PINE BLUFF --- Marion never backed down when faced with adversity during the 2022-2023 basketball season. Not when three starters from last year's state runner-up outfit exited the program. Not when the Pats started 6-5 against a competitive non-conference schedule against established programs in the region. Marion seemed to get better in conference play, recording four mercy-rule victories in its first seven outings against league competition. When leading scorer and top defender Donnie Cheers, III, was lost in early February, the Pats marched on, winning their first 13 conference games and the outright 5A East title. And the Pats never packed it in against an explosive, talented Lake Hamilton Wolves club in Friday's quarterfinal game at Pine Bluff Convention Center. The 28-4 Wolves led by as many as 13 points against the short-handed Pats, but Marion twice trimmed the Lake Hamilton advantage to a single point in the fourth quarter before falling short by a final score of 59-56. Marion's season ends at 25-8 overall, 13-1 in 5A East action, which propelled the Pats to the seventh conference title in school history. Lake Hamilton will play Pine Bluff on Saturday for the Class 5A state title after dispatching Harrison in Saturday's semifinals. Marion junior swingman David Brewer paced the Pats with 13 points and four assists against Lake Hamilton. Senior guard Martavius Davis poured in 12 points, and sophomore guard Anthony Wilson scored 10 points. Lake Hamilton senior Ty Robinson, who scored 37 points in the Wolves' opening round victory over Little Rock Parkview, led all scorers with 16 points, while Charter Harris added 14, and Zac Pennington hit for 13. In a game featuring seven lead changes and four ties, Marion outrebounded Lake Hamilton 17-14, but the Wolves won the turnover margin 20-12. Marion scored 36 points in the paint compared to 22 for Lake Hamilton. The Wolves connected on 21 of their 26 free throws, while Marion managed eight of 11. A tight game emerged in the first eight minutes of the ballgame, and despite Lake Hamilton scoring six points in a row for a 13-8 advantage, Marion rallied to tie the game when sophomore Lyndell Buckingham copped a steal near half court and dunked, and the game moved to the second quarter square at 11. The Wolves immediately hit the Pats with an 11-2 run to open the second quarter, but Marion worked within 28-22 at halftime when Brewer canned a jumper and rifled an assist to junior Kayden Nesbitt (six points and seven rebounds against Lake Hamilton), sophomore forward Mikell Lewis hit a short jumper, and when Brewer hit a triple late in the shot clock, the Pats were within 28-22 at halftime. Lake Hamilton took its first double-digit lead (34-24) with 5:43 left in the third period, but Marion stayed close when Wilson scored on a contested layup, and when Davis hit back-to-back threes, Marion was within 37-32. Lake Hamilton led 46-37 after three, however. The Hamilton run continued into the fourth as the Wolves led by as many as 50-37, but that's when Marion hit the comeback trail when Buckingham scored on a runner and found Brewer along the baseline, who finished a layup through contact and converted a three-point play to get the Pats within 50-42. It was Wilson's turn for a three-point later, moving Marion within 50-45 with 4:24 left, and when Davis scored layups on consecutive Marion possessions, the Pats were within 54-51 with 1:47 remaining. Brewer was back at it again with 1:05 left, scoring on a layup and again converting a three-point play to get the Pats within 55-54. A Brewer stickback with 15 ticks left made it 57-54, but Pennington hit a pair of free throws and Marion came up empty on its final possession to clinch victory for Lake Hamilton. LOOKING FORWARD Cheers, Davis, and Dequarrius Brown were the only three seniors on this year's Marion roster, and the Pats should return four starters, and five more players who rotated heavily this season, including Buckingham, who averaged almost 14 points per game this season, and a team-high six assists. Leading shot-blocker Jalen White, leading rebounder Nesbitt. A host of sophomores that finished 24-3 and won a second straight junior high district championship also promote.