next season.
The Bulldogs' first opponent of the week was the Hackett Hornets Feb. 2 at Peterson Gym in Decatur. This was a key game for the Bulldogs. The win assures them a good spot in the tournament bracket.
The Bulldogs were able to take control in the first quarter and extend their lead to 22 to 14 by the half. The Hornets battled back to to within six, 33 to 27, in the third but the Bulldogs took the game, 53 to 46.
Leading scorers for the Decatur Bulldogs were Kyle Shaffer with 12, followed by Troy Flood and Tyler Riddle with 10 each. Other scorers included Leng Lee, Jay Porter and Taylor Haisman, each with six.
Leftwich 52, Decatur 23
The Bulldogs next took on the Magazine Leftwich Rattlers at Peterson Gym in Decatur Feb. 4, a make-up game from Jan. 19 which was canceled due to winter weather.
The Rattlers struck first and took a 10 to 3 lead at the end of the quarter. The Bulldogs managed to stay within 10 points of the Rattlers at the end of the first half, but that would be as close as Decatur came all night.
The Rattlers caught their second wind and jumped out to lead by as much as 20 points by the end of the third. The Bulldogs failed to catch up and Leftwich took the game, 52 to 23.
Leading scorers for the Decatur Bulldogs were Kyle Shaffer and Troy Flood each with five followed by Jay Porter with 4. Others scoring points included Bracy Owens with three followed by Wyatt Bingham and Kevin Maciel, each with two.
Mountainburg 52, Decatur 31
Decatur next traveled south Feb. 5 to take on the Mountainburg Dragons. The Bulldogs kept pace with the Dragons and were down by two, 12 to 10, at the end of one. Mountainburg built on its lead and ended the half leading the Bulldogs, 26 to 16.
The Bulldogs continued to struggle in the second half and the Dragons took the victory, 52 to 31.
Leading scorers for the Bulldogs were Bracy Owens and Kyle Shaffer each with seven, followed by Jay Porter with five. Others scoring points included Troy Flood and Tyler Riddle, each with four, followed by Kevin Maciel and Taylor Haisman each with two.
The Decatur Bulldogs are now 5 and 7 in conference play and 8 and 16 overall.
The Bulldogs finish the regular season at home Feb. 9 against Eureka Springs and on the road at Magazine to take on the Leftwich Rattlers Feb. 11. Both games begin at 6 p.m.
The current 2A 4West standings going into the final week of the 2016-17 are unchanged with the Leftwich Rattlers firmly in first place. The placement in the tournament brackets will be decided at the end of next week. If Decatur maintains fifth place, the Bulldogs will meet the number eight seed, currently the Hartford Hustlers, in the first game of the boys' tournament Feb. 17.
Sports on 02/10/2016