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 The win leaves Lincoln as the only undefeated team in the
tournament, with a doubleheader at Roy S. Anderson Gymnasium on tap
for Saturday.
In the first two games, the Railers and their opponents played nip
and tuck for about half of the first quarter, only to see Lincoln
use a run to take a lead they would never give up. An early layup by
senior Jordan Nelson put the Potters in a hole that would only get
bigger.
A 16-2 run fueled by hot shooting, good defense and a "what just
hit us" malaise from Morton seemingly put this game in the win
column very early. That is, unless, you're Lincoln coach Neil
Alexander. "I didn't feel comfortable until the fourth quarter,"
Alexander said. "This is a good team in Morton, and they're the type
of team that can make a run."
The senior trio of Nelson, Nathaniel Smith and Brant Coyne combined
for 64 points and 14 of the team's 15 made 3-pointers to improve
to 3-0 on the season. Simply put, in the first quarter, Morton had
no answer for the seniors. Smith's hustle on both ends resulted in
two rebounds on the first possession for each team, as well as
helping defend the main cogs of the Morton machine.
"One thing I thought we did real well was keep the ball out of
the middle," Alexander said. On the scoreboard, the first
quarter belonged to Nelson. The guard scored 16 of his career-high
37 points in the first quarter, connecting for four of the single-game record-tying nine
3-pointers. He joins Jason Osborn and
Brock Werner with nine in a game. Werner's feat was almost eight
years ago. Nelson's shots came from all areas of the court, some
created on nice looks from teammates, others on moves off the
dribble that have Morton defenders still trying to find him.
As the scoreboard read 21-7 at the end of the first quarter, the
Potters (2-1) had to feel they had weathered the hot shooting from
Lincoln and could claw their way back into the contest.
Coach Jarrett Brown's Potters certainly played better in the second
quarter, losing the quarter only 21-16. The unfortunate thing was
that some of the reason they stayed in the game was the hot shooting
from Nelson cooled off. After being almost unstoppable in the first
quarter, along with defenders trying a little harder to stay with
him, Nelson seemed to tire, leaving his misses short.
Like any shooter trying to find that rhythm, Nelson continued to
shoot. Smith scored the first basket of the quarter, a wide-open
3 followed by a Jake Olson layup after opportunistic Railer
defense. When Coyne connected for the second time from long range,
the Lincoln lead was stretched to 29-10.
After a pair of Jordan Genser free throws, Smith's drive and
layup followed by another Coyne 3-pointer had Morton staring at
a 36-17 deficit.
Nelson scored the final three baskets of the half, giving the
Railers a 42-23 lead at intermission.
As much as the first quarter was the domain of Jordan Nelson, the
third quarter belonged to Nathaniel Smith. Smitty scored 11 of his
18 in the third, giving him double figures for the 31st time in his
Railer career. Whether it was wide-open jumpers, drive and pull-up,
or strong drives and moves in the lane, Smith seemed on a mission to
show teams that Nelson is not the only Railer to worry about.
 Smith's actions on Friday did not go unnoticed by Alexander.
The coach said, "He's making good decisions, and I thought tonight was one of
his better games at LCHS." Those decisions helped him lead the team with
seven rebounds and five assists.
Coyne's 3-pointers played a key role by pulling some of the size
of Morton away from the basket defensively. Each time Coyne
connected, which he did three times from long range, the defense was
forced out more and more, leaving the lane open for drives to the
basket.
At the end of three,
Morton was just wanting to get the game over with, trailing 62-38.
[to top of second column]
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Another Railer who played well was Christian Van Hook. Railer
fans saw glimpses of what he could do last year, and now they're
getting to see more and more of it. Whether it is athletic moves
to, and above, the rim or his crowd-pleasing blocked shots, the
junior is becoming more of an option on the offensive end.
Friday night, Van Hook scored eight points, six of those in the
final quarter.
Morton could draw no closer than 24 in the fourth
quarter and Lincoln pulled away for an easy win, 80-52.
Nelson led with 37, including the nine 3-pointers. Smith
added 18, Coyne scored nine, Van Hook had eight, Jordan Gesner added
five, and Olson
had two, while Austin Kirby scored a late
free throw to get the Railers to 80.
For the game, it was
outstanding shooting as the Railers hit 59 percent (31 of 53)
for the game, which included 15 for 31 (48 percent) from beyond
the arc.
Next up for the Railers, a Saturday doubleheader. First, at
11:30, Lincoln plays Cahokia. In the last game of the
tournament, Danville provides the opponent at 8:30 p.m. Other scores
from Friday night saw Centennial beat Althoff 66-54, and Cahokia
needed overtime to beat Danville 71-67. Cahokia forced the extra
session on a shot at the end of regulation.
So, only three games in. How does Lincoln coach Alexander view the first
three games? "If you look at the stats, through
three games, what I most happy about is only 14 turnovers. Taking
care of the ball along with great shooting will cover up a lot of
weaknesses," he said.
If you're not doing anything and want to see some good
basketball, make a trip out to LCHS for a great day of
basketball to wrap up the Thanksgiving week. If you can't make
it out there, make sure to stop by Lincoln Daily News online for the
latest.
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LINCOLN (80)
Nelson 14 0-1 37, Smith 8 0-0 18, Coyne 3 0-0 9, Van Hook 4 0-2
8, Gesner 1 2-2 5, Olson 1 0-0 2, Kirby 0 1-2 1, Hays 0 0-0 0,
Krusz 0 0-0 0 Team 31 3-7 80.
3-point field goals 15 (Nelson 9,
Coyne 3, Smith 2, Gesner).
Morton (52)
Swinford 13, Headean 8, Bisping 8, Lundeen 6, Rossi 5, Losen 4,
White 3, Dullard 3, Streeter 2. Team 18 11-13 52.
3-point field
goals 5 (Headean 2, Swinford, Dullard, Rossi).
Notes:
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Nelson's scoring output has moved him into
fifth all-time on
the scoring list, past Matt Schick. Next in Nelson's sights is
Seymour Reed at 1,478.
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Nelson also took a big step toward claiming the top spot in
3s made. He stands at 252, just 29 behind Gregg Alexander.
[By JEFF BENJAMIN]
Jeff Benjamin's Railer basketball articles
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