Starting the season off strong, the Varsity boys basketball team won against the Benton Panthers this past Friday afternoon at the Hornet Arena.
Bryant won 85-65.
From the moment the buzzer sounded, the Hornets were in full control of the scoreboard.
The defensive and offensive performance the Hornets displayed was impressive, and it definitely worked in their favor. Also worth mentioning was their beautiful display of teamwork and sportsmanship.
“We are family, so we all just come together and bond and just listen to each other when everything gets hectic, so we just come together and it makes us stronger.” Bead said.
Bryant was the first to score, with #23, Camarion Bead, scoring within the first minute of the first quarter. Bryant had the ball to start, and Xavier Jones attempted to shoot the first shot for Bryant, but it missed, and Bead rebounded immediately, scoring the first points of the game. This put the scoreboard at 2-0, with Bryant in the lead.
Though Bryant’s aggressive defense and offense kept them in the lead the entire game without letting up, Benton managed to successfully keep the crowd on edge with moments that looked like they had the possibility of turning the whole game around. Right after Bryant’s first basket, Benton scored 2 points. This kept the tension high and the rivalry drama as juicy for the crowd watching.
R.J. Young was the first to dunk in the game, doing so during the first quarter. Bryant missed a shot, then secured the rebound, which pushed the ball up the court energetically. R.J. Young was near the basket and received a pass, followed by him cleanly dunking the ball. The crowd erupted into cheers.
“It’s good competition. It’s always gonna be a rivalry forever, so, hey, we are always willing to win,” Young said.
The first quarter ended at a score of 15-3.
Around the second quarter, Young stole the ball from Benton and drove it down the court, dunking it, and brought the score up to 60-41.
At this point in the game, with Bryant players clearly at an invincible point of advantage, the Benton crowd and players were becoming visibly frustrated, and both student sections got louder and audibly angrier. The rivalry even affected the cheerleaders, who started hyping up both the team and the crowd to a show of who could show their team spirits the loudest.
The Hornet and Panther rivalry was in full swing. Before the first quarter ended there were five fouls for Bryant and four for Benton. The aggressiveness displayed by both teams was outstanding.
Terrance Cochran’s most notable play was the alleyoop he threw to Young. He created highlight moments, as well as honorable displays of sportsmanship and teamwork when his teammates would get knocked down.
At halftime, the score was 30-21, Bryant in the lead. Though Benton did work really hard, they just weren’t up to the level the Hornets are at.
After halftime, the game stayed just as heated . Fouls were being called left and right so the team had to be aware of their surroundings in order to not accidentally get called out. A technical foul was called on more than one occasion.
In the third quarter, players rolled over one another in a dangerous collision near Benton’s student section. Referees had to get involved and there was concern about damage to the court. The game was paused briefly while coaches talked to the players and referees examined the court. As soon as the team stepped back onto the court they were spirited and ready, their heads were back in the game.
“You just gotta be aware of what’s going on and who is around you. Not only that, we practice jumpstopping and playing off two feet, so that allows us to not be able to charge into the other team or fall over each other,” Bead said.
Abrahamson scored an impressive three-pointer in the mid-to-late third quarter, bringing the score up to 63-44.
The match-up between Bryant and Benton was impressive. The game was a never ending battle going back and forth between the two teams of who and
“I come off the bench, play with energy, do what’s best, do what my team needs,” T.J said.
