Marion 58, Searcy 38
The 2025-2026 Marion Lady Patriots know that they have to take care of business at home this winter to qualify for the state basketball tournament, and through two conference home games, they have reacted accordingly.
Take last Friday evening, for example.
Marion trailed briefly in the first period, taking the lead for good with 6:22 left in that frame, led 33-12 at halftime, and led by as many as 25 points in the third period en route to a 58-38 victory over Searcy.
The Lady Pats took a 3-2 lead early in the first period when freshman Cortlyn Brown came up with a steal and a layup at the other end, the first of 21 turnovers forced by the Marion defense.
Marion converted another turnover into points with 2:44 left in the first quarter when Zaryn Scofield came up with a steal, saving a ball inbounds to Jordyn Wilkerson, who found a streaking Summer Morgan for a layup and a 13-2 lead with 2:39 left in the first, and Marion claimed an 18-4 lead after eight minutes.
Wilkerson canned an open three-pointer with 58.1 seconds left in the first half to give Marion its first 20-point lead (30-10), and the Lady Pats led at halftime by 21 points.
A Morgan layup gave Marion a 39-14 lead with 6:06 left in the third period, and the hosts led 47-24 after three frames.
Marion outrebounded Searcy 26-22, and only committed 12 turnovers, including three in the fourth quarter with the outcome virtually assured.
Paragould 54, Marion 47
Marion mounted a furious rally Tuesday night, but it wasn't enough to get past Paragould.
The Lady Patriots scratched and clawed after halftime inside Fidelity Bank Arena, but the Lady Rams scored the game's final seven points for a 54-47 victory.
Marion got 13 points from Summer Morgan, 12 from Jordyn Wilkerson, and five apiece from Maliya Stallings and Cortlyn Brown.
Paragould won behind Kenzie Snyder's game-high 26 points, 15 from Madison Farmer, and six points and seven rebounds from Hadley Luke.
The Lady Rams led 15-12 after the first quarter, and they claimed the game's first double-digit lead (27-17) on a pair of free throws by Farmer, and Paragould took a 28-19 lead to halftime.
Marion hit the comeback trail in the third period, as Morgan poured in 12 points in that frame alone, and the Lady Pats forced seven Lady Ram turnovers to work within 43-37 to open the fourth period.
Wilkerson scored on a layup with 4:40 left in regulation to complete Marion's comeback and tie the score at 47.
A Snyder stickback for a layup with 3:03 left in the contest gave Paragould the lead for good at 49-47, and the Lady Rams extended the advantage to 52-47 on a Farmer three-pointer with 1:53 remaining.
WHAT'S NEXT?
Marion plays Friday night at Batesville, with the girls game tipping at approximately 6 p.m., followed by the boys tip at approximately 7:30 p.m. You can watch the Marion-Batesville varsity basketball games for free on the MPAN YouTube channel.
5A EAST RESULTS FROM 1/16
Marion 58, Searcy 38
Greene Co. Tech 74, Nettleton 52
Valley View 60, W. Memphis 26
Batesville 57, Paragould 28
5A EAST RESULTS FROM 1/20
Paragould 54, Marion 47
Greene Co. Tech 80, W. Memphis 20
Valley View 61, Searcy 22
Nettleton 77, Batesville 59
5A EAST STANDINGS ON 1/21
SCHOOL CONF. RECORD
Greene Co. Tech 4-0
Valley View 4-0
Nettleton 3-1
Marion 2-2
Batesville 2-2
Paragould 1-3
W. Memphis 0-4
Searcy 0-4
Top four teams make state tournament at Farmington.
5A EAST GAMES ON 1/22 & 1/23
Marion at Batesville
Greene Co. Tech at Valley View
Nettleton at W. Memphis
Searcy at Paragould