The Greenwood Bulldogs finally got that first elusive win last week in tournament action at Russellville, and generally showed signs of improved play with the recent addition of several athletes from football. With the roster expanding from 11 to 20 players, the bench isn't quite as lonely for Head Coach Greg Nichols and assistant Paul Dean.
The GHS boys took on Little Rock Christian last Thursday in the opening round of the Cyclone Tournament and defeated the Warriors in a high-scoring affair, 85-73. The game was called tightly by the officials, enforcing new rules this year about hand checking. The Bulldogs attempted 59 free throws, making 37 of them for a percentage of 63%.
The opening eight minutes of the contest set the tone for the game, with the two teams combining to score 51 points. The Bulldogs led 27-24 after one period, but stumbled offensively in the second stanza, scoring just seven points. The Warriors led 39-34 at the intermission.
But the 'Dogs returned to double-digit scoring in each of the final two periods, padding their total from the charity stripe. Greenwood outscored LR Christian 24-17 and 27-17 in the third and fourth quarters, respectively, for the 12-point victory, avenging an earlier loss this season to the Warriors.
Another positive sign for Greenwood was good scoring distribution, with five players netting eight points or more, led by senior Chase Sanders with 17 and junior Luke Hales with 11 points. Sophomore Zane Harmon added 10 points, while junior Alec Armstrong scored nine points and senior Blaise Loman contributed with eight points. Sanders hit 13 of 17 free throw attempts.
The Bulldogs returned to Russellville last Friday to face Sylvan Hills in second round tournament play, but lost to the Bears, 69-57. A poor offensive performance in the opening period pretty much doomed the 'Dogs, trailing 16-5 after the first eight minutes.
Greenwood then rallied in the second quarter, outscoring the Bears 24-20, and trailed at the half, 36-29. The Bulldogs won the third quarter as well, 15-13, but could not get over the hump down the stretch and were outscored 20-13 over the final eight minutes.
Once again the 'Dogs got offensive contributions throughout the lineup, with six players scoring half-a-dozen points or more. Chase Sanders (13 points) and fellow senior Dustin Lunsford (11) led the scoring, following by Blaise Loman with eight points. Luke Hales, Alec Armstrong, and sophomore Parker Pitts all added six points each. Pitts hit two three-pointers to account for all of his scoring.
Last Saturday the Bulldogs concluded tournament play at Russellville with a 52-44 loss to the Lake Hamilton Wolves. Greenwood slumped offensively in the first and third quarters, scoring only seven points in each period. Lake Hamilton didn't fair much better, scoring nine points in each period, and led only 18-17 at the half.
But the Wolves improved offensively in the second half, outscoring Greenwood 18-7 in the third stanza to lead 36-27 going into the final eight minutes of play. The Bulldogs made a run, topping Lake Hamilton 20-16 in the quarter, but still came up short in the eight-point loss.
Post player Dustin Lunsford had one of his best offensive performances of the young season, scoring nine points in the first half and 11 in the second half for a team-high 20 points. Chase Sanders and Blaise Loman added eight points each.
Coach Nichols was generally pleased with his team's play and sees better things ahead. "We beat Little Rock Christian in the first game, and we played real well. It was a very physical game with a lot of free throws, and we scored 85 points. And that's what we've been trying to do – to get the scoring up – and we were able to do that. We were attacking the basket and so were they. We played them a week earlier, without the footballers, and they had their footballers for four or five days."
Nichols said the officiating was different against Sylvan Hills, giving his players some trouble. "Right now it's hard for my kids to adjust to officiating," said the coach. "That's one of the things we've got to learn to do. So in the second game we did a lot of fouling, while Sylvan Hills did not.
"In the third game we played Lake Hamilton, which is a very good team. They have two really good guards, and they beat us by eight [points] on Saturday afternoon. But I was real pleased with the effort in all three games. They all played hard. We've just got to just keep going at it until we get some games under our belt. We're working the [football players] in as we go, just trying to find a good starting lineup that we like."
After squandering a double-digit lead and losing at home to Gentry last week, Nichols was relieved to get that first win for his players. "It got the monkey off our back," he said. "And playing two really good games after that, I think we're on the right track. We saw a lot of improvement, primarily on the defensive end, because offensively it's going to take a little longer. We've just got to keep working at it and getting better and better."
This week the Bulldogs will travel to Fort Smith Southside on Thursday, taking on the Class 7A Rebels, then play their second home game of the season on Friday at H.B. Stewart Arena, hosting Rogers High School, another 7A school.
The 'Dogs will practice for several days before taking time off for Christmas, then return to Russellville for another tournament before the New Year begins. Greenwood will play its first conference game on the road at Bryant on Friday, January 8th.