Lincoln Railers Varsity hold off Taylorville’s late surge - defeat Tornadoes 67-63

[December 01, 2018]  Lincoln Railers Varsity held off Taylorville’s late surge to defeat Tornadoes 67-63 earning first Apollo Conference win of the season.

It was a battle of the undefeated teams Friday night in Taylorville as the 3-0 Lincoln Railers marched onto Dolph Stanley Court to take on the 4-0 Tornadoes.

It was also the first Apollo Conference matchup of the season for both teams and the crowd on hand was fired up and LOUD - all night long. The gym was even filled with press everywhere in anticipation of the matchup.

Lincoln took the court as the visitors dressed in yet another snazzy uniform scheme. This particular design featured the main color “Railer Green” on the jersey with white lettering stating “LINCOLN” across the chest. A white stripe was spread across each shoulder for an added accent. The shorts were green with a fade into red at the bottom that would spotlight the Railer Man just above the word “LINCOLN” again. Good looking uniforms for another overall outstanding performance by the Railers.

Coach Neil Alexander kept with his same starting five for the fourth consecutive game - Kameron Whiteman, Dylan Singleton, Kaden Froebe, Will Ewald and Jermaine Hamlin.

Hamlin won the 7:40 p.m. tip and Lincoln immediately scored on a quick pass from the point guard, Singleton, to Whiteman, who shook off his defender and laid it off the glass for the first two points.

Taylorville’s first possession of the game didn’t go as planned when Hamlin slapped the attempted shot towards the stands and even the Tornadoes’ fans gasped at that move.

Lincoln’s next move downcourt was pretty sweet, too. Whiteman was hanging out in the corner and spotted Hamlin near the basket, so he lobbed into the big guy and of course a dunk was in the making. Lincoln’s quick 4-0 lead was enough to force Tornadoes coach Ryan Brown to call a timeout.

Lincoln continued rolling as Ewald was nothing but net from behind the arc for an 8-0 lead at the 4:38 mark.

Taylorville’s first bucket would come at the 4:32 mark by way of a free throw. Pretty much a surprise from a team that started the season 4-0, but hang on, they would get in their groove soon enough.

Ewald was in a groove early himself for Lincoln. He connected from downtown again and this time his three put the Railers on top 11-1.

Jase Bergschneider hit his first basket of the night for Taylorlville quickly thereafter and it’s good thing he got a late start because he would catch fire later on.

Froebe’s baseline drive was good next time down the court and he got fouled on the play. Making good on his “and one” had everyone smiling and Lincoln was dominating early 14-3 over the Tornadoes.

Hamlin was also dominating in the lane for Lincoln and his bucket allowed the Railers a 16-5 lead.

Bergschneider cut the lead in half as he nailed a three with 2.6 seconds remaining on the first quarter clock and that would be the end of the scoring here.

Everyone headed to the bench with Lincoln on top 16-8.

The second quarter picked up just as quickly as the first quarter ended. Nick Livingston started it off with a three for Taylorville and the Tornadoes were off and spinning. It was gonna take a lot to get ahead of these Railers though.

Hamlin continued to light things up in the lane, Froebe was enjoying the baseline drive and Whiteman was liking life beyond the arc. These boys put together a stretch of scoring that saw Lincoln on top 25-11 midway through the second quarter.

And then it was Singleton’s turn. As the playmaker of the team surrounded by a bunch of sharp-shooters, Singleton’s too busy running things to score double-digits every night. But he’s smart on the court and he knows how to take advantage of opportunities. He dribbled downcourt and as soon as he realized no one was going to stop him, he moved a little closer in and stopped and popped just outside the lane and got himself two points. Nice move.

Dreyden Pozsgai had some nice moves in the lane for Lincoln on this night, too. Pozsgai stands 6’3 and has the ability to out-muscle anybody in the lane, both offensively and defensively. He put up two points for Lincoln late in the second quarter on the assist from Froebe.

Froebe was having himself quite the first half, and he made good on another drive to the basket after a steal and Lincoln was cruising out to a 31-16 lead.

Lincoln held possession of the ball for nearly a minute before the end of the first half but after a failed shot attempt and a bad pass back out after the offensive rebound, well, the Tornadoes won the fight and ran quickly to their end for one last scoring attempt. They were quick and they made it exciting. In a matter of a split-second Ryan Ess set up way beyond the three-point line and as the crowd watched the release and the ball fly through the air, the buzzer sounded and the ball touched nothing but net.

Railer fans have to admit that is the kind of play that gets the adrenaline pumping. Taylorville might’ve been down 31-19 at the half, but they certainly weren’t out.

Lucky for the guest fans, Lincoln continued to rule the court in the third quarter. Ewald and Whiteman hit their threes, Froebe continued his signature baseline moves and was getting good at drawing the foul.

