Central Arkansas Christian lost its showdown with Jacksonville Lighthouse last week, but after Dollarway beat Helena-West Helena Central, the Mustangs didn’t lose any ground.
CAC, Lighthouse and Dollarway are tied atop the 3A-6 conference standings at 8-3, with Helena-West Helena Central half a game back at 7-3.
With the district tournament canceled during this COVID season, the top four teams from the conference round-robin will advance to the regional tournament.
“Our top four now will be our top four,” said Mustang coach Matt Hall, whose team (10-6 overall) will play host to Dollarway on Friday and will travel to DeWitt on Tuesday, Feb. 9. “We’ve got to beat Dollarway, but if we do, it will probably be us, Lighthouse and Helena all tied, and I’m 99 percent certain we have the tiebreaker over both of those.”
The Mustangs knocked off Dollarway in the first meeting in January, 49-30, but Hall knows not to take the Cardinals for granted.
“They are scary,” he said. “They’re huge — they’ve got three or four who are 6-4, 6-5, and they’re big and strong. They definitely get your attention when you start watching film. They’re a dangerous team, and they’re playing a lot better of late.”
But so, too, are the Mustangs.
After the 54-52 loss at Lighthouse, CAC knocked off DeWitt on Saturday, 67-27; and Helena on Tuesday, 65-53. After trailing by 13 points in the second quarter, the Mustangs rallied to avenge a five-point January loss to the Cougars.
“I thought (Tuesday) we played by far the best three quarters we’ve played all year,” Hall said. “After being down 22-9 halfway through the second quarter, we ended up with a four-point lead at halftime (28-24) and stretched it out to six after the third.”
What happened?
“It’s been coming,” Hall said. “We lost at Lighthouse by two, but we did a whole bunch of good things. The other night against Lisa Academy West, we scored 44 points in the first quarter. Against DeWitt, we scored 33 in the first quarter.
“Things are starting to come together. We’re more active on defense, and it feels like we’ve got a lot more camaraderie on the team. The guys are starting to play together.
“We’re hoping we’re going to peak at the right time.”
Jackson Richmond led the Mustangs with 24 points, four rebounds, four assists and three steals. Karsen Richard added 17 points and eight rebounds. Steven Massey recorded 10 points.
Against Lighthouse, Richard had another double-double with 27 points and 13 rebounds.
Against DeWitt, the Mustangs built leads of 33-2 after the first quarter, 52-10 at halftime and 62-19 after three. Andrew Haughaboo recorded 14 points, four assists, three rebounds and two steals in 16 minutes. Palmer Gilbrech added 13 points, five steals, four assists and four rebounds. Richard added 10 points, six rebounds and two assists.
“Andrew Haughaboo has come out of his shooting slump and has been shooting great the last three or four games,” Hall said. “He’s starting to come around for us.”
Lady Mustangs
Central Arkansas Christian’s Lady Mustangs continued their roll through the 3A-6, winning three games in the last week by a combined 83 points.
Steve Quattlebaum’s team improved to 15-0 overall and 12-0 in league play with lopsided wins against Jacksonville Lighthouse, 69-30; DeWitt, 66-37; and Helena-West Helena Central, 57-42.
Against Lighthouse, CAC led after one quarter, 26-6; at the half, 44-13; and after three quarters, 56-19. Riley Bryant paced the Lady Mustangs with 18 points, six blocks, five rebounds and two steals. Bethany Dillard added 16 points. Carly Morrow had 10 points and three assists.
Against DeWitt, the Lady Mustangs led 20-12 after the first, 41-23 at the half and 58-31 after three. Dillard and Ava Knoedl led the offense with 21 points each; Dillard added four rebounds and four steals; Knoedl recorded two steals. Bryant had 13 points and 13 rebounds.
Against Helena, CAC built leads of 13-5 after the first quarter, 26-14 after two and 43-18 after three before the Lady Cougars shaved 10 points off the margin by the final buzzer. Dillard led with 23 points, five rebounds and three assists. Bryant added 12 points, 11 rebounds and two assists; Reese Shepard had 12 points, five rebounds, three assists and two steals.
Episcopal Collegiate, which has lost twice to CAC, is second in the league standings at 8-2. DeWitt and Helena are tied for third at 7-3. The top four teams from the round-robin will move on to the regional tournament.
CAC will play host to Dollarway (1-13, 1-8), a team it beat last month, 78-15, on Friday; travel to DeWitt (14-5, 7-3) on Tuesday; and finish the regular season at home Feb. 11 against Palestine-Wheatley (8-13, 5-7).
