MCCLELLAN OVERCOMES FREE-THROW STRUGGLES

Little Rock McClellan followed senior forward Traevon Darrough's 24 points to a 67-64 victory over eStem at the Lions Den in Little Rock on Tuesday night. Both teams struggled to make field goals and free throws throughout, but two free throws by junior forward Tyler Hawkins gave eStem a 64-62 lead with 1:04 left in the game. McClellan made a total of two three-pointers in the game, but junior guard Racie Williams hit the second with 43 seconds left to give McClellan the lead for keeps at 65-64. Junior Kendrick Ester and Darrough combined to hit 2 of 4 free throws after Williams' go-ahead shot, a reflection of McClellan's overall performance from the line offset by eStem's three turnovers on three possessions in the final minute. "I knew we were playing hard," McClellan Coach Chris Threatt said. "I thought we were outplaying them, and I was hoping we didn't lose because of free throws. That would've really been demoralizing." McClellan (5-12, 4-3 4A-5) was 6 of 8 from the free-throw line in the first half but just 8 of 20 in the second half for a 50% rate for the game. EStem (16-9, 5-3) shot 44.4% from the line and 42.6% from the field. "We shot abysmal," eStem Coach Josh Hayes said. "We haven't shot it well lately. We haven't closed games well lately. We just didn't make the plays down the stretch that you have to make, and McClellan did." EStem has followed up a school-record 12 consecutive victories with three consecutive losses. "It's hard to deal with success, and we haven't dealt with success well," Hayes said. "We got complacent. We got comfortable. There's plenty of season left, and we can't play that way." Sophomore Martini Robinson scored 15 points for McClellan, and senior Patrick Martin scored 11. Junior Jaylon Smith led eStem with 14 points, and junior J.K. Sanders scored 10. EStem scored to start the game, but a layup by sophomore guard Patrick Martin broke a tie to give McClellan a 5-3 lead with 5:30 left in the first quarter. EStem would not lead again until the final minute of the first half. A layup by Robinson gave McClellan a 19-11 lead to start the second quarter, but eStem scored the next six points. A layup by senior forward Ryan Gore cut McClellan's lead to 19-17 with 5:43 left in the second quarter. McClellan's lead was 28-25 after sophomore guard Noah Buckley scored with 1:15 left in the first half, but eStem scored the next five points to lead 30-28 at halftime after junior guard Ed Dailey's three-pointer in the final seconds. "We've closed well in the first half," Hayes said. "I don't know what it was in the second half, but it's super frustrating a week ago being in first place in the conference, and now we're fighting for fourth. We just got to go back to the drawing board and figure this thing out." GIRLS eStem 51, Little Rock McClellan 46 Senior Alexandra Johnson scored 15 points to lead the eStem Lady Mets (10-11, 5-3 4A-5) to a victory over Little Rock McClellan (6-8, 3-4). Senior Trinity Hudson and sophomore Ardyane Robinson each scored eight points for eStem. Sophomore Raven Brown led McClellan with 16 points. Senior Tyianna Robinson scored 13.

Little Rock School District Athletics

MCCLELLAN OVERCOMES FREE-THROW STRUGGLES

Photo Credit: McClellan Magnet High School Athletics