GRIZZLIES WEAR DOWN LITTLE ROCK CENTRAL

Jaylin Williams made certain that Fort Smith Northside's latest trip to Central Arkansas turned out much better than its last. The senior forward poured in 20 points, grabbed 16 rebounds, handed out 5 assists and blocked 2 shots to help the Grizzlies wear down Little Rock Central 77-58 on Wednesday night at Boone-Fitzpatrick Fieldhouse in Little Rock. Three other players finished with at least 10 points for Northside (17-6, 7-2 6A-Central), which rebounded from a 23-point blowout loss at Bryant in its last outing by manhandling Central. "I was glad to see the guys bounce back," Northside Coach Eric Burnett said. "I haven't gotten embarrassed like that in a long time, probably five or six years. [Bryant] gets all the credit for that because they came out and kicked our butts from start to finish. "But I think that kind of woke us up a little bit because we did a lot better, especially on the defensive end." The Grizzlies bore down on the Tigers after Central hit 5 of 7 three-pointers in the first five minutes of play and led 15-9 lead following a 21-footer from senior guard Jeremiah Jones with 3:01 to go in the first quarter. Northside, though, didn't give up much the remainder of the half. The Tigers missed their next eight shots and didn't score again until junior guard Corey Camper hit a free throw with 4:49 left before halftime. Northside, in turn, outscored Central 19-0 during that nearly seven-minute spell to create a double-digit lead. "We were able to play our game," Burnett said. "Central did scare me at first when they came out and hit those threes, though. I was like 'what are we gonna do when they're hitting them from deep like that'. "But we stayed with it, went man-to-man and started limiting those shots." Senior guard Noah Gordon scored 16 points and junior guard Jacob Joe had 14 for the Grizzlies, who shot 24 of 50 (48%) and doubled up the Tigers on the boards, 32-16. Senior forward Braylin McKinley added 13 points, 11 rebounds and 3 steals. Sophomore guard Cody Robinson had 22 points, including six three-pointers, and Jones finished with 16 points for Central (11-11, 4-5), which went 19 of 45 (42.2%) from the field. Senior Johnnie White added 8 points, 7 rebounds and 4 blocks. The Tigers, who trailed 36-24 at halftime, got their deficit down to 40-30 in the early stages of the third quarter after a short jumper from senior forward Kiyler Hudson. But back-to-back turnovers allowed the Grizzlies to run off eight points in a row, with Williams scoring the first six, and establish an 18-point cushion. Northside's lead swelled to as big as 26 points in the fourth before a late ran by Central closed the gap. GIRLS FORT SMITH NORTHSIDE 64, LITTLE ROCK CENTRAL 31 A 23-0 run spanning nearly 13 minutes paved the way for an easy 33-point rout for Fort Smith Northside (20-3, 9-0 6A-Central). Junior guard Jersey Wolfenbarger finished with 15 points, 5 rebounds and 5 blocks for the Lady Bears, who have won 15 games in a row. Senior forward Qunishia Tillery and sophomore forward Haitiana Releford had 11 points points each for Northside. The Lady Bears, who'd beaten Central 56-26 on Jan. 14, were tied 5-5 with the Lady Tigers early before a three-pointer from Tillery started a 23-point run. Central (6-12, 2-9) didn't score again until Lauryn Pendleton's bucket with 2:29 left in the half. By that time, the Tigers were in a 21-point hole, and they never seriously threatened from there. Pendleton finished with 21 points, while senior guard Jordyn Head had 7 points, 5 rebounds and 3 steals.

Little Rock School District Athletics

GRIZZLIES WEAR DOWN LITTLE ROCK CENTRAL

Photo Credit: Central High School Athletics