The high school basketball season in Arkansas will come to an end on Saturday with the final state championship games in downtown Hot Springs, and three area teams will be competing.
The girls’ teams from Norfork and Mammoth Spring will take the court first as they square off for the Class 1A title for the third consecutive year. The Lady Panthers won the 2022 title with a score of 48-43, and the Lady Bears took last year’s championship with a 45-36 victory. This will be the rubber game as Mammoth Spring is currently slated to move up to Class 2A next year.
This is actually Norfork’s fourth consecutive appearance in the title game. The Lady Panthers lost the 2021 final to Rural Special 48-40. Luke Cornett is in his second year at the helm at Norfork, who is currently 34-1 on the season, after previously coaching the Lady Rebels. He says it’s a testament to the expectations the Lady Panthers have every year.
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It hasn’t been just Norfork and Mammoth Spring in this state tournament. Region 2 made up the entire semifinal round last week as the Lady Panthers beat Marked Tree and the Lady Bears topped Concord. Mammoth Spring, who is 39-5, was able to beat the Lady Pirates after losing to them the previous week in the regional semifinals, but head coach Scott Small says it just shows how good girls’ basketball is among the smaller schools in north central and northeast Arkansas.
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When it comes to this matchup, Cornett says there are two teams that are familiar with each other and want to beat each other, and he adds Mammoth Spring has as much experience as Norfork.
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Small says in the past, he’s seen this matchup as being between teams similar to each other, but he doesn’t think that is the case this year.
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Tip-off at Bank OZK Arena is scheduled for 11:30.
The Class 1A boys’ game will follow. Marked Tree and Nevada are scheduled for 1:15.
Marshall’s boys will be featured in the final basketball game of the season. The Bobcats return to the Class 2A title contest as they meet East Poinsett County.
Marshall played in the championship game last year but ended up falling to Bigelow 75-66, so the returning players feel like they have unfinished business. The Bobcats come into the game with a record of 28-8, and head coach Donnie Smith says he feels the conference and region his team played in helped with their success in the state tournament so far.
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Marshall is playing a Warrior team that is currently 21-11 on the year. Smith says whether it’s basketball or football, EPC is a school known for producing great athletes.
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Gametime is set for 7:45.
The Class 2A girls’ game will be the first contest of the evening session and will feature two unbeaten teams. Mount Vernon-Enola and Mansfield will tip off at 6.
All state championship games are being televised by Arkansas PBS.
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