When B.J. Ross accepted the job of head coach for the Greenwood Bulldogs’ last spring, he knew it was going to be a challenge to turn around the languishing basketball program that’s had only one winning season and three brief playoff appearances over the last decade. Other head coaches have come and gone – good coaches – but any success they had was fleeting. But Ross wasn’t deterred then, and he isn’t discouraged now that his first season has concluded.

The 2023-24 roundball campaign ended for the GHS varsity boys with only four victories on the positive side of the ledger. On the surface that mirrors the trend seen for most of the last 10 years during which the Bulldogs reached double digits in wins only twice. They won 11 games during the 2021-22 season under then head coach Donnie Husband, surpassed only by head coach Greg Nichols and his 2017-18 team that finished with a playoff loss and a winning record just over .500. Their last good season, based strictly on wins and losses, was the 2011-12 campaign under head coach Brian Martin with over 20 wins.

Martin was a senior and the star shooting guard on the 1998-99 Bulldogs team that reached the state finals before losing to Hot Springs, proving that success was and is possible in the GHS boys’ basketball program, albeit 25 years ago. Martin was the last Bulldogs’ head coach to have multiple winning seasons. It’s that kind of success that B.J. Ross wants to pursue, knowing it will be a tough uphill climb that will require time, perseverance, and hard work.

On the bright side, this year’s senior class played their hearts out and left it all on the gym floor, setting a good example for younger members of the team and those yet to arrive from the junior high ranks, where great promise abounds. The 2023-24 seventh grade team went undefeated. The eighth-grade team had a winning record, and the ninth-grade team reached the finals of the recent junior high regional tournament.

Perhaps more importantly, most of the starters on those teams are basketball-only kids. That’s not to diminish the contribution of football players who come out for basketball, but basketball-only players are more skilled and are able to practice year around, unlike footballers who spend limited time on the hard court. Coach Ross plans to tap into that potential in coming years, but it won’t happen overnight, nor should fans lose heart while waiting for success to come.

“It’s a process,” said the current head coach at the start of the season, knowing the challenge that lies ahead for him and assistant coach Dexter Pearcy and their players. “This year is a foundation-builder, and that’s what I tell [our] players. They need to set a tone for the kids behind them,” said Ross last November. “But these kids are on a strong foundation. I didn’t have to come in here and change the work culture,” he added, and it’s that tradition of hard work and dedication the new coach hopes to use as a springboard to better times ahead and more wins on the scoreboard.

By that measure, the just concluded season was a success and a step in the right direction. The senior-led Bulldogs won three conference games compared to just one the previous season and were competitive in several other league contests. They could have easily won five or six conference games had the ball bounced the right way for them, but that’s basketball and the other 5A West schools aren’t going to feel sorry for the Bulldogs.

A few key plays along the way sometimes make all the difference between winning and losing. Ross knows his future GHS teams must learn how to win, even expect to win, building on the example and foundation of this 2023-24 squad of departing senior starters, L.J. Robins, Peyton Presson, Brenden Chick, and Braden Bollman. That quartet along with junior Jayden Garnes improved greatly during the season, but only Garnes returns next fall with significant starting experience.

All those seniors except Bollman came out for basketball after football season ended in early December, putting them far behind their basketball-only peers in practice time and skill development, yet their overall athleticism kept them on the court and gave the Bulldogs the best chance to compete. Other football athletes chose not to play basketball this season, and perhaps they will change their minds in the future. If so, they will be welcomed and will make a difference.

But Ross believes his first season at Greenwood to be a success and he couldn’t be more pleased and prouder of the effort given by his players under difficult circumstances.

Siloam Springs

The Bulldogs had realistic hopes of picking up their fourth conference victory at Siloam Springs on Tuesday, February 13th. They had beaten the Panthers earlier in the season at H.B. Stewart Arena, 63-53. But their second meeting was a different story. A lethargic first-half performance put the Bulldogs behind at halftime, 28-19, and they scored only six points in the second quarter.

“We played really poorly in the first half,” said Coach Ross. “We didn’t have any energy. We also got in foul trouble with Jayden Garnes and had to sit him in the first quarter. He sat for 11 minutes.” So, something needed to change, and it did as the visitors rallied in the third period to make it a one-point game.

Behind the hot shooting of Jayden Garnes, who hit four three-pointers in the second half, and six points by Brenden Chick, the Bulldogs trailed Siloam Springs 37-36 at the start of the fourth stanza. But the Bulldogs missed two opportunities to take the lead and the whistles favored the Panthers down the stretch, allowing the home team to pad their lead from the free throw line. Siloam Springs was 17 of 25 at the charity stripe while the Bulldogs scored just seven points from the line for the game. Those 10 points made the difference in the 55-49 GHS loss.

The Bulldogs featured balanced scoring with three players in double figures and another one with nine points. Garnes led the way with 14 points, followed by Peyton Presson and L.J. Robins with 10 points each. Braden Bollman added nine points and Brenden Chick six points. While the game might have been Greenwood’s fourth league win, it turned out to be the Panthers’ only conference victory of the season.

Mountain Home

Up next for the Bulldogs on February 16th was a home game against the Bombers, who had beaten Greenwood handily at Mountain Home a month earlier, 61-31. But in a sign of just how much his team had improved, Coach Ross watched his players battle the playoff-bound Bombers right down to the wire before losing a heartbreaker in overtime, 58-56.

The Bulldogs led 13-12 after one period and the game was tied at 21 before the Bombers used a 4-0 run to end the second quarter and take a 25-21 lead into the locker room at the break. But Mountain Home tried to pull away in the third quarter, leading 35-26 midway through the period before the Bulldogs rallied, trimming their deficit to 39-36 after 24 minutes.

