Van Buren clinched the 7A/6A-Central Conference championship outright in impressive fashion Thursday night.
The Pointers had four players score in double figures and Van Buren handed Siloam Springs its eighth straight loss 66-48 at Panther Activity Center.
Siloam Springs led briefly 9-8 in the first quarter before Van Buren (21-5, 12-1) went on a 15-2 run into the second quarter to take control of the game.
The Pointers led 32-18 at halftime and pulled ahead 53-31 going into the fourth quarter. Van Buren stretched its lead to 30 points in the fourth quarter and the rest of the game was played with a running clock via the the sportsmanship rule.
"They've beat some really good teams handily this year," said Siloam Springs boys coach Tim Stewart. "They've got good athletes and they're well-coached. They've got a Division I basketball player right there in the middle. They're a load."
Van Buren 6-foot-9 center Mitchell Smith, who was playing in front of the Tulsa University head coach Frank Haith and the rest of the Golden Hurricane coaching staff, put the exclamation point on the victory with a pair of dunks in the third quarter off Panther turnovers.
The first dunk was a two-handed slam to make it 50-31. He then intercepted the Panthers' inbounds pass and tomahawk dunked it for a 52-31 lead. Smith nearly had a third straight dunk but was fouled.
Smith and teammate Beau Beckner each had 15 points for Van Buren. Point guard Jaylynn Dye led the Pointers with 16 points, including shooting 12 of 14 from the free-throw line. Rustin Hawkins added 13 points for the Pointers, who completed the season sweep. Van Buren defeated the Panthers 50-38 earlier in the year.
"We didn't shoot well," Stewart said. "At their place we shot a little better.
"They're coming together as a team. They've got good pieces all over the floor.
Tyler Newton, Marquan Sorrells and Kyle Snavely each scored six points to lead the Panthers (11-15, 3-10), who have lost eight straight. Austin Hornbuckle and Brandon Johnson both chipped in five points for Siloam Springs.
Van Buren 66, Siloam Springs 48
Van Buren 14 18 21 13 -- 66
Siloam Springs 9 9 13 17 -- 48
Van Buren: Dye 16, Smith 15, Beckner 15, Hawkins 13, Johnson 5, Chambers 2.
Siloam Springs: Newton 6, Sorrells 6, Snavely 6, Hornbuckle 5, Johnson 5, Loveless 3, Wakefield 3, Lampton 3, McSpadden 3, Norberg 3, Gambill 3, Pierce 2.
Alma 74, Siloam Springs 57
Alma clinched a No. 1 seed for the Class 6A State Tournament with a victory Wednesday over the Panthers at Charles B. Dyer Arena.
The Airedales finished 5-1 against 6A competition in the 7A/6A-West Conference, while the Panthers ended with a 2-4 mark.
Austin Lee led Alma with 22 points, while Jake Folkerts added 18 and Will Cluck 12.
The Airedales led 18-12 after the first period, but Siloam Springs pulled ahead in the second quarter 23-22 with a 9-0 run.
Alma ended the half on a 12-5 run to pull ahead 34-28 at halftime. The Airedales led 54-38 going into the fourth quarter.
Alma 74, Siloam Springs 57
Siloam Springs 12 16 10 19 -- 57
Alma 18 16 20 20 -- 74
Siloam Springs: Newton 10, Sorrells 9, Snavely 9, Loveless 8, Norberg 8, Gambill 5, Lampton 3, Efurd 3, McSpadden 1, Wakefield 1.
Alma: Lee 22, Folkerts 18, Cluck 12, Thornbrugh 6, Corder 6, Parker 6, Beneux 3, Key 1.
Sports on 03/01/2015