HUNTSVILLE -- For 2 1/2 quarters, everything was going according to script for Huntsville's girls basketball team.
Prairie Grove, however, flipped the script to remain unbeaten in 4A-1 play with a 35-26 victory in front of a packed Charles Berry Gymnasium. By slowing it down offensively and using their jump-and-trap defense to force poor shots and passes, the Lady Tigers held the Lady Eagles scoreless for nearly 12 minutes.
Girls
Prairie Grove 35, Huntsville 26
Prairie Grove^6^10^12^7^—^35
Huntsville^12^7^5^2^—^26
Prairie Grove (15-3, 8-0): Bartholomew 9, T. Hartin 7, Lopez 5, Cox 4, M. Hartin 4, Doss 3, Stone 3.
Huntsville (15-7, 6-2): Tipton 15, Campbell 3, Gosvener 3, Watkins 3, Walkingstick 2.
Boys
Huntsville 58, Prairie Grove 42
Prairie Grove^11^18^9^4^—^42
Huntsville^23^14^12^9^—^58
Prairie Grove (2-15, 1-7): Ellis 10, Soehner 8, Heltemes 8, Strong 5, Simmons 4, Johnson 3, Disney 2, Cooper 2.
Huntsville (13-3, 7-1): Gosvener 17, Pemberton 17, Eaton 16, Yarbrough 6, Bohannan 2.
"Once they got ahead of us, they're tough to play," Berry said. "They turned up the heat on us defensively and it bothered us because we're pretty young ... We just kind of folded in the second half.
"We didn't play very well -- and they did."
During Huntsville's scoring drought, Prairie Grove (15-4, 8-0) hit a trio of 3-pointers -- including a pair of long swishes by Camree Bartholomew -- to take control with a 28-24 lead at the end of the third quarter.
Bartholomew said the Lady Tigers expected a "tough game" while playing a strong team in a hostile atmosphere.
"This was a really big win for us," said Bartholomew, who led Prairie Grove with nine points -- all 3-pointers. "This is our same team from last year, so we've been in these situations and know how to handle it."
For the same reason, Berry called Prairie Grove one of the top teams in Class 4A.
"Prairie Grove went to the semifinals last year and got beat by one (point) and they got the same bunch back," Berry said. "They're pretty hard to beat."
A key moment came during the final minute of the third quarter when Parker Lopez drew back-to-back fouls on Huntsville's Delanie Tipton.
"That was a big advantage for us," said Prairie Grove coach Kevin Froud. "We were trying to set up a play to milk the clock down to take the last shot, but we were able to get two fouls on (Tipton) there."
That quickly gave Tipton -- who led all scorers with 15 points -- four fouls, but she didn't sit for long because Berry "didn't think we had a chance with (Tipton) sitting on the bench."
By the time Tipton re-entered, it was too late. All seven of Prairie Grove's points in the fourth quarter came at the free-throw line, including four by Lopez. Prairie Grove missed a few, but came down with offensive rebounds and even a few loose-ball rebounds.
"They got every 50-50 ball," Berry said. "We didn't get any of them, at least it didn't seem like it. That was a big part of the ball game."
The Lady Eagles led 12-6 before Prairie Grove opened the second quarter with an 8-0 run, which was capped off by a three-pointer by Taylor Doss that gave the Lady Tigers a 14-12 lead. It was short-lived as Huntsville closed out the second quarter with a 7-2 scoring advantage to regain a 19-16 lead at halftime.
Both teams traded buckets -- and leads -- early in the third quarter. A traditional three-point play by Tipton gave the Lady Eagles a 24-22 lead with 3:38 remaining in the third quarter. But they didn't score again until Cheyenne Walkingstick's steal and layup with 13 seconds remaining in regulation.
Boys: Huntsville 58, Prairie Grove 42
The Eagles raced out to an early double-digit lead, then kept the Tigers at arm's length the rest of the way to improve to 7-1 in conference play. Prairie Grove cut it to 51-42 with under 4 minutes remaining in regulation, but didn't score another point.
Sports on 01/27/2016