LDN - Sports

Railers can’t find way to topple Panthers
EISENHOWER 56, LINCOLN 45

[February 15, 2017] With the IHSA set to release the seeds for the upcoming state tournament later this week, the Lincoln Railers found themselves in a group of four teams fighting for seeds 3 through 6. Tuesday night’s conference schedule would go a long way towards cementing some teams’ ranks while bringing questions and uncertainty to others. Both teams at Roy S. Anderson Gymnasium knew what was at stake but only one seemed prepared to do what was necessary. The seeds won’t be released until Thursday, but if Decatur Eisenhower comes away with the number 3 seed, they can thank their performance against the Railers.

Stephon Jarrett and Julian Jones each scored 16 points as the Panthers were in control from the opening tip on the way to a 56-45 win over the Railers. The second consecutive loss for the Railers drops their record to 16-11, 10-5 in conference while Eisenhower improves to 18-7 and equals the Lincoln conference mark. If head-to-head comparisons come in to play, Eisenhower owns two wins over the Railers this season. On Tuesday night, Eisenhower was head and shoulders the better team.

“They were in control from the opening tip. When you have four guys on this end of the floor and they get the tip and go right through them to score that quick,” Lincoln coach Neil Alexander said, “it shows you very quickly a lack of focus and that you are not prepared.” Jarrett’s basket with less than five seconds gone in the game set the tone for the Panthers, a team trying to gain a bit of revenge after the Railers knocked them off in January.

The Eisenhower lead grew to 5-0 when Jones connected for a three-pointer. While the Panthers were off to a great start, the Railers were simply trying to get the ball over half court. An early four turnovers saw the Railers not cleanly move the ball into their offensive end. The trapping pressure by Eisenhower gave Lincoln fits whether it was failing to break the time line by the ten count or throwing the ball away. Once Lincoln was able to get into the front court, things seemed to run a bit better. Two Bryson Kirby three pointers gave the Railers a 6-5 lead. Going back to the Lanphier game, Kirby had made nine straight threes.

With Lincoln up, Eisenhower ran off the final nine points of the first quarter. Scoring in all different manners including a steal and layup, a three pointer, and offensive rebound, the Panthers brought a well-rounded assault to Lincoln. The Railers struck first in the second quarter as they converted an offensive rebound into a three from Isaiah Bowers. The junior led the way for Lincoln with 14 points. With the visitors up 16-9, the one play that may have summed up the entire night allowed Eisenhower to stretch the lead to double figures for the first time. Jarrett raised up for a shot from beyond the arc. As he was going up for the shot, he double clutched and was fouled on the shot, a shot that floated to the basket and glanced high of the backboard and in. His free throw completed the four-point play and moved the lead to 20-9. If you were there, you were not alone in shaking your head and wondering what else would go against the Railers.

The Railers were able to close the gap with a mini-run of their own. The offense found a wide open Drew Bacon on a couple possessions wrapped around another three from Bowers, pulling Lincoln within 23-16. Again, the offense would find trouble trying to just take care of the ball. Bacon’s second field goal was the final score from the field until Bowers hit a 15-footer at the first half buzzer. In the meanwhile, the Panthers scored with ease on the inside and from the line, leading to a 28-19 lead at halftime.

Unfortunately, the second half was more of the first with the Railers getting as close as eight, and that occurred with Lincoln’s first score of the quarter, a three pointer from Kirby. At 30-22, that was the best it would get. The Panthers were able to keep Lincoln at arm’s length the entire second half. “They are a good team, but we had our chances,” Alexander said, “but just when we did something good, we would do something silly.”

[to top of second column]

For Eisenhower, it never felt as though they were in trouble. Another 10-3 run pushed the lead to 15, forcing Lincoln to call a timeout to try to find anything that could get them back in the game. Bowers was able to find some openings with turn around jumpers from the free throw line, but there were not enough of them. Sophomore Colton Holliday came off the bench to hit six of six from the line but it was not enough. In the fourth, the Panthers broke out the offensive rebounds, especially from Julian Jones. On two separate occasions late, Jones missed an easy shot in the lane with his right hand, only to fight for inside position to tip in the miss with his left hand. The senior had been held in check this year against the Railers, but saved his best for their last visit to Lincoln as conference opponents.

Every team has its own identity and this Railer team is not one that does a lot of its offensive work on the inside. However, hopefully they will be able to find some easy scores, even if that means getting to the free throw line. For the second straight game, none of the Lincoln starts shot free throws. Those are easy points, but you have to get there first.

Bowers led two Lincoln players in double figures with 14 while Kirby added 12. Holliday scores six off the bench, all from the line. Bacon chipped in with five while Titus Cannon and Zach Morris each hit a three pointer, while Ben Grunder added two.

Lincoln will take to the road for the final time this season when they are next in action. The Railers travel down to SHG on Friday night. Varsity is scheduled to tip at 7:30pm while the sophomores, winners on Tuesday 59-41, will start things at 6:00pm. You can follow the IHSA website for seed and bracket information. Seeds are expected out late Thursday afternoon, while the brackets and pairings will be released a few hours prior to the SHG contest.

There is no guarantee what will happen and as Coach Alexander says, “no matter what we’ll have to beat some good teams to advance.” However, with Tuesday’s loss, the road may have become a bit bumpier. All that will be revealed late this week.

LINCOLN (45)

Bowers 6 0-0 14, Kirby 4 0-0 12, Holliday 0 6-6 6, Bacon 2 1-2 5, Cannon 1 0-0 3, Morris 1 0-0 3, Grunder 1 0-0 2, Hullinger 0 0-0 0, Sloan 0 0-0 0, Dewberry 0 0-0 0, Combs 0 0-2 0, Birnbaum 0 0-0 0. TEAM 15 7-10 45. 3pt FG 8 (Kirby 4, Bowers 2, Cannon, Morris).

EISENHOWER (56)

Jarrett 16, Jones 16, Taylor 13, Young 6, Bobbitt 3, Gaines 2. TEAM 21 8-16 56. 3pt FG 6 (Taylor 3, Jarrett 2, Jones).

LCHS 6-13-12-14 45
EISENHOWER 14-14-16-12 56

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