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 Things did not begin well for the Railers as it took over five
minutes of action in the first quarter before Lincoln finally got on
the board. Will Cook’s three at the 2:49 mark brought the Railers to
down 5-3. It was the first of four threes for Cook on his way to
another solid night and being one of three Lincoln players in double
figures. The score took the lid off the basket for the Railers who
missed one open shot after another to get the game started.
After being held scoreless for most of the first quarter, Lincoln
made up for it by scoring nine points over a one minute span, all on
threes from Cook. The last one brought Lincoln to within one at 10-9
and also gave the Railers a chance to take their first lead when
Cook was fouled after hitting the three. However, more missed
opportunities and foul trouble prevented Lincoln from going ahead of
the Cyclones. Aron Hopp’s second foul sent the junior to the pines
and took away a valuable asset of the game plan to confront the SHG
zone.
A Max Bloink three point play kept the Railers at bay, only to have
senior Jordan Perry sink a three from near the left wing as the
first quarter finished up to bring Lincoln to within 13-12. Perry’s
career high 12 points were all on threes, a frequently use weapon by
the Railers who outscored SHG 30-6 from behind the three point line.
The SHG zone continued to frustrate Lincoln, going as far as
expanding their zone and leaving a larger than normal opening in the
middle of the zone. In the early stages, Lincoln did not have anyone
flashing to the high post making the SHG that much more effective.
For their first true road game, it would be expected if some that
had not stepped into enemy territory to be a bit nervous. Well, no
one told freshman Isaiah Bowers. The newcomer to the varsity squad
calmly found an opening on the baseline and sank a 15 footer to cut
the deficit back to one. After SHG got the lead back to three at
17-14, Hopp’s foul plagued evening continued. Getting back in the
game with less than five minutes left it was back to the bench with
4:43 to go in the half after being whistled for his third foul.
The Perry and Cook show continued as Perry’s three from the top of
the key tied the game at 17, while the Railers took their first
lead, a lead they would not relinquish when Cook hit from well
behind the arc to go up 20-17. A basket from Bloink interrupted the
Lincoln run, but it was time for Gavin Block to join the fun. Being
held without a point until late in the first half, Block scored on
an alley-oop lob pass from Cook, the same play Lincoln ran on their
first possession, resulting in a missed layup.
 Block’s return to scoring continued with a three pointer that put
the Lincoln run to end the first half at 11-1 and the Railers
carried a 25-19 lead into the locker room.
SHG tried to keep the game close, drawing as near as 27-23 in the
third quarter, but it was Block again carrying the momentum into the
second half. The senior scored on an offensive rebound and then
converted a four point play and in the blink of any eye a close game
turned into a double digit lead at 33-23. Going into the game,
Lincoln Coach Neil Alexander knew rebounding would be a key to
giving the Railers a chance to win. “We knew they were strong and
physical, but knew rebounding would be a key,” Alexander said. When
informed the rebounding margin was 22-20, “I’ll take that.”
[to top of second column] |
Block’s four point play, part of a game high 19 points, was
critical as well because it was the fourth foul on Bloink and he did
not seem to play with as much intensity the rest of the way. SHG
(1-5) tried to stay close but had difficulty bridging the double
digit gap. Three point plays, one from long range by Perry, and the
old fashioned way by Cook gave Lincoln a ten point cushion heading
to the fourth quarter.
With Perry connecting for another three pointer and Block
striking from 17 feet, Lincoln’s lead had grown to 44-32 and it was
time to turn their attention to the free throw line, the place the
Railers would score their final 12 points of the night. Free throw
shooting has been an issue for the Railers, making just over 61
percent on the season. For fans used to watching their team hit in
the mid-70 percent, it is unusual to see any type of prolonged
struggle from the line. Maybe Friday night was a move in the right
direction. The Railers hit 12 of their 17 free throws, including
Block, Hopp, and Bowers combining to go 11 of 11 in the fourth
quarter.
The closest SHG could come was down to eight points at 48-40, but
Lincoln shut them out the rest of the way and a typical physical,
grinder-like Lincoln-SHG game, featuring everything including
chippiness, was in the win column and the Railers had done something
that may prove to be difficult as the season wears on; win on the
road in the conference.
Block topped all scorers with 19 points, while Cook added 15 and
Perry’s big night ended with 12 points. Bowers finished with 6,
while Payton Ebelherr and Hopp each hit two free throws.
The Railers will be right back in action on Saturday as they welcome
the Springfield Senators to town. Game time is set for 6:30 at Roy
S. Anderson Gymnasium.
LINCOLN (56)
Block 5 7-7 19, Cook 5 1-3 15, Perry 4 0-1 12, Bowers 2 2-2 6,
Ebelherr 0 2-4 2, Hopp 0 2-2 2, Aeilts 0 0-0 0, Fry 0 0-0 0, Biggs 0
0-0 0. TEAM 16 14-19 56. 3-point FG 10 (Perry 4, Cook 4, Block 2)
SHG (40)
Sestak 11, Bloink 10, Green 6, Zeigler 6, McDonald 5, Andrews 2.
TEAM 15 8-9 40. 3-point FG 2 (Sestak, McDonald)
LINCOLN 12-13-14-17 56
SHG 13-6-10-11 40
[Jeff Benjamin]
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