NLR girls follow the usual script

NORTH LITTLE ROCK — The script is almost etched in stone. Tuesday night, Conway’s Lady Cats (19-5, 6-3) lost for fifth straight time, including last year’s 7A girls state title game, to North Little Rock. Conway have led a significant amount of time and have had a fourth-quarter lead in every game, only to lose at the wire. North Little Rock (21-2, 8-1), a notoriously slow-starting team all season, rallied to win in the fourth quarter for the third time in a week (twice against Little Rock Central and once against Conway. “We may starting forfeiting the first half or maybe just start the game putting fourth quarter on the scoreboard; I don’t know how to explain it,” said North Little Rock coach Daryl Fimple, whose team won despite missing 16 free throws — nine in the first half in trailing by nine. “The first half, sometimes, we look edlike elementary school. It was night and day in the second half. We just find a way to keep scrapping and scrapping. It’s fun to watch but I may end up completely gray or bald by the end of the year.” Conway led, 61-50, with 5:54 left when the Lady Charging Wildcats produced a 10-0 run, which coincided inside players Fut’ra Banks and Maggie Evans getting in foul trouble. “That’s what great teams do and they are a great team,” said Conway coach Ashley Nance. “What they do well is everybody keeps their poise; they don’t panic, even 11 down in the fourth quarter. Particularly in high school, you see it (lost poise), with a lot of teams when they get down and we have the momentum. You don’t ever see it in them. They have good players and they keep doing what they do.” Yo’Myris Morris, a 6-2 post who scored 24 points, sparked the North Little Rock rally, including a three-point play that gave the Lady Charging Wildcats a 67-65 lead with 1:13 left. The Lady Cats missed four straight shots on three possessions — two of them forced and ill-advised — and Amber Hawkinson and Mackenzie Tillman hit free throws to help NLR pull away. “Our guards (Hawkinson, Tillman and DeMaelya Brown did a good of finding Morris and getting the ball to her,” Fimple said. “They (the Lady Cats) don’t have a lot of size, particularly when they get into foul trouble. Tillman added 18 points and Hawkinson had 15. “In high school, you can talk about what they do inside but it’s about guards,” Nance said. “They have great guards who can penetrate and make plays.” Conway guard Jacie Higgins gave the Lady Charging Wildcats fits most of the evening, scoring a season-high 31 points with five 3-pointers, most of them with a hand in her face. “In the last game, she hurt us inside,” Fimple said. “She causes matchup problems for us because she is a bigger guard who can go against our smaller ones and go inside, then also hit the 3-pointer. She hit only one field goal in the fourth quarter. I thought Tillman did a good job on her late.” “She (Higgins) shot well and played like a Division I player to me,” said Nance. “I thought we may have gotten into their legs the fourth quarter,” said Fimple. “The girls complain about all the running we do, but it came through tonight, I thought.” Asihya Smith added 15 points and Savannah Lowe nine for the Lady Cats, who host Cabot on Friday.

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Conway High School Athletics

NLR GIRLS FOLLOW THE USUAL SCRIPT

DAVID MCCOLLUM

Log Cabin Democrat | 2/8/2017

PHOTO CREDIT: Conway Athletics