WEST MEMPHIS -- Jonesboro turned up the heat just before halftime and Siloam Springs' girls didn't have an answer for it.
Leading by five midway through the second quarter, the Lady Hurricane switched to a 1-2-2 defensive look that paid immediate dividends as Jonesboro went on a 7-0 run to take a 12-point halftime lead.
The Lady Hurricane kept up that pace with another new defensive scheme in the third quarter and ran away with a 71-42 victory over the Lady Panthers in the opening round of the Class 6A State Tournament at Lehr Arena.
"I felt like it went from a five- to-six-point game to 12 just like that at half," said Siloam Springs head coach Tim Rippy. "I thought we got it back to 11 at one point in the second half, made a little run. Then it was like three possessions in a row where they canned a couple of shots and got an offensive putback. All of the sudden it was 18 to 19 (point spread) and we could never make traction from there."
Siloam Springs saw its season end with a 9-22 record.
The Lady Panthers kept things interesting early in the game, thanks to a strong effort on the offensive glass and 13 first-half points from sophomore forward Shelby Johnson.
Johnson scored six straight points in the first quarter as Siloam Springs tied the game 8-8. Jonesboro led 18-10 nearing the end of the first quarter, but Chloe Price converted a three-point play with 0.4 seconds left to bring the Lady Panthers within 18-13.
Jonesboro (24-7) went up 20-13 to open the second quarter after a basket by Division I prospect Elauna Eaton, but Johnson came back with two straight baskets to bring it back to 20-17.
"We did a good job on the offensive glass at times, which was allowing us to hang for a while," Rippy said.
Johnson connected on a baseline jumper and was fouled with 4 minutes, 4 seconds left in the second quarter to keep Siloam Springs within 24-20. Two free throws from Kenlie Noel made it 27-22 with 3:10 left, but Siloam Springs would not score another point the rest of the half.
"They shifted to the 1-2-2, 3-2 zone, and we went about three minutes where we had a couple of turnovers in that stretch that they converted out of the zone," Rippy said, "but we also went through a stretch where we didn't make a shot. We struggled to shoot the ball from that point on, really for the whole ballgame."
Jonesboro opened the second half with a 1-3-1 trap that forced three straight turnovers and the Lady Hurricane converted for easy points.
"We turned up the pressure and turned them over and got easy baskets," said Jonesboro coach Jodi Christenberry, "and then our other shots started falling as well. Then we just continued that because that's something we need to work on anyway, just in case we get to a point where we need to have those quick steals and quick points."
Eaton led a balanced Jonesboro scoring effort with 21 points, including 10 in the third quarter, where Jonesboro outscored Siloam Springs 22-8. Brooklyn Dooley and Kianna Hardaway each had nine for the Lady Hurricane, while Kayla Mitchell had eight and Tamia Clark seven.
Johnson led Siloam Springs with a career-high 18 points.
"She's a competitor for sure and has tremendous athletic ability, and she showed that on the offensive glass at times," Rippy said. "She's got a great first step and was more solid at the free-throw line tonight I believe. You know, potential's unlimited for Shelby, especially with her in the gym in the fall now. She has a chance to really become a special player for us."
Price finished with nine points. Senior Morgan Vaughn, the Lady Panthers' leading scorer, struggled shooting the ball and was held to just three points. Seniors Brinkley Beever and Brianna Ponticello each had three points as did sophomore Jael Harried, while senior Kenlie Noel had two and senior Hadlee Hollenback one.
The Lady Panthers will lose senior starters Vaughn, Hollenback, Brooklyn Buckminster and Noel, but have several underclassman ready to contribute to next year's team.
"We've got a lot of young kids, whether they were on junior varsity this year or saw limited playing time in varsity," Rippy said. "We also had a good solid ninth-grade class. The positive is the future for the team. We had a lot of kids gain a lot of experience this year. You hope that by getting to the tournament that keeps them hungry and want to get back. I think that if some of those kids develop just a little bit more, the ceiling is going to go up for sure."
Jonesboro 71, Siloam Springs 42
Siloam Springs^13^9^8^12^--^42
Jonesboro^18^16^22^15^--^71
Siloam Springs (9-22): Johnson 18, Price 9, Vaughn 3, Beaver 3, Ponticello 3, Harried 3, Noel 2, Hollenback 1.
Jonesboro (24-7): Eaton 21, Dooley 9, Hardaway 9, Mitchell 8, Clark 7, K. Williams 6, Martin 5, Stewart 3, Love 2, S. Williams 1.
Sports on 03/04/2018