Rebooted Railers get 7th consecutive win with 39-36 victory over Eisenhower

 

[February 08, 2025]  DECATUR – Don’t call it a comeback. It’s actually more of a reboot.

The LCHS boys basketball team ran its winning streak to seven games when the Railers beat Eisenhower in a 39-36 thriller Friday night.

“They’re a tough team to prepare for, because they do so many things,” Railer head coach Neil Alexander said of Eisenhower. “It was a great preparation game.”

The game came down the final 9.9 seconds when Eisenhower trailed 39-36 but had the ball out of bounds in front of its own bench. The Panthers tried to work it around against the smothering Railer defense but couldn’t get a good look for a shot. Finally, as time was dwindling, Eisenhower’s Tishawn Clemmons attempted a three-point shot from the left wing. His shot hit the left side of the rim, bounced across to the right, then spun and hit the rim once more before falling out. Time expired, and Lincoln won 39-36.

The win was the seventh in a row for Lincoln, moving the Railers’ record to 17-8 overall on the season and 5-4 in the Central State 8 Conference.

Some might look at the Railers’ recent wave of success as a bit of a revenge tour (or perhaps an “avenge tour?”) to make up for disappointing performances earlier in the season. But it doesn’t seem appropriate to view Lincoln’s recent win streak as some kind of revenge or comeback, because that implies the squad was primed for success earlier in the season.

However, Frank Sanders was slowed by leg issues that lingered from football season. Karson Komnick went down with an injury to the wrist of his shooting hand in the sixth game of the year. And Drew Hayes was hobbled by injury just under a month into the season. Those injuries to key contributors coupled with sickness and injuries to other players put the Railers at a disadvantage before the opening tip of many games. So it’s difficult to say this wave of wins some kind of a comeback for the squad, because this is really only the first time--during this sustained run--that Lincoln is achieving the type of success many envisioned for the team.

Maybe it’s just easier to look at the string of wins as being the Railer squad playing closer to its full potential now that players seem to be getting healthy.

Head Coach Neil Alexander

“We got off to a good start which really helped,” Alexander said of the win over Eisenhower. “We’re still fighting it; we’ve got guys who have been sick and it’s going to take a little bit of time to get them back and into the flow of things and get them basically stronger.”

One key in Lincoln’s recent run of success has been the team’s defense. For the season, Lincoln has held opponents to an average of 42.1 points per contest. However, the Railer defense has been even more stingy as of late, allowing only 33.1 points per contest during its seven-game winning streak, including the three games during which the squad allowed the fewest points this season (29 points given up to Glenwood, 30 given up to both Taylorville and Mattoon).

Eisenhower opened the scoring in the first quarter when Marcus Page hit a putback following an offensive rebound. That put the Panthers up 2-0; that was the only lead Eisenhower held all game.
On the next Railer possession, Drew Hayes nailed a three pointer from near the top of the key. Lincoln made 5 field goals in the first period; four of them were from beyond the three-point line.

Lincoln opened up a double-digit lead in the first period and led 14-6 at the end of the quarter.

Friday night against Glenwood, Lincoln didn’t get it’s 14th point until almost midway through the third quarter.

The Railers set the tone early again in the second period as Drew Hayes fed Brady Miller who hit from beyond the arc to give the Railers their largest lead of 11 points. However, the Panthers clawed their way back, and a buzzer beating three-pointer by Jahmeal Beasley pulled Eisenhower to within four points at the half, 23-19.

It was déjà vu all over again in the third quarter, as this time it was Karson Komnick hitting a three pointer to open the scoring and extend the lead for the Railers. Eisenhower kept fighting; the Panthers outscored Lincoln 10-8 in the period but Lincoln led 31-29 heading into the fourth quarter.

Eisenhower creeped closer as time moved along. Lincoln was clinging to a two-point lead late in the quarter when Brody Tungate was fouled on a drive to the basket. Tungate hit the pair of free throws he was awarded to give the Railers a 39-36 lead.

That set up Lincoln’s final stand against Eisenhower, and when Clemmons’ three-point attempt fell off the rim, the Railers escaped with the victory.

Karson Komnick

Komnick led all scorers with 18 points. Brody Tungate added nine and Frank Sanders tallied five.

Clemmons led Eisenhower with nine points.

The Railer reboot tour continues in Springfield on Saturday afternoon when the Railers face Lanphier in a 2:30 contest. Following a Sunday without a game, Lincoln will host Bloomington in a nonconference game Monday night before traveling to Sacred Heart-Griffin on Tuesday evening.

[Loyd Kirby]