FORT SMITH - West Side Christian advanced to the championship game of the Heartland Christian Athletic Association 2A State Tournament on Friday. The Warriors beat East Point Christian Academy of Tulsa 73-44 in Fort Smith.
West Side traveled to Oklahoma City for Saturday’s championship game.
Coach Randall Miller said defense was a key as the Warriors held East Point Christian’s top scorer to 12 points.
“They had a kid, a tall guard with a nice, high release on his shot. They run everything through him. They’d put up between 60 and 70 on the team they played to get in here. We knew they could score and knew everything ran through him,” said Miller. “We swapped out two kids on him all night and just kind of denied him the ball and helped pretty hard anytime he caught it.”
Miller said Garrett Williamson and Elijah Narciso drew the defensive assignment.
“They held him in check. Through three quarters, he had two baskets, both stick backs. Those two guys did a fantastic job on him.”
Zackley Pearson led the Warriors with 28 points with Anderson Colley adding 20. Sam Wylie and Spencer McNabb added eight points apiece.
The Warriors opened the game with a 32-10 first quarter. West Side drained six 3-pointers in the opening period, including four by Pearson and two by McNabb.
West Side’s shooting changed the game.
“It made them come out of their zone,” said Miller. “They play a 2-1-2 matchup and leave that big kid in the middle to protect the paint. You can get outside looks. So, if you can him ‘em, you’re going to get those looks. That’s the defense they want to play, and they had to come out of that for the last three quarters because we lit them up early.”
West Side led 43-22 at the half and 61-32 going into the fourth quarter. The Warriors hit 11-of-13 free throws.
“I thought the guys were absolutely locked in,” said Miller. “I thought, mentally, we didn’t lose track of that kid at all, even in transition. We found him early and didn’t let him have anything easy to let him think there was a chance to get a shot off.”
West Side improved to 18-2 with the victory and advanced farther than last year, when it fell in the state semifinals.
“Being back in the state championship game, for these guys and some of the things they’ve had to overcome, I think it speaks a lot to their character and how much they’re committed to playing team ball,” said Miller. “We just do not have any issues right now with guys trying to get theirs. It’s totally about winning. That’s what makes it so satisfying to see these guys accomplish this much and get this far in a year where everybody expected us to have a little drop-off.
“We lost some really good players last year. There was a drop-off expected and these guys are performing at a really high level.”
The Warriors opened the tournament with a 55-39 win over Southwest Christian Tuesday in Magnolia. Pearson and Williamson scored 20 and 18, respectively.