Backed against the wall, Bulldogs still playing hard

Backed against the wall, Bulldogs still playing hard

As the 2022-23 high school roundball campaign heads into the home stretch, it’s clear this season has not been kind to the Greenwood varsity boys’ program under veteran Head Coach Donnie Husband. In his fifth year at Greenwood, Husband and his players had hoped to improve on last year’s conference mark of 7-7 that earned them a berth in the state playoffs. But that’s not how things are unfolding. The GHS boys are currently winless after six league contests.

With eight conference games left, it would take an incredible turnaround over the next month plus some amazing luck to reach the playoffs this year. But that doesn't mean the Bulldogs aren’t still playing hard. In fact, that’s part of why the results this season have been so frustrating, because the team continues to put in the hard work and give great effort every Tuesday and Friday, yet the wins have not been forthcoming.

Multiple injuries to several players and increased parody among other members of the 5A West conference are two possible reasons for the Bulldogs’ troubles this season. Those aren’t excuses, but also can’t be dismissed out of hand. But whatever the cause or causes, no one can fault the players or coaches for their dedication and sweat. No team could work harder in practice or play harder from the opening jump.

All that being said, the season marches on, despite the recent wintry weather that forced a postponement and rescheduling of the Alma game, not once but twice. Nearly half of the 14-game conference schedule is over, and the second half of the league season will be completed in February. So, the Bulldogs will keep on fighting until the very end, for pride if for nothing else. Their most recent outings included games against Siloam Springs, Mountain Home, and Greenbrier.

Siloam Springs

The Bulldogs played one of their best overall games on the road against the Panthers, but still came up short, 63-60, on Tuesday, January 17th. Along with Greenbrier, the Siloam Springs’ boys are sitting atop the conference standings, but had their hands full with the visiting Bulldogs, who built an early six-point lead in the first quarter before the Panthers finished the period with an 8-0 run.

Senior Dawson Holt opened the game with a bank shot off the glass and junior Braden Bollman and Holt both hit early three-pointers as Greenwood built an 18-12 advantage before the Panthers’ scoring run left them with a 20-18 lead after one period. But the game remained close with the home team up 30-25 at the halftime break.

The Panthers slowly added to their advantage in the third quarter, up 43-31 at one point, before the Greenwood boys went on a 7-3 run to end the period, still trailing 46-38. But the home team managed to prevent a serious GHS charge over the final eight minutes. The Panthers still led 56-50 at the 3:30 mark and were up 63-57 until GHS senior Aiden Kennon hit a late three-pointer to trim the final margin to three points, 63-60.

Kennon led the Bulldogs in scoring with 17 points, one of four GHS players who reached double figures offensively. He also grabbed five rebounds, had six steals, and two assists. Both Dawson Holt and Braden Bollman added 13 points each, with Holt having five boards and three assists. Bollman hit four three-pointers in the game, nabbed seven rebounds, and had three blocked shots. Junior L.J. Robins added 10 points, seven assists, and three steals.

Mountain Home

Back home at H.B. Stewart Arena on Friday the 20th, the Bulldogs scored the opening basket on a bank shot by junior Peyton Presson, but the visiting Bombers led 14-12 after one period. Mountain Home increased its lead to 23-15 early in the second quarter, forcing Coach Husband to call a timeout to rally his troops. But the Bombers still led 28-19 at the intermission.

The Bulldogs started the third quarter with a promising 5-0 run on the strength of a three-pointer by L.J. Robins and a layup by Presson, trimming the Bombers’ lead to four points at 28-24. But the visitors regrouped and led by ten points, 36-26, at the five minute mark then expanded their advantage to 52-38 after three quarters. A brief 4-0 run by Greenwood gave the Bulldogs hope for a late rally, but it wasn’t to be as Mountain Home held on a for a comfortable 63-51 win.

L.J. Robins led the Bulldogs in scoring with 12 points, also grabbing four rebounds. Dawson Holt and Aiden Kennon scored 10 points each. Kennon also had 10 rebounds, three assists, and three steals. Holt had two boards, three assists, and a pair of steals. Peyton Presson scored six points and had seven rebounds, junior Josh Ligon also scored six points with five boards, and Braden Bollman added five points in the game.

Greenbrier

Last Friday’s annual homecoming game featured the Bulldogs against the Greenbrier Panthers, one of the top teams in the 5A West, and the game was close throughout. Greenwood’s Braden Bollman sank a smooth jumper late in the first quarter to trim the visitors’ lead to 12-11 after eight minutes. The teams then essentially traded baskets in the second period to end up tied at 24-all at the break.

But the Bulldogs struggled offensively, scoring just seven points, and the Panthers edged ahead in the third quarter, leading 36-31 heading into the final stanza of play. With eight minutes left, the home team then started the fourth period with a 7-1 scoring run to cut the Greenbrier lead to 37-36.

Excitement continued to build along with the GHS rally as Dawson Holt drilled a three-pointer at the three-minute mark, putting the Bulldogs up 43-39. But that’s when the bubble burst for the home team as the Panthers regrouped and scored the last 12 points in the game, shutting out Greenwood the rest of the way for the 51-43 victory, keeping Greenbrier at the top of the league standings.

Aiden Kennon led the Bulldogs in scoring with 19 points, sinking 10 of 12 free throws while also grabbing eight rebounds. L.J. Robins was next with nine points, while Josh Ligon had eight points, all in the first quarter, plus six rebounds, and Dawson Holt added five points along with three assists. Peyton Presson didn’t score but pulled down six boards.

With the end of the wintry weather on Thursday, the Bulldogs will return to action Friday night at Russellville against the always tough Cyclones. During the second half of the league schedule Greenwood will play its home games on Tuesday nights while traveling on Fridays. They will host Van Buren next Tuesday and travel to Harrison next Friday.

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