By Denise Tucker (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
MORRISVILLE – After the upset-minded Conway Bears hit the first 3-pointer of the game, the Pleasant Hope Pirates woke up and got rolling on their way to an 87-72 victory in the 52nd Annual Morrisville Tournament on Saturday night.
The seventh-seeded Bears, who have not recorded double-digit wins since the 2019-2020 season, knocked out No. 2-seed Morrisville and No. 3-seed Stockton to advance to Saturday’s title game. They opened the game with a 3-pointer by Brixon Bilyeu before the fourth-seeded Pirates used a 9-0 run to take a 9-3 lead early in the quarter.
The Bears pulled with 9-8, but Pleasant Hope rattled off 12 unanswered points to go up 21-8. In all, the Pirates connected on seven 3-pointers in the first quarter and led 32-16 before hitting three more 3s in the second quarter to hold a 51-30 advantage at halftime.
“Every team in this tournament, we respect them and we fear them, but I will say that I’m really proud of our kids and their effort,” said Pleasant Hope coach Eric DeRossett, whose team also upset top-seeded Ash Grove on Friday night by jumping out to a big lead early. “We shot the ball really well some of the time. It’s different if we don’t make some of those.
“Obviously, I respect Conway and the way their kids play, and their coach. We had to put it together to beat them; they’re really good. It was a great week for our kids.”
And it was a great night for the Pirates, who had four players in double figures for the second night in a row, led by senior Ryder LaBee and his 25 points.
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“It feels really good,” LaBee said of the tournament title. “We’re playing as a team and it’s awesome. It couldn’t have been any better.”
The Pirates hit 11 3-pointers Saturday night, which is a strength for the team.
“That’s kind of our game,” LaBee said. “We drive and kick and that’s how it went. It was really awesome. We just went out there and had fun, really. It’s just a blessing to play with those guys.”
Conway, which trailed by as many as 25 points early in the third quarter, was able to chip away in the fourth quarter to get within 13 points (80-67), but the deficit was too big to overcome.
“(I feel) really positive,” first-year Conway coach Dayton Robison said about his team’s effort during the tournament. “We talk about laying a brick (and laying the foundation.) Unfortunately, we didn’t lay the brick we wanted to tonight, but it’s our third game and we have 23 more left in the season.
“The thing about losing is it highlights where you’ve got to get better, so that’s how we’ve got to take tonight. We preach that you’ve got to keep fighting, keep fighting – kind of that laying the brick, chopping the wood mentality.”
Brixon Bilyeu, who scored a team-high 23 points, had 12 of those in the fourth quarter as the Bears tried to mount their comeback. Tyler Vaughan added 20 points for Conway.
“Both of those players can get hot at any moment, which is really big for us,” Robison said. “We’re looking forward to them and others stepping up throughout the year.”
The Pirates had three other players score in double figures with Arturo Marufo and Dayton Altic adding 18 points apiece and Connor Shuler going for 16.
“It’s great when they’re (3-pointers) going in, but then people get restless, including me, when they don’t,” DeRossett said. “But we’ve kind of figured out that’s who we are, that’s our identity, and we’re either going to sink or swim with the 3-ball. So tonight, it happened to work.
“We haven’t had a ton of success in the past, so to win a game in this environment, of this magnitude is sort of new for us. We have some growing to do in that area, but tonight was a great first step in that growth.”
(4) PLEASANT HOPE 87, (7) CONWAY 72
52nd Annual Morrisville Tournament
Championship game
CONWAY 16-14-23-19—72
PLEASANT HOPE 32-19-20-16—87
CONWAY (2-1) – Isaac Freeman 8, Cade Archer 6, Tyler Vaughan 20, Brison Bilyeu 23, Brady Rogers 3, Brady Mepham 5, Holden Lindley 4, Jackson Gunter 3.
PLEASANT HOPE (5-1) – Connor Shuler 16, Caleb Altic 8, Arturo Marufo 18, Dayton Altic 18, Ryder LaBee 25, Bryson Craver 2.
THIRD PLACE
Ash Grove 57, Stockton 38: Drury University signee Brady Nicholson scored 16 first-half points on his way to a game-high 22 to lead the top-seeded Ash Grove Pirates to a 57-38 third-place win over Stockton.
Nicholson was joined by Asher Rust, who added 19 points, Kyler Reece with 7 points, Bryce Davis 4, Dylan Gray 3 and Cooper Burks with 2 points.
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Colter Woods led the Tigers with 13 points, followed by Preston Rains and Jax Baxter with 8 points apiece, Lawson Page with 7 and Quinten Hare with 2 points.
FIFTH PLACE
Morrisville 64, New Covenant Academy 31: A 33-15 halftime advantage propelled the Morrisville Panthers to a 64-31 fifth-place victory over New Covenant Academy.
Morrisville’s Landen Burrow led all scorers with 21 points. He was joined by Jacob Presley with 14, Coltin Jett 6, Wyatt Mitchell 4, Gavin McKinney, Kohyn Raney and Ben Lewis with 3 points each, Keegan Back with 2 and Blake Salyer with 1 point.
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Hudson Grell paced the Warriors with 11 points, followed by Nate Martin, Kaden Frost and Isaiah Tessmer had 5 points apiece and Isaac Holden scored 4 points.
SEVENTH PLACE
Walnut Grove 73, Greenfield 41: The Walnut Grove Tigers got off to a quick start on their way to a 73-41 win over Greenfield in the seventh-place game.
The Tigers outscored Greenfield 23-12 in the first quarter and led 38-22 at halftime. Walnut Grove finished the second half with a 35-19 advantage.
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Walnut Grove was led by Chase Brown’s 27 points, followed by Sam Voris with 14, Ethan Kelley, Diesl Phillips and Dwyer Coons with nine points apiece, Johnny Keith with 4 and Montana McVay with 1 point.
River Stephens paced the Wildcats with 11 points, Jaxan Marshall added 8 points, Jake Julian 7, Nash McGuire 6, Owen Daniel 4, Marshall Robertson 3, and H. McGuire 2.
All-Tournament Team: Chase Brown, Walnut Grove; Landen Burrow, Morrisville; Jacob Presley, Morrisville; Preston Rains, Stockton; Jax Baxter, Stockton; Asher Rust, Ash Grove; Brady Nicholson, Ash Grove; Brixon Bilyeu, Conway; Tyler Vaughan, Conway; Arturo Marufo, Pleasant Hope; Ryder LaBee, Pleasant Hope.
Cheer Award – New Covenant Academy (winner); Ash Grove (runner-up)
Spirit Award – Pleasant Hope
