SIMMS, Texas-Coaches were still experimenting with their respective lineups and chemistry Friday at the James Bowie Classic.
Winners and losers in James Bowie's gymnasium were substituting constantly in an attempt to find the right five for league play that will begin later this season.
Bloomburg's girls lost a thriller in the morning to Hooks, but rebounded in the afternoon to silence host James Bowie.
It was similar in the boys' division when Atlanta's junior varsity lost to Cushing (9-1), but never trailed in edging Redwater's varsity, 38-36.
Fouke's girls won their sixth straight game with a big victory over Redwater, 53-41. The Lady Panthers lost their season opener to De Queen.
The Classic continues today with Fouke's girls playing Hooks at 9 a.m. James Bowie's boys play Redwater following that contest.
The next six games in order feature Bloomburg's girls against Pleasant Grove's junior varsity; The Wildcats' boys against Atlanta's junior varsity; The Lady Pirates and Hooks; Union Hill and Fouke's girls; Redwater's girls and Bloomburg; James Bowie and Union Hill.
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Boys Division
Cushing 36, James Bowie 18
The Bearkats improved to 9-1 on the young season by defeating the host Pirates.
Braden Austin and Austin Davis led Cushing with 10 points each. Cody Roberson and Logan Graham had six each for James Bowie.
The Pirates trailed 18-12 at intermission, pulling within two at 18-16 before Cushing went on a 13-0 run to pull away.
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Redwater 56, Bloomburg 31
Conner McKellar buried four of the Dragons' six third quarter treys as Redwater (1-2) pulled away to whip Bloomburg.
McKellar led all scorers with 22 points.
The Wildcats managed to stay close in the first half behind the play of Jordan Clayton, who poured in 13 points. Bloomburg outscored the Dragons 17-6 from the charity stripe.
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Cushing 36, Atlanta JV 23
Cushing started fast and finished strong by outscoring the Rabbs 12-4 during the final eight minutes of play.
No first names for either team were available.
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Atlanta JV 38, Redwater 36.
Redwater waited too long to make its rally and the Rabbs' junior varsity improved to 2-1 on the year with an impressive win.
Austin Brown poured in 17 points and Atlanta never trailed, building an 8-0 lead in the opening minutes.
Redwater (1-3) scored the game's final nine points, with Mason Robertson leading the charge with 12 points.
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Girls Division
Hooks 55, Bloomburg 47
The Lady Hornets used defensive pressure in the second half to outscore Bloomburg 34-25 and pull aways from the Lady Wildcats.
Emma Farquhar tallied 17 points for the winners, with Brandi Hout scoring 14 and Kenley Kyles contributing 10. Erin Evans led the Wildcats with 16, while Haylee Campbell and Trinity Mouser added 13 and 10, respectively.
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Redwater 48, PG JV 24
Karlee Carmony scored 15 of her game-high 21 points in the first half and the Lady Dragons roared past a cold-shooting Pleasant Grove junior varsity.
It was 32-16 at intermission, and Redwater turned the contest into a rout by blanking the Lady Hawks 14-0 in the third quarter.
The Hawks outscored the winners 8-2 in the final eight minutes with Phoebe Robertson pacing PG with six points.
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Bloomburg 24, James Bowie 4
A young Lady Pirates team played outstanding defense, but never got going offensively.
A lot of that was Bloomburg's defensive play, and Haylee Campbell provided all the offense the Lady Wildcats needed with 18 points.
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Fouke 53, Redwater 41.
The Lady Panthers saw a 22-16 halftime lead disappear in the third quarter, but they answered with an 11-0 run to recapture control.
Fouke's defensive pressure was a decisive factor, and the shooting of Crysta Larey, who finished with 23 points. Savannah Upton had 14 points for the winners.
Sophomore Karlee Carmony made the contest competitive early by scoring 14 of the Lady Dragons first 16 points. She finished with a game-high 24, with Savannah Corbell contributing 10.