The Kewanee Boilers were able to absorb the excitement and fatigue of Tuesday night’s overtime win against Princeton and refocus their attention on a quick turnaround 75-54 Wednesday night win at Orion (15-13).
Fatigue didn’t seem to be an issue as the Boilers (22-8) rolled to a 16-8 first quarter lead. Blaise Lewis scored nine in the opening frame for Kewanee.
The Boilers cranked it up a notch in the second quarter and put up 24 points to Orion’s 14, extending Kewanee’s lead 40-22 at the half.
Braden Clark and Kashen Ellerbrock played key roles in the second quarter push. Clark scored 11 and Ellerbrock entered the game and made three treys for nine points.
Clark put in 14 first half points, while Lewis and Ellerbrock each scored 11 in the first half.
“After an emotional game last night I was a little concerned about how we’d react physically and emotionally,” said Kewanee Coach Matt Clark, “but we came out and took it to Orion on the offensive end, moved the ball well and knocked down open shots the entire first half,” he added.
“Kashen Ellerbrock was big in the first half knocking down shots. It’s hard to come off the bench and hit shots but Kash is a really good shooter and he’s been putting in extra time to regain his jump shot,” noted Clark.
Orion played an inspired third quarter and topped Kewanee 19-14, but the Boilers held a 54-41 lead after three quarters of play. Kyler Owens scored 11 points for Orion.
The Boilers scored in bulk again in the fourth quarter, outscoring the Chargers 21-13 en route to the 75-54 non-conference final. Clark tacked on eight more points in the frame and Ellerbrock made another three-pointer.
Jacob Bainbridge and Gus Nedved combined to score 11 points for Orion.
“Give credit to Coach Anderson and his players,” said Clark. “They came out in the third quarter and raised their level of effort and it caused us some trouble. The physicality was being allowed and they took advantage of it.”
Clark was happy with how his team finished strong. “Our in-season weight room sessions have paid off for us. We’re more physical now than we were at the beginning of the season,” he added. “Their hard work has paid off and ending the regular season with 22 wins is proof of that.”
Clark led all scorers with 26 points, while Lewis and Ellerbrock each had 14 on the night.
For Orion, Kyler Owens finished with 15, Nedved had 11 and Maddux Arnold chipped in with 10 points.
