The Shoes battled until the end. Zac Niebrugge hit a pair of free throws and Gaddis turned a steal into a basket to get THS within 55-49 with 44 seconds remaining, but that was as close as it got.

The Rockets, who shot a blistering 69 percent in the second half, including 5-of-5 from behind the arc, went 5-for-6 from the foul in in the final 40 seconds to seal the win.

“I thought we did a good job extending the game,” Reeder said. “We attacked the rim, but we didn’t have enough timeouts to stop the clock.”

Until that late scoring spree, the two teams battled on even terms from the outset.

Joey Niebrugge and Gaddis both scored six points in the opening quarter, helping the Shoes take an early five-point lead. A three-pointer by Gaddis right before the buzzer gave the hosts a 14-10 edge.

By intermission, the lead had changed hands seven times. Joey Niebrugge had five more points in the second quarter, but the Rockets owned a slim 22-21 edge.

The Shoes came back to seize the lead in the third period. Tyler Pruemer hit a short jumper, Gaddis nailed a three and added another jumper and Joey Niebrugge scored from in close to cap a 9-1 run and put T-Town on top, 30-25, at the 3:34 mark.

But the Shoes turned the ball over four times in the final 3½ minutes, and Unity took advantage. Andrew Thomas and Eisenmerger both hit three-pointers, helping the Rockets surge back and take a 37-36 lead into the final eight minutes.

“We got up in that third quarter and they started playing chaos again,” Reeder said. “And when they got an open look, they took advantage and made their shots.”

O’Neill finished with 15 points to pace Unity, while Henry Thomas and Eisenmenger added 11 and 10 respectively. The Rockets shot 56 percent for the game, connecting on 18-of-32 attempts. They were 6-for-11 from behind the arc and 18-of-26 from the foul line.

Gaddis scored 19 points and Joey Niebrugge added 17 for the Shoes. They also shot pretty well, knocking down 19-of-39 attempts, a 49 percent clip. They were 4-for-15 from long range and 10-of-17 at the free throw line. Niebrugge and Lawson both pulled down six rebounds. The Shoes ended with those 21 turnovers, while Unity finished with 19.

“I really like our team,” Reeder said. “They have a toughness and grittiness, plus they play so hard. But we can’t give teams that many extra possessions.

“The guys will learn from this,” the coach added. “The coaching staff and I need to put them in spots they can succeed. We have to help them more in practice and that’s on me.”

The Shoes, now 3-2, will travel to Paris on Tuesday.