By Steve Raymond
ET Sports Report
The Mt. Zion Braves are tall and quick.
They are aggressive at both ends of the floor and feature a balanced scoring attack.
And they are poised to be a force to reckon with for years as they start three sophomores and a junior and have a talented 6’7” freshman as their sixth man.
All of this was on display Friday night when the conference-leading Braves paid a visit to Effingham.
The Hearts played hard and even led early. But in the end, it was the talented Mt. Zion squad that came away with a 59-48 victory.
“The sky is the limit for that team,” EHS coach Obie Farmer said. “They are a very talented team. But this type of game makes us better and helps prepare us for the post-season. We grew some tonight by playing a team like Mt. Zion.”
Farmer’s game plan was clock management.
“The more we have the ball, the less they do,” he said. “We wanted to run 30 seconds or more off the clock with each possession. When we had the opportunity to score, we took them. But we wanted to pass up the good shot for a great shot.”
Ian Winkler poured in 36 points, including 12 in the fourth period Tuesday night, helping the Richland County (Olney) Tigers pull away and post a 66-52 victory at home over Effingham.
Winkler started the game hot, pumping in 13 points in the opening eight minutes, helping the Tigers break out to an 18-7 lead. But the Hearts fought their way back, closing to within 41-37 after three periods of play. Olney then closed the game on a 25-15 run.
The big difference was at the free throw line. The Tigers shot 38 free throws, making 24, while the Hearts had just 14 foul shots and made 8.
Andrew Splechter led Effingham with 14 points, while Logan Heil added 11.
The Hearts dropped to 6-10 on the season. They will return home Friday to face Mt. Zion in an Apollo Conference game.
By Steve Raymond
ET Sports Report
From the outhouse to the penthouse.
That’s the journey Andrew Splechter took Friday morning.
“I felt like Andrew could bring more than he did the last couple games. I talked to him about it and he agreed,” Effingham coach Obie Farmer said. “I need kids that are going to play hard, so we brought him in off the bench today.”
Splechter scored seven points in the second quarter that kept the Hearts within striking distance. But he saved his best for last, pumping in 15 points in the fourth period to help Effingham post a 55-46 victory over Oak Lawn in the seventh place game of the Effingham-Teutopolis Christmas Classic.
“When I put him in for the first time, I looked at him and said, ‘Let’s see it,’” Farmer added. “He knows our expectations and he came through in a big way. Andrew performed like a grown man today. I’m proud of him.”
With 3:54 left in the third period, the Hearts found themselves trailing the Spartans, 35-23. But that’s when the remarkable comeback began.
A pair of free throws by Splechter started a decisive run by EHS. Gunner Brown, who replaced Splechter in the starting lineup, the scored the next six points to trim the lead to 35-31 heading into the fourth period.
Spencer Fox scored after grabbing an offensive rebound and Splechter converted consecutive Oak Lawn turnovers in baskets to cap the 14-0 scoring spree and give the Hearts their first lead since it was 6-2.
“We started attacking the basket much better,” Farmer noted. “We started using our shot fakes and they bit. We were able to beat them off dribble. We got a few layups, hit some shots and finished at the rim.”
The Champaign Centennial Chargers needed a fourth quarter rally to get past Effingham in a third-round game of the Effingham-Teutopolis Christmas Classic on Thursday night.
The underdog Hearts outscored Centennial 28-17 over the middle two quarters to erase an eight-point first-quarter deficit and take 33-30 advantage into the final eight minutes.
But the Chargers outscored the Hearts 19-11 in that final period to get the victory.
Preston Sledge pace Centennial with a game-high 19 points.
The Hearts had three players in double figures. Garrett Wolfe led the way with 13 points, while Andrew Donaldson scored 12 and Logan Heil added 10.
The Hearts dipped to 5-10 on the season. They will play in the seventh place at 11:30 a.m. Friday against Oak Lawn. That game will be in the EHS main gym. Centennial will face Chicago Brooks in the fifth place contest at 3 p.m.
Here is a recap of the other games played Thursday night.
Lincoln-Way East 65; Pleasant Plains 31
The LWE Griffins showed why they are considered the tournament favorites, jumping out to a big lead and then rolling to a 65-31 victory over Pleasant Plains.
Lincoln-Way East will now face Teutopolis for the tournament championship at 7:30 p.m. Friday.
The Griffins raced to a 25-11 lead in the opening eight minutes. By halftime, the lead had expanded to 36-13.
George Bellevue was the team’s only scorer in double figures, finishing with 18 points. Ten different LWE players cracked the scoring column. Zach Powell had 10 points for Pleasant Plains.
The Cardinals will now face St. Anthony in the third place game. That contest is scheduled for 6 p.m. Friday.
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