If adversity builds character, then this group of Greenwood Bulldogs should have plenty of it, character that is, because they’ve had more than their share of adversity this season under first-year Head Coach Donnie Husband.
While the wins have been scarce, the hearts of these ‘Dogs still beat with pride and a desire to work and compete every day.
To use a boxing metaphor, they continue to answer the bell and give it all they’ve got, and fans can’t ask for more than that. It’s a good life lesson.
Heading into last Tuesday’s home game against Siloam Springs, Coach Husband and his players were still looking for their first conference win this season.
Three league games remain starting this Friday at Beebe, then at home next Tuesday for senior night against Alma, before closing out the regular season at Greenbrier next Friday.
Vilonia
Last Friday the Bulldogs traveled to Vilonia in Central Arkansas, losing 56-38 to the Eagles, currently 13-11 overall and 6-4 in the 5A West.
Greenwood trailed 15-7 after one period and 30-19 at the half. A poor offensive third quarter by the visitors sealed the win for Vilonia.
The ‘Dogs also found themselves in foul trouble at the break with point guard Steven Stone and forward Jack Gaston forced to spend time on the bench in the first half.
Greenwood scored just four points in the third stanza and 15 more in the fourth, compared to 26 total points for the Eagles.
“We got some decent looks, but just couldn’t convert,” said Coach Husband in summing up his team’s offensive performance. “It was just an inability to make plays.
“We played well on defense. We held [Vilonia] down offensively,” he added.
Senior James Christian and junior Jayce Garnes led Greenwood with nine points each.
Jack Gaston had seven points, senior Dalton Russell added six points, and junior Cameron Hampton contributed five points.
Russellville
The conference-leading Cyclones (17-5, 9-1) came to Greenwood last Tuesday night and dominated the second quarter, building a double-digit lead they never relinquished.
The visitors led 17-11 after eight minutes, but a 20-9 scoring differential in their favor in the next stanza gave them a 37-20 halftime advantage.
The Bulldogs regrouped and opened the second half with a 10-5 run, with Jack Gaston scoring six of his team-high 10 points. Jayce Garnes and Dalton Russell also added buckets for the Bulldogs.
But after outscoring Russellville 12-11 in the third quarter, a 15-6 Cyclone rally in the fourth made the final score, 63-38.
Besides Gaston’s 10 points, Cameron Hampton had seven points and Jayce Garnes added six. In all, nine players scored for Greenwood, but six of them had four points or less.
“We took some questionable shots in the second quarter,” said Coach Husband after the loss, and that affects your defense, he went on to say.
“If we can keep a team in the half court, we can guard pretty well. But when we give up a bad shot or have a run out, we’re in trouble. It leads to fast breaks on the other end,” he continued.
“We were 11 for 33 in the lane, and those were good shots,” said the coach. “You should be able to hit 50%, but we hit 33%. The bottom line is that you’ve got to score and put the ball in the basket.”
LR Christian
A low-scoring opening period found the Bulldogs trialing 7-4 after eight minutes at Little Rock Christian on February 1st. But a much better second quarter had Greenwood leading 20-18 in the final seconds before a lucky 35-footer stroked the Warriors’ net just before the buzzer.
Trailing 21-20 to start the second half, the Bulldogs battled in the third quarter and trailed by just four points, 36-32, to start the fourth period.
But the Warriors slowly added to their lead over the final eight minutes. Missing some early scoring chances in the period, Greenwood managed just six points for the entire quarter, losing 51-38.
Asked about the low-scoring start to the game, Coach Husband said, “For us it was bad offense. We had 10 turnovers in the first quarter, some of them forced and some unforced.
“In the second quarter we played much better. We were about to go in with a lead at halftime and they hit a 35-footer and we’re down one,” he added.
“We fought foul trouble, but we had a pretty good third quarter. We’re down four [points] to start the fourth quarter, but we take a [pair of] questionable threes, we miss a layup and a free throw, and miss another layup, and we’re down 12. But it was a pretty good effort. They beat us 26 here,” he said.
Junior Breck Daggett had 11 points to lead Greenwood in scoring, following by James Christian with eight, Cameron Hampton with seven, and junior Aaron Ligon with five.