CLINTON — Clinton didn’t keep Warren Central at arm’s length Tuesday night. It was more like fingertip length. And, still, the Lady Vikes couldn’t reach out and grab them.

Mychala Linzy scored a game-high 18 points and went 9-for-10 from the free throw line in the fourth quarter as Clinton edged Warren Central 47-45. The Lady Arrows never led by more than five points, but also never trailed in the second half.

Clinton (14-8, 1-1 Division 4-6A) was 16-for-21 from the foul line in the game.

“We got the lead a couple of times (early) and I thought we were going to build on it. But we just didn’t play aggressive, to me, and allowed too many opportunities. We were playing with a couple of sick and injured players that are key players. It was a combination of all of that,” Warren Central coach Jackie Martin-Glass said.

Amber Gaston led Warren Central (13-6, 0-1) with 11 points and seven rebounds. T.T. Sims had nine points, 10 rebounds and three steals, and Cocoa Fultz also scored nine points.

Vivian Tripp scored 13 points for Clinton and Khyla Crosby scored nine.

Warren Central’s last four games have been decided by a total of 11 points, and this one was close the whole way. The biggest lead by either team came early in the second half when Clinton pulled ahead 31-26, but Warren Central quickly tied it.

The Lady Vikes, though, never took the lead. The teams traded baskets, and then free throws, right to the final horn. Warren Central had several chances to tie the game down the stretch and misfired each time.

Trailing 46-43, Kiara Lockhart missed a 12-foot jumper with 20 seconds left. Following a Clinton turnover she sank a layup to get the Lady Vikes back within a point with 6.2 seconds to go, but Linzy split a pair of free throws to make it 47-45 with 3.6 seconds left.

The Lady Vikes grabbed the rebound off Linzy’s second free throw and had a chance at the win, but Fultz’s half-court shot at the buzzer was well off the mark.

“I didn’t feel bad about it because I knew they didn’t have a timeout, so it was going to be harder to advance the ball anyway. I’m just glad when the girl threw it up at the end it didn’t go in,” Clinton coach Mike Coleman said. “When you miss and the clock can run when it’s already down to three-something, that’s not such a bad deal.”

(B) Clinton 52, Warren Central 37

Galin Smith scored 21 points, and Clinton used a big second quarter to blow away Warren Central.

Clinton outscored the Vikings 17-3 in the second quarter. That allowed it to take a 17-point lead into halftime and to cruise the rest of the way.

“We started pressing a little bit in the second quarter and it led to some transition baskets,” Clinton coach Clay Norton said. “We also were able to get them out of that man-to-man and into a zone. Then we pounded the ball inside.”

Amias Lewis added 11 points for Clinton (12-5, 2-0 Division 4-6A) and Robert Davis scored 10. Jesse Wilson led Warren Central (8-10, 0-1) with 10 points and the team’s leading scorer Shaun Walton only had seven — all in the fourth quarter.

Walton came into the game averaging 18.4 points per game. Norton said the Arrows made a concerted effort to shut him down.

“We needed to make sure we keyed on him,” Norton said. “He was averaging close to 20 a game. He’s worth a defensive conversation.”