The Greenwood Bulldogs have won half of their first six games this season as they enjoy several days off for Christmas, yet have shown promise with a newly revamped starting lineup after losing all of last year’s starters. Head Coach B.J. Ross is in his third year at the helm and seems to be on course in his efforts to rebuild the varsity boys basketball program that’s been down for more than a decade. Greenwood won 14 games last season and hopes to at least match that total this season with a brand new starting five. The 5A West conference season begins January 6th at Van Buren.

The GHS boys won their first two contests of the season over Clarksville and Waldron before dropping both of their games in the Bulldog Classic tournament last weekend, falling to Searcy and Hugo, Oklahoma. But they rebounded this past Tuesday with a home victory over Beebe, 80-75, before traveling to Northwest Arkansas on Friday, losing to Rogers Heritage to cement Greenwood’s .500 record before the holiday break.

Waldron

On December 11th the Bulldogs hosted those other Bulldogs from Waldron at H.B. Stewart Arena and won, 47-44, to improve their early record to 2-0. But the visitors controlled the contest in the first half, leading 12-11 after one period and 27-18 at the half. But the home team rallied in the third quarter, winning 12-5, then 17-12 in the final stanza for the three-point win.

Neither team shot the ball especially well with Greenwood stroking the nets for 30% of their shots and Waldron at nearly 35%. Both teams hit 14 two-point field goals and seven free throws each. The difference in the game was Greenwood’s four three-pointers to three treys for Waldron. Greenwood had five less turnovers and scored six more points off turnovers than the visitors. The home team scored 24 points in the paint while Waldron scored 26 points in the lane.

The GHS boys had three players in double figures offensively, led by senior Hudson Clark with 17 points on six of 20 shooting, including a three-pointer plus four free throws. Junior Micah Cowart added 11 points, nine of those coming on a trio of three-pointers. Sophomore post player Parker Thomas contributed 10 points and led the team in rebounding with 11 boards. In his first basketball action after the end of the gridiron season, sophomore Braxton Canada scored five points and grabbed four rebounds. Fellow sophomore Caden Mendenhall did not score, but did contribute five rebounds, three deflections, and a steal. Senior Blake Christiansen added four points, three boards, one assist, and eight deflections.

Afterward, Coach Ross talked with members of the local media. “Our first two quarters were really bad, and I told them that in a real good way, and they responded in a real good way,” he said. “We were out of sorts and out of whack, but a lot of that comes with not playing since November 18th. This was truly like our first game, though we practice every day. But I thought they responded well [in the second half].”

Asked about the play of Micah Cowart, whose trio of three-pointers helped keep the team afloat in the first half, Ross said, “Micah is coming on. He works every day and he wants to be good. He stayed this afternoon with about four others and shot the ball until Waldron got here. He wants to be a player and he’s working to make it.”

The coach also noted the improvement in rebounding in the second half against the Bulldogs from Scott County. “We decided that we needed to stop playing tiddlywinks and go get some rebounds,” he said. “We were just watching. That’s what we were doing. But we responded pretty well. I thought Mendenhall and Thomas did a great job rebounding and creating some easy looks because they rebounded. Parker was able to score inside.”

Greenwood hit just seven of 13 free throw attempts in the game. Asked about the poor free throw shooting, Ross laughingly said, “I’m going to figure out who the free throw shooting coach is and fire him. It’s me. We do need to work on that a little bit. But that’s why we play these early games. Win or lose, we’re just trying to get ready for January [and conference play].”

Searcy

Greenwood opened play in the Bulldog Classic tournament on Friday, December 12th with a contest against the visiting Searcy Lions, who featured two players at 6’8” and 6’6”. By comparison, Greenwood’s tallest starter is sophomore Parker Thomas at 6’3”. That huge height advantage quickly translated into a blowout win for the Lions, who jumped out to a 24-4 lead after just eight minutes. The visitors led 45-17 at the half before Greenwood rallied in the third quarter, and both teams benched their starters in the fourth period. When the final buzzer sounded, Searcy walked off the court with a 31-point victory, 71-40.

Greenwood shot 31% to nearly 37% for the Lions. Greenwood did make seven three-pointers to only three for Searcy. But the Bulldogs only took six shots from the free throw line, making three of them, compared to 18 of 22 free throws for the visitors. The Dogs also committed an incredible 30 turnovers, allowing the Lions to score 38 points off those giveaways, 22 of which were steals. Oddly enough, Greenwood led in rebounding, 35 to 34.

Individually, Braxton Canada showed off some of his potential only a week after football ended, running the court with boundless energy, scoring 17 points with six rebounds. But he was the only GHS player in double figures. Blake Christiansen added seven points with two assists, three deflections, and three steals. Caden Mendenhall had four points with seven boards. Hudson Clark and Micah Cowart had three points each while Gaven Vonderheide and Parker Thomas added two points each. Thomas also had seven rebounds.

Coach Ross talked about Searcy’s size advantage and their explosive start to the game. “They came out right off the bat and shocked us, pressured us, got after us, and we just couldn't recover, and we laid down a little bit,” he said honestly. “But that will help us [in the future]. After the first four minutes of the game it was over just because they dictated [things] after that. Searcy had a 6’6” guy and a 6’8” guy. I still ain't figured why they don’t grow them [that big] here in South Sebastian County.”

