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44 Northwest Arkansas Basketball Sunday, November 4, 2018 I f Western Grove opponents spent time with star point guard Hunter Baker without ever seeing him play, they might falsely assume he's not one of the most prolific scorers in the state. Before games, he listens to coun- try music — Alan Jackson and Hank Williams Jr. are favorites. He carbs up with a cheeseburger from Grice's Gro- cery and Deli, a staple in the town of 359 people. The combination resulted in Baker scoring a whopping 23 points per game last season, which was actually a dip from the 26.9 mark he posted as a sophomore. His scoring strategy is a simple one. "I like to go to the hole," Baker said. "I like to go to the rim." After losing to Kingston in the 1A-1 regionals, West- ern Grove put together a string of close victories before losing to Guy-Perkins in the Final Four of the Class 1A state tournament. In that regional championship game, Baker was held to 10 points, while the team itself scored only 38. He responded with two consecutive 20-plus point games to push the Warriors. "He needs to be a leader for us, and he certainly is," said Western Grove coach Lendall Martin said. "He's no doubt the best ball handler that I've had, the best point guard that I've had in my entire career." That is saying something considering Martin has more than 30 years of coaching on his resume. With state title aspirations in mind, Baker is focused on taking each game one at a time. He's ready to get his revenge on Kingston, as well. "They ain't that stacked as far as players, but they play hard," Baker said. "They're hard to beat." Baker said he wants to be a marine biologist when he graduates, but a state championship is certainly a goal of his before he's finished. "It'll be very big, because I think it [had] been like 1950-something since we'd made it to the Final Four, so coming back and winning the state championship would be really big for the community," Baker said. "Everybody comes to the games. You see everybody from Western Grove in our gym." It's pretty much the same folks from Grice's store, where burgers and country music are a way of life. C L A S S 1 A ANDREW EPPERSON SPECIAL TO NWA DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE HUNTER BAKER SCHOOL Western Grove HEIGHT 5-10 CLASS Senior POSITION Guard NOTABLE Averaged 23 points per game for a team that advanced to the Class 1A state semifinals. … Averaged 26 points per game as a sophomore. … Was named to the Class 1A All-State and All-State Tournament teams. … Plans a career as a marine biologist. Baker feeds off burgers, country music before dropping buckets Hungry for points NWA Democrat-Gazette/J.T. WAMPLER