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Panthers take Wampus Cat Invitational title
The three tournament games gave Belcher, a post player, a chance to redeem himself from a rough start to the season. Belcher came on to contribute double-digit points in all three of the Panthers wins on the way to the tournament championship. "I think we started out with speculations about this team and how we would work together on offense," he said. "We pulled it together and worked with each other. We blocked out and got in the gaps. We played good defense and it paid off with a good win. We needed a balanced scoring attack and to do what needs to be done for the team. That's my senior role and I'm trying to fulfill that. It feels good to win, and we've got the group of guys who are working together to get the job done." That being said, the Benton Panthers captured the 2007 Conway Wampus Cat Invitational tournament by defeating Fort Smith Southside, Jacksonville and "mercy-ruling" Van Buren in the championship game Saturday night.
The Panthers played strong defense to whip Fort Smith Southside 43-29 in the opening-round game. Brandon Jones lead Benton with 13 points, while Belcher added 11 points in the win. Jones hit a 3-pointer to start the game and then Landon Parker canned a field goal. Jones scored again for a 7-1 lead, and then Parker stepped out for a 3- pointer to make it 10-1 and force a Fort Smith timeout. When play resumed, Jacob Yoakum hit a free throw to make it an 11-4 game by the end of the first quarter. Kevin Wingerter added a basket off a Jones steal, and then Parker hit a 14-footer to make it 15-4. Southside came back to make it a 15-12 game, but Jones scored a basket to put Benton up 17-14 at halftime.
In the fourth period, Belcher scored again, and then Wingerter converted a layup after a steal. Parker hit another 3- pointer and Jones put back an offensive miss to make it a 35-24 Benton lead. Jones added another basket and two free throws and Belcher capped off the scoring with two free throws to secure the 14-point win for the Panthers. "I told the kids that we had to score at least 14 points in every quarter," Nail said. "We scored six points in the second quarter and had some awful lapses. At halftime we sat there and the bottom line was that we had been getting too loose with the basketball. We wanted to be tight with the ball and keep it close to our bodies. We needed to be in a position to succeed and it was great that we did that. Sam came back on offense and that was good to see him bounce back."
However, Jacksonville wasn't ready for the defense that the Panthers brought. An immediate foul sent Belcher to the free-throw line for a 1-0 lead, and then Jones made steal and a layup. Jones scored again and Wingerter scored off another steal. Yoakum hit a 3-pointer for a 10-2 lead midway through the first period. Jones scored again and Parker put back an offensive rebound in midair. Jones capped off the first period, scoring with a jumper at the buzzer to put Benton up 16-9. Jones continued to produce points and finished the game with a season-high 34 points. Jacksonville got as close as one point, 18-17, but a score from Tony Swopes, two free throws from Jones and a three-point play from Jones ended the first half with the Panthers up 25- 20.
Belcher added two more free throws and Yoakum hit a 3- pointer for a 49-33 lead by the end of three quarters. Jones scored 16 straight points for the Panthers in the fourth period to lift the lead to 61-43. Jacksonville closed in with free throws to make it a 12- point game, but Belcher scored and then he and Jones hit a free throw apiece to ice the game for a 68-57 win. "Defensively, we were going to block the lane because they were so athletic we wanted to push the tempo," Nail said. "We slowed them down in the third quarter, which was the best quarter we've played all year long. We broke the game open. They are a really good team and they will get better. We did a good job on the glass and spreading the scoring around. The only thing negative I can say is that we need to finish the game, but that's going to come. I told the kids we were proud of them. They beat a good Jacksonville team."
The Panthers started out hot with Jones hitting a 3-pointer, then Ben Martin scored inside. Belcher scored and Parker added a 3-pointer. After Jones hit two free throws, he stepped out for a 3-pointer. Benton led 15-0 after the first period. Van Buren missed all five of its shots and turned the ball over seven times in the opening quarter.
Jones scored the first five points of the third period and Belcher scored. Jones added two more free throws and completed a three-point play for a commanding 50-13 lead after three quarters. The mercy rule was invoked. Tyler Noble scored the only points for the Panthers in the fi- nal eight minutes. "They were all mixed up all night defensively and offensively," Nail said of Van Buren. "We're starting to buy into what we're doing offensively. Our spacing was good before our shots. We still have some things that we need to work on, but I'm very pleased with our team. This is a huge confidence boost for our kids. This is a good tournament and a springboard into our last three games before Christmas break." Undoubtedly defense keyed the Panthers championship run. "Our kids have really prided themselves on making defensive stops," said Benton coach Dwaine Fishburn. "It was unbelievable to see us up 15-0 - to hold a team like Van Buren scoreless in the first quarter was amazing. They had beaten Conway by more than 20 points beforehand. They had been hitting threes, but their coach mentioned to me that his kids didn't understand what to do or where to go against our defense and that is a great compliment to our kids. "All tournament long, we were so pleased the way we hit the boards," the coach added. "We hope that that continues because it takes the pressure off of our offense. We work so hard on it. We've still got a long way to go, but we've come along way, too." |
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