The Braves owned the boards in the first half, which was one of the reasons they erased an early eight-point deficit and turned it into a four-point edge at halftime.

Mt. Zion’s defense forced the Shoes into 16 turnovers through three periods. Plus, T-Town didn’t show its normal patience on offense and ended up taking several bad shots.

At the other end of the floor, however, Mt. Zion ran its offense extremely well, consistently getting open looks from the behind the arc. The Braves knocked down nine three-pointers through the first 2½ quarters. Back-to-back threes by Carson Cuddy gave the visitors their biggest lead of the night, 44-29, at the 3:29 mark of the third period.

“Every game we’ve lost, we’ve been outrebounded,” Reeder said. “That was our No. 1 focus at halftime. They dominated us on the boards. I told them that had to change if we were going to have a chance. I thought the guys did a better job in the second half.

“We got away from what makes us successful in that first half,” Reeder added. “We took bad shots, which allowed them to have some run-outs and get some easy points. Our defense also allowed them to get some easy threes. Once they got comfortable in their sets, it was hard to get them out of it.”

But to the Shoes credit, they never gave up.

Garrett Gaddis scored four points and Brendan Niebrugge knocked down a three, helping THS get to within 48-38 by the end of the third quarter.

The Braves still enjoyed a 12-point spread, 58-46, when the Shoes began a comeback with 3:58 left in the contest.

Gaddis sparked the run with a three from the corner. Brendan Niebrugge added two more from long range and James Niebrugge hit two jumpers, including one with 31 seconds remaining that got the Shoes to with 65-61.

But the Braves made three free throws over the final half minute to secure the victory and improve to 21-2 on the season.

“This is the first time all season we’ve kind of gone in the crapper and bounced back out of it,” Reeder said. “The kids kept talking to each other and encouraging each other. Even when we were 15 down, the kids still had a positive attitude. They fought back and dug themselves out of that hole.

“Mt. Zion threw some haymakers at us tonight,” Reeder added. “But we took their punches, kept getting up and came back on them. I’m really proud of our guys.”

In the early minutes of the game, the Shoes were in control. Brendan Niebrugge connected on three shots from behind the arc in the first 3½ minutes. His third one put THS up 13-5. Logan Roepke also made a three, helping Teutopolis take an 18-14 lead after the first eight minutes.

Mt. Zion tied the game, but a three from Gaddis and a jumper by Caleb Siemer put the Shoes back on top by five, 23-18. Sam Driscoll made a pair of threes and Cuddy added another, helping the Braves go on an 11-4 run to close out the half and take a 29-25 edge to the locker room.

A jumper in the lane by Caleb Bloemer kept it a four-point game in the opening two minutes of the second half, but another three from Driscoll ignited an 11-0 run. Lyncoln Koester converted a turnover into a basket and Cuddy delivered his back-to-back threes, giving the Braves their 15-point cushion.

“They are a really good basketball team,” Reeder said. “They have a lot of good pieces that help them be successful. I was especially impressed with their two guards, Driscoll and Koester. They were in total control of themselves. It was hard to get them speeded up or off-balance. They played under control and made good decisions.”

Koester led all scorers with 20 points. Driscoll finished with 13 points and Cuddy and Brayden Trimble both had 11. The Braves shot 51 percent overall, making 22-of-43 attempts. They were 10-for-18 from long range and 14-for-25 at the foul line. They turned the ball over 15 times and held a 28-24 rebounding edge.

The Shoes also had four players in double figures. Brendan Niebrugge had six threes and finished with 18 points. Gaddis scored 12, while Siemer had 11 and James Niebrugge added 10. The Shoes were 21-of-43 from the floor, a 49 percent clip. They were 9-for-21 from behind the arc and 10-of-14 from the line. They committed 18 turnovers.

THS improved to 16-5 on the season. The Shoes will play Friday at Breese Mater Dei.