East St. Louis spoils Belleville East’s senior night, shelves late season slump
East St. Louis bounced back after dropping four of its last six games with a tough 59-45 victory over host Belleville East on Friday night.
The Flyers conclude the regular season with a 20-8 overall record and 8-4 Southwestern Conference mark, which sits them at second in the league.
“We’re learning to win high level games; most importantly we played together and that’s what is going to catapult us into a long postseason,” East St. Louis coach Mark Chambers said. “I think we’re the best team in the area ... we sent a message to let everybody know we’re not going anywhere.”
Kansas State recruit Macaleab Rich posted 10 points for the Flyers that changed the momentum of the game.
However, the unexpected star of the showdown was guard Robert McCline who posted 19 points, while knocking down five trey balls.
“I feel good to be back on the court and find my rhythm again,” McCline said. “Regarding the upcoming postseason mindset: I need to keep executing on offense, keep getting defensive stops and keep knocking down shots for my team.”
Belleville East dropped its third game of the month while finishing regular season at 25-6 overall, 7-5 in league play.
“They made shots when they needed to and did well on the offensive glass — we just couldn’t knock shots down,” Creek said. “We just need to wash this game, get ready to play Granite City on Wednesday and hopefully we’ll be in the regional championship on Friday (Feb. 24).”
Lancers forward Antwine Wilson led all scorers with 20 points and guard Jordan Pickett was second for the squad with 12 points.
East St. Louis posted an 8-4 lead early in the first quarter. Wilson knocked down two consecutive three’s to tie the score at 10 apiece before teammate Darien Singleton put in another three-ball for a 13-10 at the end of the quarter.
Pickett led the Lancers on a 8-2 run to begin the second quarter with two deep 3-pointers for a 21-12 margin. The Flyers, however, went on a 17-5 surge to conclude the quarter after multiple three’s from McCline and D’Necco Rucker for a 29-26 halftime margin.
During the early minutes of the third quarter, Rich notched a big dunk and Dainen Rucker hit a trey to anchor a 10-4 run. The Flyers ultimately led 45-37 heading into the fourth quarter.
Wison and Pickett attempted to spark a comeback, but McCline hit a dagger three for a 12-point margin with less than four minutes left.
Next up
Both teams open postseason action at 6 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 22, as Belleville East faces Granite City at O’Fallon and East St. Louis faces Taylorville at Jacksonville.