And then Noah Funk began to wreak havoc on the court. Well, he’d already been causing the Tornadoes trouble. He’s a bit of a whirlwind storm himself you could say. Funk makes things happen on the court. You always know he’s there. And yes, sometimes he even leaves behind a little damage. Funk hit a buzzer-beating three to end the third quarter and caused quite the eruption. He survived the body-slam from Pozsgai. He made the crowd throw their arms in the air. He made the Railers bench storm the court in celebration. He even got a pat on the back from Hamlin. To top things off, the Taylorville band started playing “Sweet Caroline” by Neil Diamond.

Coach Neil Alexander doing what he does best on the court ~ getting the game plan across to his team.

The Railers had a 51-32 lead and you gotta be thinking at this point, “Can this night get any sweeter?!”

The fourth quarter was certainly not lacking in excitement. Another dunk by Hamlin highlighted the quarter early, but those Tornadoes were about to prove something. Lincoln had marched out to a 60-44 lead but an 8-0 run by the Tornadoes had all fans at the edge of their seats. Lincoln was hanging on to a 60-52 lead but the Tornadoes were striking with little warning.

Finally a beautiful Froebe-to-Whiteman bounce pass through the lane resulted in a bucket and Lincoln was exhaling again. With around 1:20 left in the game,

Lincoln was up 62-52 and it would take a total collapse for the Railers to lose this one.

Thankfully Taylorville was forced to foul and while hacking at Hamlin in the corner, they sent the senior to the line with 58.2 seconds left. He made both shots from the free throw line and the 10-point lead was intact, 64-54 the score.

Taylorville’s Ess would not go away down the stretch and he connected for two three-pointers in the final seconds to make things a little too close for comfort.

With the score a tight 64-60, Singleton made a trip to the free throw line. With 25.5 seconds on the clock the sophomore saw the first one roll in and out of the basket, but he hit the second one and Lincoln stretched it out to a 65-60 lead.

Thank goodness, because things are about to get frightening, no need to run for the storm shelter yet, but close, folks, close.

It was around 15.0 seconds when Ess launched one again from three-point land and he threw his arms up in jubilation as the ball sailed through the net. Taylorville was within two points, 65-63, as Lincoln took the ball out of bounds.

A Tornado steal would change everything. But that didn’t happen. With the score 65-63, the Tornadoes fouled Froebe in the corner and he made the long walk to the free throw line at the other end of the court with only Singleton following him.

The 7.5 seconds left on the clock were intense, but not as intense as the two free throws Froebe had to knock down. He is cash money at the line and if you need a loan, he’s the go-to-guy. The lefty knocked ‘em down without touching the rim and Lincoln was up 67-63.

Taylorville’s final possession was under heavy defensive pressure by the Railers. A couple forced bad passes did the Tornadoes in. The clock ran out on Taylorville with Froebe and Livingston on the floor scrambling for the ball. Of course it did. Froebe was everywhere in this game!

Railers WIN! Railers WIN!

Lincoln improves to 4-0 overall and 1-0 in the Apollo Conference.

Taylorville falls to 4-1 with their first conference loss, but this is a Tornado team that will undoubtedly win a lot of ballgames.

Keys to the game:

- Lincoln Railers placed four players in double-figures: Froebe (19), Hamlin (14), Ewald (11) and Whiteman (10).

- Funk comes off the bench to toss in 6 points.

- Froebe passes for 10 assists.

- Hamlin pulls down 8 rebounds.

- Lincoln shot 3-for-10 from behind the three-point line in the first half. Not a positive note but the team dialed back the three-pointers in the second half (3-for-5) and relied on the points in the paint a little more.

- overall the Railers boasted a 62 percent field goal percentage.

- the free throw shooting was off at 50 percent for Lincoln as the Railers only knocked down 13-for-26 here. Not even gonna ask Coach Al for a comment on that stat.

- Taylorville deserves all the credit in the world for not giving up and proving themselves. Their shooting percentages were all less than 50 percent, so it was obviously not their best game, but they battled tough against a Railer team that is quietly going to make a lot of noise this season.

- Taylorville’s Jase Bergschneider led the team with 19 points and Ryan Ess scored a respectable 18 points.

- Finally the atmosphere in the gym was spectacular. Deafening loud for sure and filled will thunderous applauses from both sides. This made the memories of Friday night basketball, November 30, 2018 in particular, a true moment to treasure.

These Railers are so much fun, folks. Come see them in action this Tuesday night, December 4th, as they take on Mattoon on Lincoln’s own Neil Alexander Court. Can’t wait to see what Railer Nation brings!

[picture and article by Teena Lowery]