Pointers, Rally, Too, For OT Win

The Pointers held Springdale without a field goal for 11 minutes Friday night, rallying for a 42-35 win against Springdale.

"We always say we try to get three stops in a row, multiple times," Van Buren head coach Austin Trembley said. "How many times can we get that. You do the math, we got a handful of them there to get the job done."

After Springdale took a 29-20 lead with 1:59 left in the third quarter, Van Buren had an 11-2 run with the Bulldogs managing just two free throws to send the game into overtime at 31-31.

Beau Beckner scored seven of his team-high 19 points in overtime, all from the free throw line.

"Beau just kind of had that whatever-it-takes-to-win mentality," Trembley said. "I give him all of the credit for that. They weren't really on plays, he was just going to make sure he did what he could, and he did."

When Beckner did miss from the free-throw line, Caleb Salisbury grabbed the rebound and scored for a 37-31 lead with 1:34 left.

"Those are back breakers," Trembley said. "Those seem to hurt you, and changed the momentum. Beau made his free throws, and Caleb came in and just played really well for us. He had the game-tying three for us, and had energy plays. I can't say enough for what he brought for us."

Tuesday, the Pointers host 7A-West leader Springdale Har-Ber.

"They definitely have the most talent in our league this year," Trembley said. "They're a very good team."

Har-Ber also had to go into overtime Friday, too, to win, beating Fayetteville, 60-59, to move to 5-0 in the conference.

"All we can do is go out there and play as hard as we can and be brilliant in the basics," Trembley said. "I'm glad we have them on our home floor, and I'm glad we go this win."

Van Buren lost to Har-Ber, 58-48, in the Neosho Holiday Tournament.

"We played them pretty well," Trembley said. "Conference is a whole different deal. From that game, we were efficient, offensively, except the fourth quarter of that game and then we were not. We have to see what we were doing right and getting baskets. They're going to try to get us out of our stuff. We have to have composure and vision, and make the right plays."

Girls...

Van Buren, Springdale Close Out First Half

Van Buren hosts Springdale Har-Ber today to close out the home schedule for the first half of 7A-West play.

The Lady Wildcats are just 1-4 in the conference after losing to Fayetteville on Friday. Har-Ber has suffered injuries to key players.

"You know what's going to happen in a 14-game conference, everybody's going to have some adversity that will jump up and test you," Van Buren head coach Chris Bryant said. "They've been tested right off the bat."

Har-Ber was expected to be a title contender.

"With those players, aside from Fayetteville, Har-Ber is among the best in the league," Bryant said. "Without them, they're still a very good basketball team. When they get healthy, and it could happen any night, they can be formidable."

Van Buren beat Springdale on Friday, 58-38, and despite a size disadvantage, held a 31-22 edge in rebounding, including 11-7 on the offensive boards.

"It's a credit to these kids," Bryant said. "We tried to limit their ability to get in the paint. Just as importantly was our ability to keep them off the offensive glass. I'm super pleased with their performance in that area."

Taylar Sutton had seven rebounds, and Halie Jennen, Lani Snowden and Jamilyn Kinney all had five each.