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Basketball: CAC aim for conference championships
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Central Arkansas Christian lost its showdown with Jacksonville Lighthouse last week, but after Dollarway beat Helena-West Helena Central, the Mustangs didn’t lose any ground.
CAC, Lighthouse and Dollarway are tied atop the 3A-6 conference standings at 8-3, with Helena-West Helena Central half a game back at 7-3.
With the district tournament canceled during this COVID season, the top four teams from the conference round-robin will advance to the regional tournament.
“Our top four now will be our top four,” said Mustang coach Matt Hall, whose team (10-6 overall) will play host to Dollarway on Friday and will travel to DeWitt on Tuesday, Feb. 9. “We’ve got to beat Dollarway, but if we do, it will probably be us, Lighthouse and Helena all tied, and I’m 99 percent certain we have the tiebreaker over both of those.”
The Mustangs knocked off Dollarway in the first meeting in January, 49-30, but Hall knows not to take the Cardinals for granted.
“They are scary,” he said. “They’re huge — they’ve got three or four who are 6-4, 6-5, and they’re big and strong. They definitely get your attention when you start watching film. They’re a dangerous team, and they’re playing a lot better of late.”
But so, too, are the Mustangs.
After the 54-52 loss at Lighthouse, CAC knocked off DeWitt on Saturday, 67-27; and Helena on Tuesday, 65-53. After trailing by 13 points in the second quarter, the Mustangs rallied to avenge a five-point January loss to the Cougars.
“I thought (Tuesday) we played by far the best three quarters we’ve played all year,” Hall said. “After being down 22-9 halfway through the second quarter, we ended up with a four-point lead at halftime (28-24) and stretched it out to six after the third.”
What happened?
“It’s been coming,” Hall said. “We lost at Lighthouse by two, but we did a whole bunch of good things. The other night against Lisa Academy West, we scored 44 points in the first quarter. Against DeWitt, we scored 33 in the first quarter.
“Things are starting to come together. We’re more active on defense, and it feels like we’ve got a lot more camaraderie on the team. The guys are starting to play together.
“We’re hoping we’re going to peak at the right time.”
Jackson Richmond led the Mustangs with 24 points, four rebounds, four assists and three steals. Karsen Richard added 17 points and eight rebounds. Steven Massey recorded 10 points.
Against Lighthouse, Richard had another double-double with 27 points and 13 rebounds.
Against DeWitt, the Mustangs built leads of 33-2 after the first quarter, 52-10 at halftime and 62-19 after three. Andrew Haughaboo recorded 14 points, four assists, three rebounds and two steals in 16 minutes. Palmer Gilbrech added 13 points, five steals, four assists and four rebounds. Richard added 10 points, six rebounds and two assists.
“Andrew Haughaboo has come out of his shooting slump and has been shooting great the last three or four games,” Hall said. “He’s starting to come around for us.”
Lady Mustangs
Central Arkansas Christian’s Lady Mustangs continued their roll through the 3A-6, winning three games in the last week by a combined 83 points.
Steve Quattlebaum’s team improved to 15-0 overall and 12-0 in league play with lopsided wins against Jacksonville Lighthouse, 69-30; DeWitt, 66-37; and Helena-West Helena Central, 57-42.
Against Lighthouse, CAC led after one quarter, 26-6; at the half, 44-13; and after three quarters, 56-19. Riley Bryant paced the Lady Mustangs with 18 points, six blocks, five rebounds and two steals. Bethany Dillard added 16 points. Carly Morrow had 10 points and three assists.
Against DeWitt, the Lady Mustangs led 20-12 after the first, 41-23 at the half and 58-31 after three. Dillard and Ava Knoedl led the offense with 21 points each; Dillard added four rebounds and four steals; Knoedl recorded two steals. Bryant had 13 points and 13 rebounds.
Against Helena, CAC built leads of 13-5 after the first quarter, 26-14 after two and 43-18 after three before the Lady Cougars shaved 10 points off the margin by the final buzzer. Dillard led with 23 points, five rebounds and three assists. Bryant added 12 points, 11 rebounds and two assists; Reese Shepard had 12 points, five rebounds, three assists and two steals.
Episcopal Collegiate, which has lost twice to CAC, is second in the league standings at 8-2. DeWitt and Helena are tied for third at 7-3. The top four teams from the round-robin will move on to the regional tournament.
CAC will play host to Dollarway (1-13, 1-8), a team it beat last month, 78-15, on Friday; travel to DeWitt (14-5, 7-3) on Tuesday; and finish the regular season at home Feb. 11 against Palestine-Wheatley (8-13, 5-7).