Blackhawks bounce back

Mark Humphrey Special to the Times/Pea Ridge junior Wes Wales and senior Nick Coble combine to block a shot by Prairie Grove's James Millwood in the first half of Friday's 48-37 win by the Blackhawks at Tiger Gymnasium.
Mark Humphrey Special to the Times/Pea Ridge junior Wes Wales and senior Nick Coble combine to block a shot by Prairie Grove's James Millwood in the first half of Friday's 48-37 win by the Blackhawks at Tiger Gymnasium.

PRAIRIE GROVE -- Blackhawk senior guard Nick Coble put on a show, nailing six 3-pointers and scoring a game-high 24 points to lead Pea Ridge to 48-37 win Friday over Prairie Grove.

That was just what the doctor ordered coming off a 4-point performance in last Tuesday's 46-44 loss at home to Farmington which left Pea Ridge coach Trent Loyd frustrated over inconsistencies on offense that led to crucial turnovers.

Pea Ridge 48, Prairie Grove 37

Pea Ridge^12^12^8^16^—^48

Prairie Grove^11^8^6^12^–^37

Pea Ridge (19-6, 8-3): Nick Coble 9 0-0 24, Wes Wales 6 0-0 12, Will Feemster 2 0-0 4, Carson Rhine 1 0-0 3, Brandon Whatley 1 0-0 3, Noah Peterson 0 2-2 2. Totals 19 2-2 48

Prairie Grove (6-14, 3-8): Nick Pohlman 5 2-2 12, Riley Rhodes 3 2-2 10, Alex Edmiston 3 0-0 7, John Mayers 1 2-2 4, James Millwood 1 0-0 2, Braden Risner 0 2-2 2. Totals 13 8-8 37

3-Point Goals – Pea Ridge 8 (Coble 6, Rhine, Whatley). Prairie Grove 3 (Rhodes 2, Edmiston)

"We just got to be a little more detailed. We're not being detailed enough. We're not taking care of the basketball like we need to be," Loyd said. "We need to find a way to recover and bounce back and when we do hopefully we'll be playing our best basketball in the district tournament."

The Blackhawks bounced back although Prairie Grove didn't let anything come easy.

Pea Ridge (19-6, 8-3) had to execute against solid half-court defense by Prairie Grove, which celebrated Colors Day prior to tip-off.

The Tigers (6-14, 3-8 4A-1 West) were in Friday's game at the end of the first quarter, trailing 12-11 despite a shooting barrage of four 3-pointers made by Coble.

"I think he's one of the best players in the conference, if not the best player in the conference," said Prairie Grove coach Steve Edmiston. "He's a tough guard. We came out and tried to zone them a little bit knowing that we were going to give a few things up, but he comes out, gets out, kind of forced our hand."

The Tigers, too, clicked early on long-range shots. Alex Edmiston, the coach's son, and senior Riley Rhodes, who made a pair of treys, provided offense along with Nick Pohlman's free throws.

In the second quarter, Prairie Grove shifted into a man-to-man defense largely containing Coble over the middle two quarters when he was held to 5 points. Still, Pea Ridge gradually extended its lead to 24-19 at the half and 32-25 after three quarters to spoil Colors Day for the Tigers.

Pea Ridge, too, played quality defense and Prairie Grove went cold.

The Tigers produced only six points in the third quarter.

"Balance is important for us. Tonight we struggled offensively. Pea Ridge is a good defensive team. As well as they score it, they're a good defensive team," Steve Edmiston said.

Prairie Grove shot 30 percent from the field and Coble challenged the Tigers by getting into the interior of their defense in the fourth.

"Even in the second half, we kind of took that (3-point shot) away and he's a solid player, he's very versatile. He starts driving a little bit, (hitting) pullups, and he's that good offensively. Yeah, he's a tough guard, there's no doubt," Steve Edmiston said.

Pohlman and Alex Edmiston each contributed a pair of buckets in the fourth while Rhodes and John Mayer combined to make 4-of-4 free throws, but the Tigers were outscored 16-12 in the quarter and lost 48-37.

Sports on 02/06/2019