GRAVETTE -- The Lady Lions turned up the heat out of the gate, using full-court pressure, to jump out to a 10-0 lead.
Kyrstin Branscum hit a trey 20 seconds into the game, and Tori Foster added another in the first 1:27 as Gravette went on to a 60-41 win in girls' basketball over Prairie Grove Dec. 12.
Gravette coach Will Pittman said the Lady Lions are a good group, fun to coach and play hard.
"I don't have to get on them about going hard," Pittman said. "They do it in practice. They do it in games."
His bench is deep and he is able to rotate fresh players in and out without losing a step.
"When you can go to the bench and bring in somebody who has just as much intensity, that's definitely nice to have," Pittman said. "This group, they just want to win; that's what's good about them. We've had a lot of different leading scorers this year. They want to score points as a team and figure out ways to win."
Prairie Grove's first field goal came on Sara James Stone's putback with the game 3:03 old, but the Lady Tigers had trouble getting into their offense. In contrast, Madison Spencer's layup, courtesy of Teagan Dixon's offensive rebound and dish for an easy drive down the lane, gave Gravette a 14-4 lead. Mallory Smith checked in and scored off a steal as five different Lady Lions contributed points in the first quarter which ended with Gravette ahead, 16-8.
Four more Lady Lions scored in the second. Bernice Garcia sank a 3-pointer, as did Gabbi Curtis, sandwiched around Jessica Bookout's two points. Freshman Shylee Morrison came off a screen to nail a trifecta. After an offensive rebound, two quick passes set up Caity Rose's 3-pointer from the left wing as Gravette maintained a 33-20 advantage at the 3:43 mark of the second.
Prairie Grove freshman Jasmine Wynos split two defenders and drove for a layup, but Morrison went into a Harlem Globetrotters act, maintaining her dribble while going to the floor and avoiding a steal. She recovered and drove the lane, drawing a foul and sinking free throws to put Gravette on top, 36-22, at the half.
Emily Grant, who recently returned to action following an Achilles injury, hit a 3-pointer for Prairie Grove, then added an old-fashioned 3-point play in a 46-second span of the third, but 3-pointers by Branscum and Kildow bumped the lead back up. Gravette led, 48-31, after three quarters. Eight different Lady Lions made 3-pointers with a team total of nine.
Branscum led Gravette (6-2, 3-0) with 13 points. Grant scored 11 for Prairie Grove (4-6), and Stone had 10.
Gravette 60, Prairie Grove 41
Prairie Grove^8^14^9^10^--^41
Gravette^16^20^12^12^--^60
Prairie Grove (4-6): Emily Grant 4 1-1 11, Sarah James Stone 4 2-6 10, Jasmine Wynos 2 5-6 9, Lexie Madewell 3 2-4 8, Audrey Doering 0 2-2 2, Kaylee Elder 0 1-2 1. Totals 13 13-21 41.
Gravette (6-2): Kyrstin Branscum 4 3-4 13, Shylee Morrison 2 3-4 8, Teagan Dixon 3 1-2 7, Cally Kildow 3 0-0 7, Mallory Smith 2 2-2 6, Madison Spencer 2 0-0 5, Tori Foster 1 0-0 3, Bernice Garcia 1 0-0 3, Gabbi Curtis 1 0-0 3, Caity Rose 1 0-0 3, Jessica Bookout 1 0-1 2. Totals 21 9-13 60.
3-Point Goals -- Prairie Grove 2 (Grant 2). Gravette 9 (Branscum 2, Foster, Kildow, Spencer, Garcia, Curtis, Morrison, Rose).
Rebounds -- Prairie Grove 23 (Stone 9). Assists -- Prairie Grove 4 (Crawford 2). Steals -- Prairie Grove 6 (Stone 3). Turnovers -- Prairie Grove 7.
In other play last week, the Lady Lions overpowered the Lady Elks at Elkins on Friday, winning by 18 points, 47-29. The Gravette girls took the lead early and were up 12-9 at the end of the first quarter, 22-15 at the half and 33-20 after three quarters of play. The win put the Lady Lions at 5-0 in conference play and 7-2 overall.
On Saturday, the girls lost to Pottsville in tournament play, 64-58. The Lady Lions were up in the first half, 30-28, but were outscored by Pottsville in the final two quarters for the 64-58 final.
Sports on 12/20/2017