PRAIRIE GROVE -- The Prairie Grove girls basketball team rode the hot hand of Mattie Hartin at Regionals but at state, her twin sister, Taylor, took her turn stroking 3-pointers.
Taylor Hartin consistently found open looks against Crossett and scalded the Eagles for 30 points with half of those coming from behind the 3-point line. Sophomore Parker Lopez persistently attacked the basket driving for 18 points as the Lady Tigers beat Crossett, 65-42, in a first-round State 4A tournament game played on Saturday, Mar. 7, at Ozark after two postponements pushed the bracket back two days.
Mattie Hartin did not score a 3-pointer in the contest yet contributed 6 points and dished out assists with Prairie Grove successfully adjusting to Crossett's full-court style offensively and getting past the press. The Lady Tigers did have some trouble containing Crossett's Kyleah Hodges, who used her ball-handling abilities to get to the basket recording 11 field goals and 25 points but other than Shaquanna Keith's 11 points no other Eagle produced more than a single bucket. In fact, only two other Crossett players scored combining for 6 points.
Shaquanna Keith had 7 points in the first quarter and beat the Lady Tigers down-court to put Crossett ahead, 7-6; countering an early Prairie Grove 6-2 lead on treys from Taylor Hartin and Camree Bartholomew. Following Keith's basket, Prairie Grove ended the quarter with an 8-2 run. Mattie Hartin faked a trey and drove from the left corner scoring a driving lay-in, then passed to Taylor Hartin releasing up the floor for a fast-break layup. Two Crossett turnovers were costly for the Eagles with Prairie Grove scoring after each to hold a 14-9 lead after one period of play.
Prairie Grove erupted for 22 points in the second quarter beginning with back-to-back trifectas by Taylor Hartin. Kyleah Hodges' 3-point play drew the Eagles within, 22-14, but Taylor Hartin answered with another 3-pointer, her third of the period, and Lopez navigated through traffic for a lay-in giving Prairie Grove a 27-14 advantage at the 4:07 mark. Prairie Grove made 4 straight foul shots then Bartholomew nailed a 3-pointer from the right wing. Ashley Cox's offensive rebound on the next possession enabled the Lady Tigers to reset their half-court offense and Taylor Doss went down the lane finishing with her left hand.
Prairie Grove commanded a 36-16 halftime lead and the margin was still 20, at 56-36, at the conclusion of the third quarter. The Lady Tigers ran a minute off the fourth quarter clock before Taylor Hartin, who had 9 points in the quarter, drove for a layup. She added a backdoor cut hoop on an assist from her twin, Mattie; and scored on a lead pass. Taylor Hartin's 30th point of the game came when she put the ball on the floor with her left hand and went around a defender scoring easily on the drive. Prairie Grove won 65-42 to advance to the quarterfinals against Brookland, No. 2 seed from the East.
Prairie Grove 65, Crossett 42 State 4A Girls March 7
Crossett 9 7 20 6 -- 42
Prairie Grove 14 22 20 9 -- 65
Crossett: Kyleah Hodges 11 2-3 25, Kaylon Hodges 1 0-0 3, Shaquanna Keith 5 1-1 11, Destiney Bowman 1 1-2 3. Totals 18 4-6 42.
Prairie Grove (21-12, 12-2): Mattie Hartin 1-6 4-4 6, Parker Lopez 8-14 2-2 18, Ashley Cox 1-5 0-0 2, Taylor Hartin 10-14 5-5 30, Camree Bartholomew 2-7 0-0 6, Sara James 0-1 1-2 1, Taylor Doss 1-1 0-0 2, Cassidi Sapp 0-0 0-2 0. Totals 23-48 12-15 65.
3-point goals: Crossett 2 (Kyleah Hodges, Kaylon Hodges). Prairie Grove 7 -19 (T.Hartin 5-8, Bartholomew 2-6, M.Hartin 0-4, Lopez 0-1).
Rebounds: Prairie Grove 26 (Cox 10).
Assists: Prairie Grove 5 (Bartholomew, M. Hartin, T. Hartin, Lopez, Doss).
Steals: Prairie Grove 3 (T.Hartin, Lopez, Doss).
Turnovers: Prairie Grove 13.
Sports on 03/18/2015