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 No one was quite sure what Lincoln's emotions would be just one
night after dropping a stunner to Springfield High at home. It was
evident from the beginning that the previous night's game was not on
the minds of the players and their total focus was on the Spartans.
Seniors Nathaniel Smith and Jordan Nelson combined for 46 points on
the night to break a string of losses to Southeast that seems to
have stretched back years. It was Nelson's hot shooting that
propelled the Railers to the early advantage, hitting three 3s
as part of his 12 points in the first quarter, helping Lincoln to a
14-7 lead at the end of one.
Austin Kirby's 3 to start the second quarter continued a 15-3
Lincoln run as the Railers jumped out to a double-digit lead at
17-7. Another Nelson 3 pushed the lead to 25-10. It was at that
point that Southeast scored on consecutive possessions for the only
time in the half, cutting their deficit back to 10 at 25-15. Enter
Mr. Smith.
 The senior scored his first four points of the game
by being
aggressive to the basket, both scoring and getting fouled and
hitting his free throws. Smith led in rebounding on the night with
six boards for the Railers, who outrebounded Southeast 28-25.
Smith finished the half with seven, and the last 3 put a dagger
in any momentum the Spartans were hoping to carry into the locker
room at the half. After scoring late in the quarter to cut the Railer
lead to 35-22, the Spartans did nothing to stop Smith from driving
downcourt, pulling up just to the right of the top of the key and
draining a 3 as time expired, bringing the Railer Nation in
attendance out of their seats.
If there was to be a 16-point lead at the half, there weren't too
many who would have given the Railers a chance of being the ones
holding it.
However, this was not a situation the Spartans were unaccustomed to
being in. Southeast has faced double-digit deficits in three of the
last four games so they were very familiar on how to come back.
Southeast made a big push at the beginning of the third and, halfway
through the quarter, the Spartans had carved the Lincoln lead in
half at 42-34.
The Railers did not panic. They got back-to-back scores from Nelson
and Brant Coyne, getting the lead back to 12. A basket from Christian
Van Hook was the only other Lincoln scoring until the end of the quarter
that saw the Railers up nine, 48-39.
The fourth quarter belonged to Smith. "Smitty" was not to be denied
inside, showed strong physical play and showed some of the emotion
exhibited by all the players, an emotion that showed everyone at Scheffler Gymnasium that, on this night, they would not lose. Smith
scored the first nine points of the quarter for Lincoln, the biggest
coming at the 6:08 mark.
 With Southeast back to within eight at 50-42, Smith went up
strong on the inside, hit the shot and got fouled. After converting
the free throw, Lincoln was back up double digits at 53-42. The game
continued to go back and forth as Southeast started to find their
shooting eye from long range. After the Spartans hit three in a row,
the lead was cut to five at 57-52.
One area Lincoln where has not been up to its usual standards so far this
season is from the free-throw line, coming into the contest hitting
only 67 percent on the season. Part of the success the Railers have
at the line as a team is getting the ball to the right players at
the right time.
On Saturday night, those players were Nelson and Smith. The
seniors converted the last six free throws, and no matter how hard
Southeast tried, this one was going to go in the win column for the
Railers.
Even though Southeast hit two more 3s, they could only watch
as Smith held the ball out of bounds after their last make, not
risking the inbounds, and listening to the horn sound on their
unblemished conference mark (10-4, 5-1).
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One thing Railer fans know is that if you live by the 3, you can
die by the 3. On nights when Lincoln struggles from
long-distance, everything seems off balance. On this night,
Southeast's leading shooter, Herman Senor, had his own struggles,
scoring only five, going 1-10 from beyond the arc.
It was good to get this win as this team needed some confidence. A
double-loss weekend would not have helped. The fact the win was over
Southeast -- well, that may mean a little bit more than if the win was
over someone else.
The Railers were led by Nelson's game high of 26, while Smith scored
20. Kirby added nine, while Coyne and Van Hook chipped in with four
each.
So, was this the full 32 minutes Lincoln coach Neil Alexander has been
looking for? "Well, we had a few lapses where we took some bad
shots," Alexander commented, "but this was a much better team
effort."
 That was the key: This was a TEAM effort. Lincoln ran their
offense, was willing to pass up 3s to step in a few feet or find
a teammate who had a better shot, played tough defense and was
willing to stand up and say we're not going to be pushed around.
Halfway through the regular season, is this the team that will show
up each night? Only time will tell, but, if it does, this team may
still have some special things yet to do.
Lincoln's next contest will be Friday night at SHG. It's back to the
regular starting time with the tip scheduled for 7:30. If you're
planning on going, make sure you get there early as SHG fans like to
pack the gym and hold down the attendance from the visitors,
especially those from Lincoln.
___
Lincoln (63)
Nelson 7-13 7-8 26, Smith 5-8 9-12 20, Kirby 3-4 1-3 9, Coyne 2-3
0-0 4, Van Hook 2-2 0-0 4, Gesner 0-1 0-1 0, Krusz 0-1 0-0 0, Olson
0-0 0-0 0, Cook 0-0 0-0 0. Team 19-32 17-24 63.
3-point field goals
8-16 (Nelson 5-9, Kirby 2-3, Smith 1-2, Coyne 0-1, Gesner 0-1).
Rebounds 28 (Smith 6), assists 13 (3 tied with 3), turnovers 13.
Southeast (58)
Gardner 18, Davis 13, Fleming 7, Jacobby Anderson 6, Senor 5,
Williams 5, Jagger Anderson 3, Smith 1. Team 19-49 12-22 58.
3-point
field goals 8-27 (Gardner 3, Jac. Anderson 2, Senor, Fleming,
Williams).
Rebounds 25, assists 8, turnovers 5.
Score by quarters:
End of first quarter -- LCHS 14, Southeast 7
Halftime -- LCHS 38, Southeast 22
End of third quarter -- LCHS 48, Southeast 39
[By JEFF BENJAMIN]
Jeff Benjamin's Railer basketball articles
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