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 In case you’re wondering, that sound you heard coming from Railer
Way on Friday night was Glenwood kicking that door down and marching
right through the Railers’ house.
Stopping Glenwood junior Ethan Hunt proved to be an impossible
mission as he hit three of his seven three pointers in the first
quarter on his way to a game high 21 points and the Titans handled
the Railers 54-38 to claim their first outright conference
championship since 2008. It wasn’t just Hunt, it was the entire team
as Glenwood was the more focused squad and showed it throughout the
16 point victory. It was just one of those nights where nothing
would go right for the home team.
Was it a hangover from the loss on Tuesday night? In the final
stages of the regular season, is the mental and physical fatigue
catching up with them? Lincoln coach Neil Alexander summed it up
this way, “they are a very good basketball team. They came in
focused and hungry and ready to play. They all know their role and
they stick to that and you see the result. For us, there was just no
fire on our part.”
With the winner of the matchup being crowned the conference champ,
it was Glenwood that came out on fire from three point range as Hunt
scored the first nine points of the game, all on threes. You give
credit to him for making them, but his shots were easier than they
should have been. “You just can’t let them shoot right on the line
like we did,” Alexander said.
It was not only the shooting, it was the Glenwood defense, forcing
the Railers into early turnovers and defended shots. When Lincoln
did get an open look, the shots would not fall. The Railers also
seemed hesitant to drive to the basket, playing right into the
defensive game plan. Lincoln’s first and only points of the quarter
felt like a momentum shifter as a lay-in by freshman Isaiah Bowers
with two seconds left put Lincoln down 9-2, but at least something
good had happened in the quarter.
But on this night, Glenwood would not let the Railers dictate the
pace. Instead of letting the Railers build on the momentum, a tip-on
off a missed shot by Cole Harper and three pointer by Parker Allen
pushed the game opening run by the Titans to 14-2. It was Bowers
again to the rescue with a ten-footer to cut the deficit to 14-4.
Allen connected again for Glenwood (23-6, 14-4) to make it 17-4.
One track Lincoln had not been able to utilize was going to the
basket. That finally changed as Payton Ebelherr’s drive brought the
score to 17-6. Again, and not to sound like a broken record, but it
felt every time Lincoln would score, the Titans would run off six or
eight in a row. Another three from Hunt and free throws by Harper
stretched the margin to 16 at 22-6. Hoping to get the deficit to
under double figures by halftime, senior Gavin Block finally got on
the board with a three at the 1:57 mark. His basket prompted
Glenwood coach Todd Blakeman to take a timeout, hoping to quell any
hopes the Railers had at building something before halftime. It
worked as neither team scored the rest of the half and a stunned
crowd at Roy S. Anderson watched their troops head to the locker
room down 13 points. How did it happen? The Railers shot 11 percent
from three point range while Glenwood blistered the Lincoln defense
for 50 percent from behind the arc. Simply put, for the Railers to
climb back into the contest in the second half, things would have to
change drastically.
 They did not.
The Railers were able to learn from earlier success with going to
the basket as the half started with Aron Hopp and Ebelherr scoring
on drives, the latter cutting the margin to only eleven. Free throws
from Harper and another three from Hunt pushed it back out to a
27-13 advantage. Looking to provide an unexpected spark off the
bench, Garrett Aeilts, in the lineup after Ebelherr picked up his
fourth foul with 4:11 left in the third, hit a three pointer. That
was followed by two free throws from Block and Lincoln (24-6, 13-5)
had got the deficit under double digits at the 2:20 mark, down
27-18.
But, all together now, another three from Hunt momentarily stopped
the rally. After Block sank two more free throws and scored on a
spin move down the lane, Lincoln was within shouting distance at
eight points (30-22). Unfortunately, they would not get any closer.
[to top of second column] |
Hunt’s seventh and final three of the night made it 33-22 with Block
again trying to keep the Railers in it from the line, making two and
sending the game to the fourth quarter with Lincoln trailing 33-24. It was in the fourth quarter where it felt as though Glenwood hit
another gear. Pushing the ball up the court at will, finding and
hitting open shots, keeping Lincoln’s offense 30 feet from the
basket and providing any easy lanes to the hoop, the Titans did not
want to squeak by with the win, they intended to take the victory.
The Railers could not put together any sustained offense, getting
only scoring from the line. Lincoln’s first six points in the
quarter all came from Hopp and his trips to the line. After his
final trip, Lincoln was down 39-30. If this one were a heavyweight
fight, Glenwood had been jabbing and landing body blows, but they
were about to deliver the knockout punch. By the time Block hit his
second three of the night, Glenwood had gone on an 8-0 run, making
the margin the largest of the evening at 17 points (47-30). The game
had been decided, it was just a matter of determining the final
score. After Ebelherr scored the game’s final basket, the contingent
that made the trip from Chatham roared as their team ran the clock
down on the final seconds of the regular season and as the horn
sounded, the Titans had claimed victory and the conference
championship.
“It was a bad week for us,” Alexander said. “So now we will see what
kind of character they have.” As for the direction both these teams
are going, during the wrap up of our radio broadcast, Josh Komnick
may have summed it up best. “Well, Glenwood lost to Southeast and
they bounced back. We lost to Southeast and did not.” Certainly not
the way you want to be heading into regional play, dragging a
two-game losing streak.
 In the final game at Roy S. Anderson for the four Lincoln seniors,
Block led the night with a double-double of 15 points and 13
rebounds. Ebelherr finished with six, with Will Cook adding two. The
other Railer senior Jordan Perry did not score. Others in the
scorebook include Hopp with eight, Bowers with four, and Aeilts
added a three-pointer.
Now, the fun begins. Regional play starts on Monday in Mt. Zion with
Paris taking on Mt. Zion. The winner of that game will be the
Railers’ opponent on Tuesday at Mt. Zion. The game is scheduled to
begin at 6:00pm. If the Railers win, they will advance to Friday’s
regional championship game to take on the winner between Tuesday’s
second contest, the winner of MacArthur and Eisenhower.
Let’s hope all the bad karma and less than stellar basketball is out
of their system and the next three weeks is an exciting ride that
finds us back in Peoria. But, that’s putting the cart way before the
horse. One game at a time. Get by Tuesday because that game is all
that matters at this point.
LINCOLN (38)
Block 3-12 7-8 15, Hopp 1-4 6-6 8, Ebelherr 3-4 0-0 6, Bowers 2-6
0-0 4, Aeilts 1-1 0-0 3, Cook 1-5 0-0 2, Perry 0-4 0-0 0. TEAM 11-36
13-14 38. 3pt FG 3-18 (Block 2-7, Aeilts 1-1, Hopp 0-1, Bowers 0-2,
Cook 0-3, Perry 0-4). Rebounds 23, Assists 4, Turnovers 9.
GLENWOOD (54)
Hunt 21, Harper 15, Alexander 8, Allen 8, Anderson 2. TEAM 16-37
13-20 54. 3pt FG 9-19 (Hunt 7, Allen 2). Rebounds 28, Assists 13,
Turnovers 8.
LCHS 2-7-15-14 38
GLENWOOD 9-13-11-21 54
[Jeff Benjamin]
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