FOUKE, Ark.-In a battle of Conference 7-3A rivals, it came down to perimeter shooting as Fouke and Genoa Central split their boys and girls contests.
Fouke girls couldn't miss in the first quarter, as they went on a huge run, including five treys, to coast past Genoa Central, 69-41. The Lady Dragons made it competitive in the second quarter, but couldn't keep pace rest of the way as the Lady Panthers kept sinking jumpers.
In the boys game, the first half was back-and-forth and Genoa Central took a 31-24 lead into halftime. The Panthers, however, came out strong in the third quarter, outscoring GC, 22-18, but couldn't keep the momentum going into the fourth as Colby Cobb and Kolten McCoy pushed the Dragons to a win on the road.
Cobb and McCoy combined to score 17 of Genoa Central's final 22 points
Fouke's boys and girls will be back in action on Friday when they travel to Nashville, and Genoa Central's boys and girls will also be on the road at Mena.
Girls
The Lady Panthers found plenty of success from downtown as they connected on 10 3-pointers, including four from Taylor Hardin, and were powered by a huge first quarter to post their 28-point win over Genoa Central.
"We like to shoot. That's what we do," Fouke coach Mo Williams said. "Every day in practice, I make them shoot long shots and I make them make 100 free throws. When you're small like we are, you have to keep firing and they done a really nice job with that tonight.
"Genoa is a great team and Coach (Cecily) Butler is a great coach; You have to score to beat them," Williams added.
Hardin led Fouke with a game-high 25 points and Hannah Mauldin added 14.
The Lady Dragons battled back in the second quarter to play Fouke nearly even, but wasn't able to cut into its deficit as the Lady Panthers took a comfortable 40-24 lead into intermission.
"I told our girls at halftime that we have to keep playing defense. When you play a team that can shoot that well, it's tough," Genoa Central coach Cecily Butler said. "They're a really good team."
Victoria Hill finished with 12 points for the Lady Dragons and Maddie Hampton scored nine.
Genoa Central 11 13 9 8 - 41
Fouke 24 16 18 11 - 69
GC (41): Hill 12, Wood 2, Hampton 9, Jackson 8, Knotts 6, Young 4. TEAM TOTALS 15 7-9 12 41.
FHS (69): McMurry 6, Larey 5, Watkins 9, Oliver 8, Hardin 25, Smallwood 2, Mauldin 14. TEAM TOTALS 24 11-15 9 69.
3-Point Goals: GC-Hill 2, Hampton 2. FHS-McMurry, Watkins 3, Oliver 2, Hardin 4.
Boys
In a game that wasn't decided until the fourth quarter, Fouke outscored the Dragons, 22-10, in the fourth quarter to take the win.
The Panthers had trouble stopping Cobb as Genoa Central went on a tear in the second and fourth quarters, with Cobb scoring nine of his game-high 26 points in the second and 10 in the fourth to help seal the deal.
"Our guys did a great job controlling the tempo late in the game," Fouke coach Jeff Smith said. "Both teams played a great game as expected."
Genoa Central had three more players in double-figures as Lawson Nichaelis finished with 12 points, McCoy scored 11 and Dawson Cole added 10. Nichaelis connected on three of the team's six 3-pointers.
Zane Smith gave Fouke an early boost as he scored seven points in the first quarter and finished with a team-high 12 points. Colton Crump and Bradley Browning each added 10 points.
Genoa Central 11 20 18 22 - 71
Fouke 12 12 22 10 - 56
GC (71): Cobb 26, Cole 10, McCoy 11, Nicholis 12, Woodle 4. Brigham 5, Savell 3. TEAM TOTALS 26 13-22 11 71
FHS (56): Crump 10, Browning 10, Smith 12, Hale 5, East 6, Crabtree 2, Townsend 3, Scoggins 8. TEAM TOTALS 19 12-18 16 56.
3-Point Goals: GC-Nichaelis 3, Woodle, Brigham. FHS-Crump, Browning 2, Smith, Hale, Townsend.