big second half from Northside’s frontcourt allowed the Grizzlies to move on in the 6A State Tournament.

Junior center Jaylin Williams had 13 of his team-high 20 points in the second half while forward Braylin McKinley had all nine of his points after halftime as the Grizzlies advanced with a 52-47 win against Bentonville West in the opening round at state late Wednesday night at Centerton.

Northside (18-11) moves into the 6A quarterfinals, where the Grizzlies will play 6A-West No. 1 seed Fayetteville, set for 5:30 p.m. Friday back at Bentonville West. The Grizzlies defeated Fayetteville earlier in the regular season, and Northside also downed Fayetteville in the 7A semifinals last season.

An 11-2 run by the Grizzlies late in the third quarter put them in front to stay, 36-28.

Jacob Joe began that spurt by hitting a 3. Then, McKinley and Williams both converted three-point plays as part of that pivotal 11-2 spurt.

West was able to get within one three different times in the final quarter, the latter 43-42 with 3:37 remaining. But McKinley received a pass down low from J.T. Thorne for a three-point Northside lead, and the Grizzlies were able to hit several free throws in the closing minutes.

The Grizzlies stretched their lead to six, 50-44, on a foul shot from Javion Releford with 36 seconds to go.

West hit a 3 moments later to make it a one-possession game. But Northside senior Jermualle Norwood was fouled with 24 seconds left, sending him to the line.

Norwood, who had been held scoreless up to that point, made his first free throw, putting the Grizzlies up four, 51-47.


Williams then rebounded a missed 3 and sealed the game with a foul shot with 6.5 seconds showing on the clock.

It took a while for Northside to get going at the outset.

West came out and scored the game’s first five points, while Grizzly junior center Jaylin Williams picked up two quick fouls.

The Grizzlies got within two in the closing seconds of the opening quarter, 7-5, on a basket in the lane from Semonte Henderson. But West’s Dawson Bailey hit a shot from beyond half-court to beat the first-period buzzer, extending the West lead back to five, 10-5.

Northside responded by starting the second quarter with back-to-back 3's, from Jacob Joe and Henderson, to take its first lead of the night. West then regained the lead seconds later, but the Grizzlies reeled off an 8-2 spurt to build a 19-14 advantage with 3:10 left in the first half.

Williams scored seven of those points in that stretch, capping the 8-2 run with a 3-pointer from the top of the key for the five-point Grizzly lead.

West answered with a 7-2 run to end the first half, tying the score at 21-all at intermission.
