The Hearts didn’t let up in the second half, outscoring the Trojans 37-28 in the final 16 minutes. Parker Wolfe drained three more from behind the arc and tallied 14 points and Thompson added 10 more, as Effingham continued to expand the margin.

Parker Wolfe finished with six threes and a game-high 25 points, while Thompson turned in an incredible 24-point, 19-rebound double-double performance. Stoneburner and Garrett Wolfe also reached double figures, adding 15 and 12 points respectively.

“Nate attacked the basket and finished around the rim all night,” Farmer said. “He even had a couple dunks that got everybody excited.”

The Hearts shot 49 percent overall, connecting on 30-of-61 attempts. They were 11-for-26 from long range and 6-of-10 from the foul line.

“Yesterday at practice, we watched some film and just talked,” the EHS coach noted. “The last couple games, we were sloppy and just hadn’t played our game. I challenged the guys to play one more week of good basketball. I think they wanted the same thing. They were really dialed in tonight.”

Following the game, Coach Farmer was surprised to find out that both Mahomet-Seymour and Mattoon lost Tuesday night. That gives those two teams, plus Lincoln and Teutopolis, four conference losses. The Hearts, who are now 11-1 in league play, have a three-game advantage with just two conference games to go.

“Being conference champs feels good,” Farmer admitted. “We wanted to win every game this season and I thought we had a chance to do that. But we have stayed focused at taking just one game at a time. I think winning the Apollo was a by-product of that approach.”

The Hearts improved to 15-1 overall. They will return home for their final two games, both Apollo Conference match-ups, of the season -- Friday against Mattoon, which will be Senior Night; and Saturday against Charleston, which was rescheduled from earlier in the season due to COVID concerns in Charleston.

“We’re trying to finish out with two more wins,” Farmer said. “Mattoon will be a tough game and I’m sure Charleston will be motivated to play better against us. We can’t just show up and expect to win. We need to come out, play hard and end this season on a high note.”