Blue Devils beat Pine Bluff

West Memphis gets in the win column with strong showing against Zebras

By BILLY WOODS

WM School District

PINE BLUFF — Blue Devil head coach Marcus Brown didn’t back down from scheduling some of the top basketball programs in Arkansas for this most unusual coronavirus-fueled non-conference season on the heels of the program’s seventh state championship.

Tuesday night found them in Pine Bluff, the 2015 state champions and the scene of the most infamous moment in West Memphis history.

Brown’s Blue Devils didn’t need video evidence at the end this time, and his club came away with a 59-53 victory over the Zebras.

Senior transfer Selah Robbins fired in a game-high 21 points and senior Kameron Barnes made a key steal in the final seconds to secure the Blue Devils’ second win in five tries thus far.

“That was a big team win,” said a happy Brown after the game.

In the 1989 state championship game against Blytheville, the upstart Blue Devils, who came into the tournament barely over .500, had a final last-second heave by Lee Suggs, who banked in an off-balance three-pointer, waved off by the officials, who said Suggs’ shot came after the buzzer sounded.

Blytheville won in overtime.

Video from the game clearly showed Suggs’ shot left his hands before the buzzer sounded.

Back to the scene of the atrocity for the first time since 1989, the Blue Devils made sure there was no need for controversy this time.

West Memphis scored the final six points of the game, getting two key plays from Kameron Barnes, who scored 10 points on the night. Barnes cashed in a layup with 42 seconds left to break a 53-53 tie and then stole a ball near the Pine Bluff baseline and fed a streaking Calvin Butler for a layup on the other end to seal the victory.

“Kam’s like a lot of our guys this year; he’s inexperienced,” said Brown. “You gotta give these guys chances in games like this and tonight Kam made some big plays. I’m proud of him.”

Robbins, who Brown touted in the preseason for his shooting stroke, struggled through the first few games, but the touch was all there at Pine Bluff. He swished four 3-pointers in the first half, scoring 16 of his total in the first two quarters.

Robbins also put a capper on his night by draining two free throws with 1.3 seconds to play.

“He was finding the line and getting his feet set,” Brown said of Robbins. “With him, it’s just a matter of taking his time and squaring up to the basket. He can shoot it.”

In the first five games, all on the road, the Blue Devils have played heavyweights North Little Rock, Little Rock Mills, Cabot and Bartlett.

“That’s why this schedule was put together like it was,” Brown explained. “I wanted to play a lot of games on the road to get us road-tested and tougher. We want to be prepared for when the games count the most in conference play.”

With a couple of chances to put some distance between themselves and the Zebras, the Blue Devils couldn’t get over the hump due to turnovers and missed easy shots. The visitors held a seven- point lead in the opening minutes of the second half, but Pine Bluff scored 11 unanswered points to take a 38-34 lead.

But each time, the Blue Devils came roaring back themselves.

Up just 55-53 with just over 10 seconds to play and the Zebras with the ball, Brown employed a zone defense, which coaxed the hosts into turning the ball over to Barnes.

“I really don’t like to play zone,” Brown admitted. “But I wanted to throw some smoke at (Pine Bluff) and kind of confuse them, which it did.”

Butler scored 6 of his 10 points in the second half and senior point guard and lone returning starter Jordan Mitchell pumped in 8 points for West Memphis.

Armond Buckhanan paced the Pine Bluff attack with 19 points while Jordan Harris chipped in 10.

The evening didn’t feature a girls game since the Lady Devils are in the midst of a Covid quarantine until December 9. The Lady Devils will return to action on Dec. 10 at home against Conway.

In other scheduling updates, the Blue Devils’ Friday night home opener that was originally scheduled for Friday night against Maumelle has been canceled due to a COVID-19 outbreak in the Maumelle camp.

Thus, the Blue Devils will be back in action at home on Dec. 15, for a game at Lehr Arena against North Little Rock.

Jordan Mitchell (12) drives through the Pine Bluff defense on his way to the hoop in West Memphis’s win over the Zebras last week.

Photo by Billy Woods