Hugo, OK

On Saturday afternoon, the last day of the Bulldog Classic, the Greenwood boys hosted the Buffaloes of Hugo, Oklahoma. The contest ended in a loss for the home team, 63-58, but it was quite a good game for the fans to watch, and was perhaps a glimpse of better things to come for the Bulldogs. Both teams reached double figures in scoring in all four periods, though the Buffaloes narrowly won three of the four quarters for the five-point win.

Hugo took the opening period, 13-11, and the second stanza, 17-15, for a 30-25 lead at the half. The score was tied at 15-all early in the second quarter before the Bulldogs took a 20-17 lead prior to a 13-5 run by the visitors to close the half. The Bulldogs played from behind throughout much the game but battled hard from wire to wire. On the strength of several three-point shots, they rallied in the third quarter, winning that eight-minute block, 18-16, to cut their deficit to 46-44 with one period remaining. But Hugo held off the surging Bulldogs in the final quarter, outscoring them 17-14 for the 63-58 victory.

Greenwood won the battle of the boards, 47 to 39, but were bested in shooting percentage, 38% to 32%. Both teams shot about the same from beyond the three-point arc, with the Bulldogs holding a slight edge, 22% to 21%. But the home team did miss several key free throw attempts and blew some layups that cost them dearly as reflected in the final score. Hugo outscored Greenwood in the paint, 36 to 24, and bested the Bulldogs in points off turnovers, 13 to five.

Hudson Clark continued his fine early play with 22 points to lead Greenwood in scoring. He hit four three-pointers in the game and added four rebounds and a pair of steals. Braxton Canada, in his second game with the team, began showing his potential with 12 points and 10 rebounds for a double-double, while teammate and fellow sophomore Parker Thomas added 10 points, 13 rebounds, and two blocks. Blake Christiansen chipped in with nine points, seven boards, and four assists. Hudson Nichols and Micah Cowart had two points each. Cowart also had three assists and Caden Mendenhall added a single point with three rebounds and two blocks.

Following the game, Coach Ross talked with the Dog Pound about his team’s performance. “It was pretty entertaining,” he said of the game, “and we've grown from last night to tonight, and that's our whole point. Let's just grow and get better, and we saw some good things for some kids. Braxton Canada is getting better. I mean, he’s just been out of football a week, but he's a tremendous athlete. He just needs to develop his basketball skills.

“I thought Hudson Nichols came off the bench and gave us a good spark,” Ross continued. “He's getting better, and I thought he came in and did a good job for us, because we had a couple players in foul trouble. We're getting better and we're growing every day. We didn't buckle because we got down by seven or eight points two or three times. It could have gone to double digits really quick. I called timeout once and told them, ‘You’ve got a choice. We either going to hook it up and stay in the game or we're going to get beat 20.’ Then we got a couple stops, hit a couple shots, and things kind of started rolling. But these young kids don't know they're not supposed to win. I mean, they just play. The scoreboard never really affects them. But I think this is one that got away from us.”

Beebe

The Bulldogs followed up their two tournament losses with an entertaining and encouraging 80-75 fast-paced victory over the visiting Beebe Badgers last Tuesday at H.B. Stewart Arena. Both teams got after it offensively, each squad scoring in double digits in all four quarters. Greenwood took the early lead after winning the opening stanza, 19-14, fueled by the long-distance shooting of Micah Cowart, who drained a trio of three-pointers in the first half. But the Badgers surged in the second period, more than doubling Greenwood’s scoring to take a 39-31 lead at the break.

The Bulldogs quickly reversed that trend in the third quarter, rallying with a 21-point effort to tie the score after three periods at 52-all. Both teams then stroked the nets for over 20 points in the final eight minutes, but it was Greenwood that came out on top with 28 points and a five-point win.

The Bulldogs and Badgers shot the ball extremely well, which made for a fast-paced and fun game to watch. Beebe won the statistical battle, scorching the nets at over 54% while Greenwood wasn’t bad at 46%. Both squads also shot well from beyond the three-point line, Greenwood at 37.5% and Beebe at nearly 39%. The home team had the edge at the free throw line, outscoring the visitors 11 to six, matching their eventual margin of victory. The Bulldogs also scored 19 points off 16 Beebe turnovers while the Badgers made just five points off six GHS giveaways.

Individually, it was a coming out party for Braxton Canada who led all scorers with 28 points, including five three-pointers and 5 of 6 free throws. The promising sophomore added eight rebounds, four assists, and a pair of steals. He also got plenty of help from Parker Thomas and Blake Christiansen, who scored 17 points each. Thomas added eight boards and two assists while Christiansen had four assists. Hudson Clark, who struggled early and eventually fouled out of the game in the fourth quarter, finished with 10 points, four rebounds, and five assists. Caden Mendenhall added six points and four boards and Gavin Vonderheide had two points in limited action.

