Chicks fall to Raiders

JONESBORO--The Blytheville Chickasaws tried to win back-to-back games for the first time in almost two years Tuesday night but were upended on the road at Nettleton, 50-35.

Blytheville had an early lead in the game and looked poised to continue where they left off last Friday night in their win over Batesville but a scoring drought in the third period along with hot shooting from the struggling Raiders allowed Nettleton to take control of the game.

"We knew they (Blytheville) were going to come in ready for us," said Nettleton head coach Mark McCrod. "They're coming in off a big win last week and we lost big the last two games. We needed to play our best if we were going to win tonight."

Nettleton (7-6, 2-2 5A-East) connected on six three-point attempts on the night including three from junior guard Silas Finch on his way to a 16-point performance.

Blytheville answered with senior forward Larry Bolden, who scored nearly half of the Chicks' points with 16.

"Larry (Bolden) knows we need that from him," said Blytheville head coach Jeff Flanigan. "We expect him to come out and lead and he gave us a shot to win tonight."

Bolden's three-point play with time winding down in the first allowed the Chicks to take a 7-6 lead into the second period. After a nifty pass from Bolden to Marq Evans gave Blytheville a 9-6 lead to open the second, Nettleton ran off an 11-0 run to take a 17-9 lead with 5:05 left in the half. The Raiders took a 22-16 lead into the break.

With six minutes left in the third period, the Chicks trailed 24-20 but Nettleton finished the period on a 13-4 run and led 37-24 heading into the fourth.

"We had three chances to cut the lead at 24-20," said Flanigan. "We just couldn't convert. That was the whole night. We got the shots we wanted, we just couldn't finish at the rim."

Blytheville got as close as nine in the fourth but back-to-back threes from the Raiders, including Finch's third with six minutes to play, shut the door on the Chicks attempt to put together back-to-back wins.

"We knew what they (Nettleton) were going to do," said Flanigan. "We worked for hours on their offense. Coach McCord prepares them well and we felt like we were prepared too. We just couldn't get it done. It's tough to win on the road. We fought, they fought. We both needed this win and were fighting for the same thing."

The loss drops the Chicks to 1-3 in the 5A-East and 1-17 overall. They'll head to Wynne on Friday night to face the Yellowjackets who are also 1-3 in the conference.

GIRLS

Nettlton 52,

Blytheville 50, OT

The Blytheville Lady Chickasaws gave perennial 5A-East, Nettleton, a scare in the Lady Raiders' own gym Tuesday night.

Blytheville went the distance and then some and nearly knocked off the Raiders but Nettleton held on for a 52-50 win in overtime.

Keyanna Wiley's traditional three-point play with five seconds left in regulation sent the game into overtime with the score, 41-41. Blytheville took their first lead of the game in overtime with a basket by Dejah Prude to give them a 43-41 lead. A three-pointer and a free throw from sophomore, Kiara Brown off the bench extended the Lady Chicks lead to four at 47-43 with two minutes remaining.

However, Nettlton forward Tashanescii Walker scored five points down the stretch, including three of four a the foul line to bring the Lady Raiders back. The Lady Raiders took advantage of a huge foul advantage as four Lady Chicks fouled out of the game. Walker knocked down a pair with four second left in the game to give Nettleton their final margin of victory.

Nettleton led 13-4 at the end of one, 21-15 at halftime and 30-22 heading into the fourth.

For the game, Ivery Guyton led the Lady Chicks with 14 points, Prude added 12 and Brown scored six. Walker led all scorers with 15 for the Lady Raiders and Ali Tucker scored 11 on three three pointers. The loss drops the Lady Chicks record to 7-11 overall and 1-3 in the 5A-East. The head to Wynne Friday night to take on the Lady Yellowjackets.

afitzpatrick@blythevillecourier.com