The Greenwood High School girls and boys basketball teams are now five games into their non-conference schedule and are learning more about themselves with every outing. Head coaches Clay Reeves and Brian Martin and their assistants had the chance to view their squads up close and under pressure last week in a tournament at Van Buren. Returning to the practice floor this past weekend, the girls are 3-2 overall while the boys are 2-3, as both teams prepare to host the annual H.B. Stewart Classic on the GHS campus in the arena named after the former Greenwood coach and athletic director. The tournament features three other area schools.
Lady Bulldogs
The GHS girls got off to a rocky start at Van Buren, losing to a pair of perennial basketball powers in Ozark and North Little Rock before notching a win over the host Pointerettes. Against Ozark on November 30th, the Lady Bulldogs had trouble scoring, reaching double digits only in the fourth quarter with 10 points. After fighting for an 8-8 tie at the end of eight minutes, Greenwood gave up 12, 16, and 16 points over the last three periods before suffering the 52-30 loss. Ten Greenwood players scored points in the contest, but eight of them had three points or less. Sophomore forward Endsley Evans led the team with eight points, while senior forward Lacy Cook added four points.
On December 2nd the Lady 'Dogs had the unenviable task of facing the top-ranked girls from North Little Rock, rated as the best team in the state regardless of classification. Trailing 10-6 after one period, Greenwood was still in the game at the half, down only 32-20. But the size and talent difference began to take its toll in the second half as NLR ran off to a 73-33 victory. Endsley Evans scored 17 points to account for more than half of Greenwood's total.
Last Saturday, December 5th, the GHS girls crept back over the .500 mark with a 51-47 win over the host Van Buren girls. Trailing 13-10 after the first eight minutes, Greenwood rallied to outscore the Pointerettes 19-9 in the second period for a 29-22 halftime lead. The two squads played roughly even in the third quarter before Greenwood withstood a 16-12 Van Buren advantage in the fourth quarter to hang on for the victory. Several GHS players scored significant points, led by senior guard Rebel Clay with an even dozen. Junior guard Kristen Simmons scored nine points while Endsley Evans and junior forward Jessicah Moudy added eight points each. Lacy Cook chipped in with seven points.
Head coach Clay Reeves, beginning his seventh season at the helm in Greenwood, had these thoughts regarding his team's play at Van Buren. "We came out against Ozark and it wasn't one of our better games. We didn't seem very focused offensively and defensively, and if we're not ready to play that's my fault," he said. "I've got to do a better job of having our team prepared and ready to play, but we learned a lot from that game. Then we played North Little Rock, which is the number one team in the state overall. I thought we did a great job there and the final score was probably not really how the game went. The fourth quarter got away from us a little bit, but we competed a lot better and showed a lot of improvement.
"[Against] Van Buren we had a close game. We were working on some stuff in that game that showed a lot of promise, so we're headed down the right path. We're still trying to get good team chemistry and get some rhythm going, and over these next three or four weeks try and improve and get ready for conference." Reeves also singled out the play of junior guard Kristen Simmons at Van Buren. "I think Kristen Simmons played really [well] in the tournament. She's a really good athlete and has a lot of speed. She makes a lot of things happen on the court. A lot of our kids are doing what I expected them to do, but we want to do a little bit more. But I think that Kristen Simmons right now has been the bright spot in showing some things that she can do."
The Lady Bulldogs will play three games in three days this week in the H.B. Stewart Classic, hosting the Poteau (OK) girls on Thursday night, while getting a rematch with Ozark on Friday, before facing Farmington on Saturday night. All three games are at 7 p.m.
Bulldogs
The GHS boys opened play on December 1st against Class 7A Bentonville, notching a 59-56 victory over the Tigers. The two squads were tied at 11 after one quarter and Bentonville led 30-27 at the half. But a 14-8 GHS advantage in the third quarter turned the tide for the Bulldogs, who added to their lead by also winning the fourth period, 18-15.
Three Greenwood players scored in double figures, led by junior guard Patrick Kelley with 14 points. Junior guard Tony Sandifer, only days removed from the gridiron, added 13 points. Senior guard Brandon Brewer had 11 points and sophomore guard Ryan Lensing added 10 points.
On December 3rd the Bulldogs lost 52-42 to their Class 7A hosts, the Van Buren Pointers. After outscoring the Pointers 13-11 over the first eight minutes, Greenwood lost the next three quarters 15-8, 10-7, and 16-14. Sandifer led all GHS scorers with an even dozen points, while Brewer and Kelley had eight points each and Lensing added six points.
The Bulldogs let one get away against Clarksville on December 5th, losing 55-49 after leading through three quarters. Up 12-11 after one period and 28-22 at the half, Greenwood was outscored 12-10 in the third quarter before suffering a disastrous final period in which the 'Dogs were outscored 21-11. Sandifer led the team with 10 points and Kelley added nine. Lensing and junior forward Billyjack Freeman each scored six points. Senior forward Kyle Helms added five points and junior forward Chris Caudle had four points.
Brian Martin, beginning his first season as head coach at his alma mater, had the following comments in the wake of his team's performance in the Van Buren tournament. "The first two games I thought we played really hard and handled the pressure really well. We definitely got better in the tournament and played some really good competition. We had a lead in all three games, but we competed well and had a chance to win. Against Clarksville I thought we played extremely well for two-and-a-half quarters. We were up 10 in the third quarter and got into a little foul trouble. Clarksville started pressing a little bit and it caused us some problems. We turned the ball over and let them get back in it," said the coach.
Martin also added that he now has a better handle on what the football players can do on the hard court since joining the team just prior to the Van Buren tournament. "I've got a better idea of the combo guys, and we're starting to find our identity. We still don't have [it], but we're a step closer to figuring out our team identity. [Tony] Sandifer, [Kyle] Helms, and [Spencer] Harris have done a really good job of helping us here early. They're still trying to find their role on the team, just like everybody else. We're starting to gel together, but it takes time to get your chemistry and team identity together where you are all on the same page. I guess I had three practices with [the football players] before the Van Buren tournament. We're still a long, long way from where we need to be or where we're going to be," said the coach. "But as far as we've come so far, I'm very pleased and very excited about the rest of December, getting ready for January."
Just like the Lady Bulldogs, the GHS boys will host the H.B. Stewart Classic this week, playing Poteau, Ozark, and Farmington on successive nights, Thursday through Saturday, with each game starting around 8:30 p.m.