In his office after the game, Coach Ross quickly deferred to assistant coach Dexter Pearcy for making key halftime adjustments to Greenwood’s defense that change the course of the game. “In the half court, playing five-on-five, [Beebe’s] size and strength was giving us problems. So, Coach Ross and I talked about it, and we decided to go with full court pressure, just to get them a little uncomfortable, so they couldn't get their sets so easy. And sometimes when you press, it's not all about getting turnovers in the full court. It’s about speeding them up in the half court, and from there, our guys just went and made some plays, got some steals that led to some buckets, and grabbed some energy from it.”

Ross then talked about the play of Braxton Canada. “Braxton played pretty well. I think he played better defensively tonight than he has just because he was in the right spots some of the time. I mean, he's still not in [basketball] form coming from football. He's still a little out of whack, but he's such an athlete, he just makes plays and he's so strong. That's the deal. You know, he's strong and quick. But we can't say enough about our guards. Blake Christensen played one of the games of his life, and Parker Thomas. We finally told him at the end, just get it to Parker, because he's going to go to work. I was proud of him. Hudson Clark had a terrible first half, but he had a great second half until he fouled out. They all responded well after the half, because Beebe went on a 15-2 run in the first half. We were up 29-24 and then it was [Beebe] 39-31 at the end. But we got tougher in the second half and tied it up at the end of the third, and then took off, and we're proud of them. But they're still so young that we're going to have some bad nights, but we're also going to have these nights. And the thing is, they never waver on it. That's the kicker. They don't think they're supposed to lose. They don't know that they're 10th graders and they don't know that they are inexperienced. I mean, Blake Christensen and Hudson Clark are inexperienced. Tthey didn't play much at all last year. They are junior varsity guys, but it proves what JV development does and why it’s important. That's what we preach every day to these kids who aren't getting to play. You know, we play these JV games for a reason, and it gets you ready to be in this spot.

“But I do think they saw glimpses of what they can be and what they can do,” he continued. “I mean, if you put 80 on the board, I don't care who you're playing, you had to put it in the hole. If you look on paper, in conference we're probably picked seventh or eighth, honestly. And we may end up there at the end of the season, or we may not. There’s so many unknowns with us and so many unknowns in the conference, but we're just trying to get better every day and I couldn't be more proud of these kids tonight.”

Asked about plans for the upcoming Christmas break, Ross said, “It'll be good for us to have a little time off [from competition],” while also acknowledging the benefit of ten more days of practice with his newly arrived football players, Braxton Canada, William Rye, and Malakai Willis. “The practices will be great for them,” he said. Like Canada, Rye is a talented sophomore whom Ross expects to make a significant contribution once he gets over a recent illness that has kept him out of action since football ended. “He'll be ready for conference,” Ross concluded with confidence.

The coach and the team will also greatly benefit by the return of junior guard Ty Holt, who played a lot as a sophomore last season but has been sidelined so far this fall after having surgery on his left wrist injured in baseball last spring. He is expected back sometime in January early in the conference season and should slot in quickly as a starter.

Rogers Heritage

Last Friday the Greenwood boys finished the week and their non-conference schedule on the road at Class 6A Rogers Heritage High School. Down 18 points at halftime, the Bulldogs won both the third and fourth quarters to cut their final deficit to 10 points at 72-62. The War Eagles won the first period, 17-14, before dominating the second stanza, 26-11, to take a 43-25 lead at the intermission before Greenwood’s second half resurgence. The Dogs won the third stanza, 19-16, and the fourth, 18-13.

Greenwood narrowly outshot Rogers on the War Eagles’ home court, 42% to 40%, but the home team outdid the visitors in three-point shots, making an incredible 17 of 41 long distance attempts. The Bulldogs did double Heritage at the free throw line, 10 points to five, and narrowly outrebounded them, 34 to 31. The visitors won the scoring battle in the paint, 24 to 14, but had 16 turnovers to 11 for Rogers Heritage.

Individually, Greenwood’s Hudson Clark exploded for 33 points in the game on 11 of 19 shooting, including five three-pointers and six made free throws. On the other side, Rogers’ aptly named Skye Davenport was sensational with 42 points, including 10 three-point bombs. Also for the Bulldogs, Braxton Canada and Caden Mendenhall had eight points each. Parker Thomas contributed six points while teammates Blake Christiansen and Hudson Nichols had four and three points, respectively. Mendenhall led the team in rebounding with 10 boards, followed by Thomas with eight and Canada with five. Christiansen led his teammates with four assists while Nichols and Clark had three each. Clark and Canada both had two steals.

The Bulldogs were given several days off for Christmas by Coach Ross, offering them a much-needed break before preparing for the rigors of the 5A West conference race that starts January 6th at Van Buren. With increased size and the solid play of seniors Hudson Clark and Blake Christiansen plus the emergence of younger players like Parker Thomas, Caden Mendenhall, and Braxton Canada, all sophomores, plus the expected additions of William Rye and Ty Holt, the Bulldogs should be competitive in league play this season. With so much youth on the floor, there will be some inconsistency, but they have already shown a fearless, no quit attitude that should serve them well as the season endures. Go Dogs!