“We missed a lot of free throws,” said EHS coach Obie Farmer. “They kept sending us to the line, but we were unable to close out the game. Guys that are typically good free throw shooters didn’t make them tonight.

“Plus, we missed a lot of assignments on our press there at the end,” Farmer added. “It was almost like we were satisfied with the lead and quit playing. I don’t enjoy finishing the game like that. It leaves a bad taste in my mouth. But it shows me things we need to work on in practice.”

It was that same press, however, that turned the game around.

Mattoon dominated much of the first half. Thomas netted 15 points in the first eight minutes, helping the Green Wave build a 22-16 edge by the end of the quarter.

“Thomas is a heckuva player,” Farmer noted. “He made his game more dynamic tonight than he did last week (when he was held to four points). He’s a good shooter, can attack off the dribble and rebounds well. He’s a good, solid player.”

The Hearts didn’t shoot well the first half, while Mattoon torched the nets at a 62 percent clip. After a shot from behind the arc by Compton, the Green Wave owned a 36-25 advantage with 3:31 to play in the second period.

The Hearts got back in the game by closing out the half on a 9-2 run. Drew Thompson sparked that surge with two 3-pointers, helping EHS get within 38-34 at intermission.

But things started to change when the Hearts began to apply full-court pressure on defense. They trailed 42-40 when that press changed the pace of the game and Effingham exploded on a 15-0 scoring spree.

Jacob Briggerman and Nate Thompson both scored four points to get the surge started. Drew Thompson then went on a personal 7-0 run that put the Hearts on top 55-42. Heading into the final eight minutes, EHS still owned a double-digit lead, 59-49.

Scoring was almost non-existent the first four minutes of the fourth quarter. A total of three points were scored. But Drew Thompson made four free throws, Parker Wolfe turned in a three-point play and Nate Thompson converted a turnover into another score, giving the Hearts their 17-point lead.

The Green Wave turned the ball over seven times in the second half and five of those resulted in easy baskets. And their shooting was nowhere near what it was in the first half. In fact, until their late surge in the final three minutes, they shot less than 30 percent.

 “We only bring out the press in certain situations,” Farmer explained. “Those situations didn’t present themselves in the first half. Our goal isn’t to turn the other team over. If it happens, that’s the cherry on top. We use the press to either speed up or slow down the other team. We wanted to speed Mattoon up tonight.”

The Hearts received a couple of outstanding performances.

One was certainly turned in by Drew Thompson. He was 7-of-15 from the floor and knocked down 13-of-14 free throws. He finished with a career-high 30 points, with 22 of those coming in the second half. He was 7-of-8 from the line in the fourth quarter.

“Between Drew, Nate and Parker, one or two of those guys are going to be on every night,” Farmer said. “Tonight it was Drew. He hit his shots, made a lot of free throws and was strong to the basket. He lifted us up tonight. He was the difference.”

Effingham also got a strong performance from Briggerman off the bench. He and Stoneburner are going to share playing time in the post. Stoneburner was in foul trouble much of the game, so Briggerman saw a lot of minutes. The 6’5” junior had five points and six rebounds. The Stoneburner-Briggerman combination had nine points and nine rebounds.

“Briggerman has been putting in real good work at practice. He came up big for us tonight,” Farmer said. “We worked a lot on post defense this week. I’m looking for 10 points and 10 rebounds between the two every game.”

In addition to Drew Thompson, the Hearts had two other players in double figures. Nate Thompson finished with 18 and Wolfe added 13. Nate Thompson also pulled down a game-high nine rebounds and Wolfe grabbed eight more.

Effingham shot 41 percent overall, making 22-of-54 shots from the floor. They were 6-of-24 from three-point range and 26-for-44 from the foul line.

The Hearts improved to 4-1 on the season and 1-0 in the conference. They will play at home Tuesday against Olney and then travel to Lincoln Friday night.