The Bombers led by five points early in the fourth period, but Braden Bollman and Jayden Garnes hit jumpers to cut into that deficit, making it 42-40 Mountain Home at the five-minute mark. A layup by Peyton Presson tied the score at 42-all moments later. A minute later an old-fashioned three-point play by Presson put the Bulldogs ahead, 45-42.

Neither team scored much over the final four minutes, but the Bombers did manage to tie the game at 48-all with 45 seconds left to play. With just over 15 seconds remaining, the Bulldogs inbounded the ball on the visitors’ end of the court with hopes of getting a last-second shot, but it never materialized as Greenwood turned the ball over, leading to overtime.

In the extra period there were numerous lead changes as the two squads traded baskets until under a minute left to play. Leading 55-54 after an L.J. Robins trey, the Bulldogs had possession of the ball but coughed it up again. That led to another pair of free throws, putting Mountain Home up 56-55. Another GHS turnover and a foul led to still more free throws by the visitors, who led 58-55 with 13.4 seconds left.

Smartly, the Bombers then fouled Greenwood a couple seconds later to put Braden Bollman at the line. His first attempt was good and somehow Greenwood managed to grab the rebound when the second shot missed, perhaps intentionally. Coach Ross immediately called a timeout with 3.2 ticks left to set up a possible winning shot, but Robins’ three-point try at the buzzer clanged off the iron, allowing the Bombers to hold on for the 58-56 victory.

Unofficially, Braden Bollman led Greenwood in scoring with 17 points while also grabbing six boards. Peyton Presson had a great game with 11 points, nine rebounds, six assists, and four steals. L.J. Robins also had 11 points with four rebounds and two assists. Jayden Garnes also reached double digits in scoring with 10 points while dishing out three assists. Brenden Chick had three points and two rebounds.

Alma

Despite a pair of near misses the week before against Siloam Springs and Mountain Home, the Bulldogs continued to play hard as the final week of the regular season arrived, starting at first-place Alma last Tuesday, February 20th. The Airedales finished the season with only one conference loss and earned the top seed in the playoffs from the 5A West.

The two longtime rivals battled to a 15-15 tie after the first eight minutes, then traded 8-0 runs to start the second quarter. L.J. Robins hit consecutive three-pointers then made a steal and scored to put Greenwood up 23-15. But the home team bounced right back with an 8-0 run of their own to tie the score at 23-all. Then baskets by Jayden Garnes, Robins, and a three-pointer by Braden Bollman put Greenwood on top at the intermission, 30-25.

But the home court advantage and Alma’s talent finally began to pay off in the second half. The Airedales used another 8-0 run to take a 37-34 lead at the 4:00 mark of the third period and led 48-42 with eight minutes left to play at the start of the fourth stanza. Alma slowly increased its lead to 56-46 with 5:45 remaining then pulled away for good winning 74-56.

Four GHS players were in double figures offensively. L.J. Robins scored 14 points while Jayden Garnes and Peyton Presson had 12 points each. Braden Bollman added 11 points and Brenden Chick contributed seven points.

Greenbrier

The Bulldogs won two conference games during the league’s first half schedule, beating Siloam Springs and Greenbrier. They upset Russellville to start the league’s second half and had a chance to win their fourth conference game at home against Greenbrier in last Friday’s season finale. Both teams entered the contest with identical 3-10 records in league play, but the Panthers had been playing much better as of late, beating Siloam Springs and Harrison and playing Alma to within two points and losing to Mountain Home by just five points. The battle was for sixth place in the conference standings.

But the visitors would not be denied and the nets at H.B. Stewart Arena were more than kind to the hot shooting Panthers, who rained three-pointers down on the Bulldogs from start to finish. Greenbrier hit seven treys in the first half and even more in the second half. The Panthers led 13-9 after one period and 38-26 at the half.

The three-pointers kept falling for Greenbrier in the third quarter while Greenwood was limited to just 11 points, and the visitors expanded their lead to 21 points at 58-37 after 24 minutes. But even when the Panthers began subbing players in the fourth quarter, the long-range bombs kept finding their mark, accounting for the lopsided final score of 84-51. It was a remarkable shooting exhibition by the Panthers.

For Greenwood, Peyton Presson had one of his best games of the season with 20 points, but he was the only Bulldogs’ player in double figures. In his last game, L.J. Robins scored nine points while Brenden Chick and Jayden Garnes both had eight points. Braden Bollman contributed six points and grabbed eight rebounds in his career finale.

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Coach Ross lamented the games that slipped away from his Bulldogs down the home stretch of the conference schedule, but he didn’t criticize his players one bit. “You can’t fault the kids,” he said. “They’re still playing extremely hard. They’re still coachable and they’re still playing to win. And this time of year, if they are doing that, it’s all you can ask for.

“We cut the [scoring] gap on everybody [the second half of the league schedule],” said the coach, referring to the margin of victory or point differential of the first seven games compared to the last seven. “I just wish we had about three more weeks of the season, because our football kids are finally [coming around]. It takes that long. It’s going well though. We’re progressing the way I thought we should, and our younger [kids] did the same thing.”

“We went from one conference win last year to three this year. I really think we should be at five right now, but we let two slip away. Still, our seniors could have easily quit and not even come out and played. But they’ve never batted an eye. All they’ve done is work and grind and play hard and try to win, and that’s exactly what you want. They never gave in and that says a lot. You can’t say enough about them. They set the example, and it’s coming. In about two years we’ll see the benefit of what we’re doing. But we’ve got to wait patiently.” Words of wisdom for all Bulldogs’ basketball fans.