The GHS girls and boys basketball teams hosted a pair of league foes last week when Farmington and Harrison came to Greenwood's H.B. Stewart Arena in 6A/5A West conference play. Both are Class 5A schools while Greenwood is the smallest 6A school in the state.
But despite the difference in classification, the visitors won all four contests played on January 10th and 13th. Based on the early returns in conference play, the four 5A schools appear to be generally stronger than the three 6A schools. However, only wins and losses against the other two 6A schools, Russellville and Siloam Springs, will determine Greenwood's eligibility for the post-season.
Farmington
The Lady Bulldogs and Lady Cardinals battled tooth-and-nail for three quarters, with only a handful of points separating them. But things went the visitors' way in the final 4:19 of the fourth quarter, as Farmington outscored Greenwood 8-0 for a 56-49 win. Sophomore Kyiah Julian had 13 points to lead the Lady Bulldogs.
"[We] just kept giving up straight line drives to the basket," said GHS Head Coach Clay Reeves. "That really surprised me because that never happens to our defense. We just kind of got out of the way and let them get to the rim. We've got to be a little smarter on offense, and take care of the ball and make the right decisions."
"We've got a lot of kids that can do a lot of good things, we just all have to get on the same page and do it all together on the same night," added Reeves. "I was disappointed in our defense late in the game. The last four minutes were the difference."
After two hard-fought quarters, the score was tied at 29-all at the intermission. Farmington then went up by four points early in the second half, but Greenwood (9-9, 0-2) rallied to briefly claim the lead. The Lady 'Dogs went up by three points before Farmington (12-3, 2-0) regained the advantage. The score continued to go back-and-forth as the game moved into the final quarter.
With 4:27 left, GHS freshman guard Jaelin Glass knocked down a three-pointer, putting Greenwood ahead, 49-48. But Farmington answered quickly with a field goal putting the Lady Cards ahead for good. The visitors never trailed again as the Lady Bulldogs went scoreless.
In the second half of the varsity doubleheader, the GHS boys held their own for most of the first half despite a height disadvantage. But with the score tied at 25-all, the Farmington boys ended the second quarter with an 8-2 scoring run to take a 33-27 lead at the break. The Cards went on to the win by 10 points, 65-55.
The Bulldogs trailed by as many as 15 points in the second half, but pulled to within six with three minutes left on a three-pointer by junior guard Jordan Sheppard, trimming Farmington's lead to 55-49. But the Cardinals scored 10 of the next 13 points to put the contest away.
Sheppard finished with 15 points, including three treys. Fellow junior Zane Harmon had 14 points, senior Alec Armstrong added 13 points, and sophomore Josh Teeter added nine points for the Bulldogs.
"We had some mental breakdowns," said GHS Head Coach Greg Nichols after the game. "We started trying to do things too fast. When they scored to go ahead, we felt like we had to hurry down and score real quick, instead of being patient and going in at halftime right there close, we go down six.
"We just got in too big a hurry, but that's just lack of experience," he continued. "I think they're going to keep doing better. We've just got to keep working and practicing. Game time right now is our big ally, because we've got to get that experience."
Harrison
On Friday the 13th Greenwood hosted an old familiar foe when the Harrison Goblins and Lady Goblins came to town. For many years the two schools competed against one another in conference play before the Bulldogs moved up to Class 6A in 2012.
Like the previous two 5A league opponents, Alma and Farmington, both Harrison teams proved to be formidable. The Lady Goblins gave up an eight-point halftime lead, trailed by five late, then escaped with a slim 53-51 victory. The Harrison boys ran out to a big first quarter lead and coasted to a 77-45 win.
The Lady Bulldogs were down by a single point (17-16) after the first eight minutes, but they trailed 35-27 at the break. A strong defensive effort held the visitors to just four points in the third quarter as Greenwood cut the Harrison lead to 39-35 with eight minutes remaining.
Behind 45-41 with 4:30 to play, the GHS girls made their run, scoring eight consecutive points to take a 49-45 lead. After three free throws cut the Harrison advantage to 45-44, Jaelin Glass hit a three-pointer to put Greenwood up by two points, 47-45.
She immediately followed up with a steal and lay-up to increase the home team's lead to four points, 49-45. Harrison then called a timeout to regroup with 2:38 left to play, a wise move. When play resumed, Greenwood senior forward Sara Reeves fouled out at the 2:01 mark, subtracting her presence and experience from the lineup.
After a Harrison free throw, GHS freshman Harley Terry scored inside to put the Lady Bulldogs up 51-46, their biggest lead. But it was all Lady Goblins after that, with the Harrison girls outscoring Greenwood 7-0 over the final 1:45, winning 53-51.
"The first half neither [team] was really playing that hard on defense," said Coach Reeves after the game. "[Harrison's] shots were just wide open. But they scored [only] four points in the third quarter, because of our [defensive] effort.
"We're learning," added Reeves. "We're headed in the right direction. Every game we're making improvements. But we've still got to put it all together. I see progress every game and every day in practice. We're right on the line from where we need to be."
Sara Reeves led the team in scoring with 16 points, followed by junior Kaila Cartwright with 11 points. Jaelin Glass added nine points, Harley Terry six points, Kyiah Julian added four points, and sophomore Susannah Stein three points.
In the boys game, the Goblins parlayed their considerable experience and size advantage into an 8-0 run to open play, increasing it to 14-2 before Greenwood's Jordan Sheppard and Easton Barrett scored the Bulldogs' second and third baskets. Harrison closed the quarter with a 9-0 run for a 23-6 lead.
The GHS offense played better in the second quarter, matching Harrison's 19 points, but trailed by 17 points, 42-25, at the intermission. The visitors increased their lead to 66-40 after three periods and more than 30 points in the early part of the fourth quarter, invoking the mercy rule. Both coaches substituted freely in the final minutes, resting their starters in the 77-45 Goblins' win.
Jordan Sheppard led the Bulldogs in scoring with 18 points, followed by a 13-point effort by junior guard Zane Harmon and six points by junior forward Easton Barrett.
After the game, Coach Nichols talked about the challenge of playing the Goblins. "What you've got is a group of young men who have played together since the seventh grade," said the coach. "Harrison is tough. They've got height. They've got shooters. They can play. Harrison is a very good ball team. It [was] a big challenge for us because of our lack of height.
"We were not focused when we came out on the floor," he continued. "We weren't ready to play, and in the first quarter they jumped all over us. But maybe we learned a valuable lesson tonight. I hope we did. But I can't take anything away from Harrison, because they're an excellent team."