NORTH LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — North Little Rock will head back to Hot Springs on Thursday for the state championship game against the Bentonville Tigers.
The Charging Wildcats will also attempt to defend their title from last season.
North Little Rock Head, Coach Johnny rice says facing the Tigers will be a challenge
"They're very talented and they're well-coached. Besides having a great point guard and a great big guy, they share the basketball and play together. They play the right way and they're playing really well. They played really well last weekend in the state tournament so it'll be a tough challenge."
If the Charging Wildcats win it'll be the first state title for Arkansas signee Nick Smith Jr. and fellow senior Corey Washington who has also received lots of Division 1 attention.
Those two were at Sylvan Hills last year so they weren't on last year's championship squad at NLR. They're excited to help their team win a title during their senior seasons.
"We're just having this winner's mentality going into this one. It's just another game. If we get the outcome we want after the game we're gonna be pretty excited but we just try to practice while we can and try to get the job done"
"I'd say it's one of the most exciting things in the world. Not too many win it. Sometimes people don't even get to experience this in their four years. We're doing this one year. It's very exciting.
If the Charging Wildcats win Thursday night it will be their sixth title in the past nine years.