LINCOLN -- In a game that featured three buzzer beaters, 17 total 3s and two of the 3A-West conference's best guards, Elkins (22-3, 11-1) came out on top.
The Elks were anchored by senior guard Chad Graham, who poured in 21 points and six fourth-quarter free throws to seal the win. He did the majority of his work in the final frame, scoring 13 points in that quarter alone.
On the other side, senior guard Sterling Morphis scored 29 points in the losing effort for the Wolves (11-13, 5-7). He scored all 14 of his team's first-quarter points and hit half-court buzzer beaters at the end of the first and third periods. He hit five of his team's six threes on the night.
Elkins was aided by double-digit scoring efforts from junior Paxton Barnett and senior Camren Dunn. The former scored 13, the latter 10.
Though the Wolves found themselves down late, their offense was in position to potentially bring them back into the fold if they could get a few stops. A late offensive rebound resulted in an and-one for Graham, effectively nixing any momentum the home team had.
With the victory, Elkins swept its conference foe in the regular season.
Elkins^14^15^13^22--64
Lincoln^14^5^19^12--50
Elkins: Chad Graham 21, Paxton Barnett 13, Camren Dunn 10, Kain Johnson 8, Westin Wheeler 7, Kobe Andrews 5.
Lincoln: Sterling Morphis 29, Daytin Davis 9, Chase Hutchens 7, Adam Keith 5.
Waldron 69, Lincoln 59
Waldron had the correct response after falling behind 10-0 in Tuesday's game at Lincoln.
The Bulldogs went on a 12-0 run to dominate the second quarter and overtake the Wolves 69-59 Tuesday in a 3A-1 West Conference game at Wolfpack Arena. Payton Brown scored 34 points to pace Waldron, which led 33-26 at halftime and 49-43 after three quarters.
Lincoln got to within 57-53 after a 3-pointer by Morphis. But Brown followed with nine more points down the stretch to keep the Bulldogs ahead.
It didn't look good in the early stages for Waldron (19-5, 9-2), which fell behind 10-0 and trailed 13-7 after one quarter. But Waldron dominated the second quarter to take a 33-26 lead at halftime. Brown had 14 points in the second quarter when Waldron outscored the Wolves 26-13.
"We came out flat and Lincoln had it rolling in the first quarter," Waldron coach Joshua Brown said. "No. 1 [Morphis] is a ballplayer. But we told them 'hey, we've got to play harder' and that's what we did. When we play hard, we're pretty good."
Payton Brown's 34 points Tuesday followed a December game against Lincoln when the junior guard scored a season-high 52 points in a 73-62 victory over the Wolves. Payton Brown, who is committed to Central Arkansas, entered Tuesday's game averaging 31.1 points on the season. But he received plenty of help from his teammates, including Drew Dozier, who added 15 points on rebounds and aggressive moves to the basket.
"Drew, he's our only senior and he's a leader," Joshua Brown said. "He's a grown man in there when he wants to be."
Lincoln (11-12, 5-6) entered the game with some momentum after beating Charleston 80-73 last Thursday to hand the Tigers their first loss in league play.
Morphis, who had 42 in the win over Charleston, made five 3-pointers and finished with 20 against Waldron. Daytin Davis led the Wolves with 21.
Waldron^7^26^16^20--^69
Lincoln^13^13^17^16^--^59
Waldron (19-5, 9-2): Payton Brown 34, Drew Dozier 15, Mason Ford 6, Gada Wagner 6, Isaac Villareal 4, Ruben Valdez 2, Caden Fuller 2.
Lincoln ( 11-12, 5-6): Daytin Davis 21, Sterling Morphis 20, Malik Bagsby 10, Chase Hutchens 5, Adam Keith 3.
Sports on 02/06/2019