Patriots batter Rams

Marion rund 5A record to 6-0 with mercy-rule win over Paragould

By Chuck Livingston

Marion School District

PARAGOULD — As Marion continues to stack decisive victories against league competition, opponents have devised creative ways to defend the highpowered Patriot attack.

Tuesday night in Paragould, the Rams played zone defense virtually the entire game, daring top-ranked Marion to beat them from the outside.

No problem.

Marion (17-6 overall, 6-0 5A East) made 10 of its 28 three-point attempts on Doc Paynter Court while forcing more Paragould (813, 2-4) turnovers (19) than field goals (11) to coast to a 63-30 mercy-rule victory.

“We knew we could shoot the basketball,” said Marion coach David Clark.

“They dared us to shoot it all night, and we didn’t make them pay all the time, but I knew we’d make them because our kids can shoot the basketball.”

Marion sophomore guard Lyndell Buckingham led all scorers with 19 points and six assists. Senior Martavius Davis chipped in 13 points off the bench, while David Brewer scored seven.

“It feels good to help my team win,” said Davis. “We knew we needed this win tonight, and I’m glad we got it.”

Gavin Hall paced Paragould (8-14, 2-4) with 11 points and Jesse Beliew added nine.

While Marion found the range in the back half of the game, the first quarter proved to be a rock fight as neither team could establish an offensive rhythm.

The Pats scored the first four points of the game when Mikell Lewis and Brewer converted layups, and the visitors led 4-2 after the first frame.

Buckingham got Marion on track in the second period, making three-pointers on the Pats’ first two possessions of that frame to stake the Pats to a 10-2 lead with 6:31 left in the first half.

Marion established its first double-digit lead of the night (17-7) when Davis ripped a steal and hit a layup on the other end with 5:28 left in the second.

A Davis three-pointer stopped a 6-0 Paragould run and allowed the Pats to take a 20-15 lead to halftime.

Marion clung to a 22-17 lead early in the third period when the Pats embarked on a 10-0 run to seize control of the proceedings.

See PATS, page A15

Photo by Londa Hamrick PATS

From page A6

The spurt started when Donnie Cheers, III canned a pair of free throws, followed by a Brewer stickback.

That led to Cheers and Buckingham connecting on three-pointers on back-toback possessions for a 3217 advantage.

A Davis triple preceded a Kayden Nesbitt three-point play, and when Nesbitt converted a layup to make the Marion run 18-3, he also gave the Pats their first 20-point lead (40-20) with 3:05 left in the third.

Marion carried a 46-25 advantage to the fourth.

A Brewer three-pointer capped a 12-0 Marion run and gave the Pats their largest lead (58-25) of the night with 4:15 remaining in regulation.

“We feel like we have a deep team with a lot of guys who can get it done for us on a given night,” said Clark. “I liked tonight because we won in a different way than we have been winning, and that’s encouraging.”

What’s Next?

Marion concludes its first voyage through 5A East play this season on Friday night when the Pats host league newcomer Valley View (7-10 overall, 3-3 5A East) at Fidelity Bank Arena.

That contest will be broadcast live on MarionPatriots.com and on the Marion Patriots Activities Network mobile app. The girls game will tip around 6:00 p.m., followed by the boys at approximately 7:30 p.m.

5A East Jan. 24 Scoreboard

Marion 63, Paragould 30 Greene Co. Tech 68, W.

Memphis 62 Nettleton 57, Valley View 46 Searcy at Batesville has been rescheduled for January 31

5A East Standings & Conference Records

Marion 6-0 Nettleton 5-1 Searcy 3-2 Valley View 3-3 Greene Co. Tech 2-4 Paragould 2-4 W. Memphis 2-4 Batesville 0-5 *Top Four Teams Qualify for 5A State Tournament