BALANCE, CONSISTENCY KEY FOR LR MCCLELLAN

Little Rock McClellan Coach Chris Threatt called Wednesday's Class 4A boys state first-round victory a team effort. The Crimson Lions had four players with at least 10 points, including senior guard Demetrius Torrence's team-high 20 points, to get past Ozark 78-68 at Panther Arena. In addition to Torrence, junior forward Traveon Darrough scored 14 points. Senior guards Elijah Green and James Nichols each added 10 points for the Crimson Lions. Threatt appreciated his team's balance Wednesday. "All of us together is better than any one of us individually," Threatt said. "That was a team win. We got into their legs. That's not possible if people aren't ready when they come off the bench or if people aren't willing to come out with a positive attitude." McClellan (23-8), the No. 3 seed from the Class 4A East Region, will face South Region No. 1 seed Monticello at 8:30 p.m. today in the quarterfinals. The Hillbillies, who shot 22 of 42 and hit 14 three-pointers, were led by sophomore guard Garrett Schaffer, who scored a game-high 25 points, including 3 three-pointers. Senior guard Ethan Masingale finished with 16 points (four three-pointers) and senior forward Colt Millsap added 13 points. Ozark (16-15) hit four three-pointers in the first quarter en route to a 20-12 lead at the end of the first quarter. The Hillbillies had a 29-21 lead with 2:28 remaining in the second quarter, but the Crimson Lions outscored them 13-4 before halftime and Nichols' layup with less than two seconds remaining gave McClellan a 34-33 lead. Threatt said the Crimson Lions' late first-half run was important for his team going into the second half. "They had outplayed us in the first half," Threatt said. "They were playing harder than us. But we were on pace for a 70-point game and I felt like at that pace, we had a deep enough bench where we thought it would affect them." McClellan led 53-48 at the end of the third quarter and used an 8-0 run to extend its lead to 61-51 with 5:07 left to play. Ozark cut the lead to 67-63, but McClellan responded with Nichols' basket for a 69-63 advantage with 2:48 remaining. The Crimson Lions sealed the victory with their free-throw shooting, going 15 of 21 in the fourth quarter. They shot 26 of 45 overall from the floor, 20 of 30 from the free-throw line, and knocked down five three-pointers. Ozark Coach Brad Johnson credited McClellan with their athleticism wearing down the Hillbillies. "We got tired," Johnson said. "Every possession matters. It's just unfortunate we weren't able to be more consistent."

Little Rock School District Athletics

BALANCE, CONSISTENCY KEY FOR LR MCCLELLAN

Photo Credit: McClellan Magnet High School Athletics