Houghton leads Bobcats to 1st-round victory

Sophomore Noah Houghton scored 32 points to lead the Berryville Bobcats to a 61-53 victory over the Shirley Blue Devils in the first round of the 14th Annual CS Bank Holiday Hoops Tournament on Wednesday, Dec. 27, at Bobcat Arena.

Houhgton scored Berryville’s first seven points and had 12 in the first quarter, capped by a three-pointer and pull-up jumper in the final two minutes of the quarter that gave the Bobcats a 15-13 lead.

After Josh Butler scored off an offensive rebound to start the second quarter, Houghton hit a three-pointer in transition, then senior Dale Nagtalon added a three-pointer of his own and sophomore Peyton Smith scored to extend the Bobcats’ lead to 2515.

A driving basket by Houghton made it 29-16 and he hit again from three-point range to push Berryville’s advantage to 32-16 at halftime.

Another three-pointer by Houghton made it 41-23 midway through the third quarter.

Shirley scored the final two points of the third quarter and opened the fourth quarter with a 7-2 run to get within nine, but Nagtalon made a pair of three-pointers in the fourth quarter and Smith converted a three-point play to help the Bobcats clinch the victory.

BERGMAN 54, BERRYVILLE 42

Bergman outscored Berryville 20-12 in the third quarter to turn a one-point halftime lead into a ninepoint cushion and went on to beat the Bobcats in a second- round matchup.

Sophomore Noah Houghton led Berryville with 15 points while classmate Peyton Smith added 12.

ARKADELPHIA 57, BERRYVILLE 46

Arkadelphia held off Berryville in the fourth quarter to win the third-place game on Friday, Dec. 29. The Badgers outscored the Bobcats 23-16 over the final eight minutes after leading 34-30 at the end of the third quarter.

Sophomore Peyton Smith scored 27 points for Berryville.