By JASON KING
Leader sportswriter
Kevin Davis is one coach willing to do whatever it takes to fire up his team.
That was evident mid way through the third quarter of Sylvan Hills’ 74-43 rout over Central Arkansas Christian on Tuesday when Davis, reacting to a player-control foul called against junior guard Archie Goodwin in the backcourt, unleashed a barrage of high-volume complaints at the head official.
It didn’t take long for Davis to be hit with a technical foul, but with his Bears already up 48-24 with 4:37 left in the third, the exchange was more about team motivation than concern over any impact the call had on the game.
“I thought we had lost a little intensity,” Davis said.
“I was really after them to work harder. And that was probably a little frustration. I just tried for my guys to feed off that and let them know, ‘Hey, I’m not sitting over here not bringing intensity,’ so you’ve got to bring the intensity.”
Goodwin, one of the top college prospects in the state, pulled down a rebound and began heading upcourt when Mustangs defender Josh Adams stepped in the lane and made contact.
Goodwin, expecting a blocking foul, showed his frustration over the call by giving the ball a hard bounce that caused it to stray near the Bears’ bench.
Davis took up a conference with the head official, who tried to calm Davis, only to get another verbal salvo.
“That’s a block/charge; any coach is going to be upset about that in the backcourt,” Davis said.“That can go either way all the time. That really wasn’t the issue. It was the issue of just sometimes doing things just to see how your troops are going to respond.”
The Bears responded by picking up the pace in a game they already had in control, outscoring the Mustangs 9-2 in the final three minutes. That was enough to push the score to 74-43 at the start of the fourth quarter and trigger the sportsmanship/timing rule in which the clock doesn’t stop.
“I told them at the half that people pay good, hard-earned money to watch you play,” Davis said. “You make sure what they’re watching is your hard work that you’ve put into this game. They really responded.”
Goodwin, who led the Bears (4-0) with 22 points, brought his share of intensity — not to mention a few scary moments — to the game in the first half. His first attempt to dunk in the first quarter was met by a hard foul from Mustang post player Jaylon Jones, who took Goodwin to the floor on the play.
Teammate Dion Patton tried to set Goodwin up for a dunk early in the second quarter, but his ally-oop pass was too high. Goodwin went up for it and wound up flat on his back under the goal, to the gasps of the home crowd.
Goodwin finally pulled off a showstopper with 2:11 left in the first half to put the Bears up 40-20.
Patton gave the Bears a spark early in the third quarter with a pair of defensive plays he was able to finish on offense.
His first was a stray rebound he quickly grabbed before driving for two points; his second was a quick steal moments later that caught CAC ball handler Adams off guard.
Patton got his coach’s attention with the second play.
“He definitely brings you a spark,” Davis said.
“Boy, I tell you, I don’t know if everyone else was impressed, but I’ve been doing this 20 years, and that play impressed me. He basically takes it as clean as a whistle. But his effort and intensity on just that one play was at a high, high level.”
While the Bears made defense a group effort, each player took his turn in the offensive spotlight. Larry Zeigler was key for the Bears with 12 of his 18 points in the first half, and he went 8 of 8 at the free-throw line.
Post player Devin Pearson and guard Trey Smith each finished with eight points.
“These guys are so unique,” Davis said. “Larry’s the garbage guy — he’s going to get the balls and make plays that you just can’t believe. Archie is who he is, and everybody knows him for the right reasons. Trey comes along, and he can get the tip-ins and shoot the long ball.”
Pearson led the Bears in rebounding and also helped spread the ball out on offense. That helped create mismatches elsewhere and opened lanes for Goodwin and Zeigler.
“He is no doubt the most agile, athletic big guy I’ve had all the way around,” Davis said of Pearson.
“He’s just a complete athlete. He does give you that ability to be unique with some of the things that a big, agile guy can do, and we’re just having a blast coaching him.”
Adams led CAC (0-2) with 16 points while Jones had 10.
The Bears begin play in the John Stanton Wampus Cat Invitational tournament in Conway on Monday.
