TOLONO - There weren't a lot of open spaces in the stands to plop down and watch the ensuing epic basketball game between visiting St. Joseph-Ogden and the host Unity at the Rocket Center on Friday. While it was a mild winter's evening outside, it was the heat and humidity of a Florida spring in the near-capacity-filled gym. The air was brewing with palatable excitement as the two teams with a combined record of 45-8, each enjoying a four-game win streak heading toward tipoff, warmed up.
Unity's Dane Eisenmenger tries to keep St. Joseph-Ogden's Luke Landrus from getting deep penetation into the paint during first quarter action of their Illini Prairie Conference game on Friday. See more photos below.
Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks
Unity (23-3) snagged the opening tip and it wasn't long before fans were forced to the edge of their seats by the 5's,
Unity's Henry Thomas and
SJO's Logan Smith. The two seniors, who later hugged after St. Joseph-Ogden (23-6) prevailed in the 73-72 overtime win, put on an impressive show of basketball skill, tenacity, and mental toughness.
"This was a fun basketball game," said Unity head coach Matt Franks. "This is what high school basketball is all about. I thought it was a great atmosphere."
Smith, who finished the contest with a game-high 29 points had five assists and three rebounds, drew first blood on a layup to momentarily put St. Joseph-Ogden in the lead on the scoreboard.
St. Joseph-Ogden head coach Kiel Duval said players like Smith, with his mindset, are tough to beat.
"It is tough to knock him down. He is an absolute winner," he said. "He has a 'refuse to lose' mentality. When you've got that, you are tough to beat."
On the next two possessions, Thomas scored in the paint giving, and Dalton O'Neill added two more points on a reverse layup to give the Rockets a 6-2 lead.
"Henry has worked really, really hard to get his game to where he can have a night like this," Frank said. Thomas finished the contest with a team-high 27 points and was four-for-eight from the charity stripe. Two Fridays earlier, the senior scored his 1,000th career point against Prairie Central at the Rocket Center. "I think it was a perfect combination of teammates moving the ball well so Henry can do what he does."
The Spartans would even the score on two free throws from Luke Landus and a jumper from junior Coy Taylor, tying the game at six-all.
After buckets from Unity's Tyler Henry and Eric Miebach, Andrew Thomas drains a trey, putting the Rockets up 13-6 with 1:20 left in the quarter. Flustered, the Spartans called a timeout.
The Rockets continued to lead on the scoreboard until Smith knotted the game at 19-all. After converting a free throw, SJO takes a 20-19 lead.
Unity shotmaking went cold after Coleton Langendorf hit his free throw to tie the game again at 20-all. Taking advantage of the lull, the Spartans make an 11-point run, going up 31-20.
In control the rest of the first half through the first four minutes of the fourth quarter, SJO held a comfortable lead on their hosts until the last four minutes and 12 seconds of regulation time when Henry Thomas racked up eight points consecutive points, trimming his team's deficit from seven to two, 64-66.
"We got into foul trouble and had some bad matchups," Duval explained. "Their best player got looks at the basket. Once we got into foul trouble, we had trouble recovering from that. We kind of went away from doing some of the stuff we did to get good looks."
With 10.7 seconds left in the game, SJO's Tanner Jacob sinks the first of two free throws and misses the insurance basket. Unity gets the rebound and the ball down to Dane Eisenminger, who pumped a shot outside the arc in front of his team's bench. The trey falls with three seconds left in regulation time, sending the game into overtime at 67-all and the Rocket Center into an unabashed frenzy.
Smith was the only player from either team to hit a field goal in overtime, helping St. Joseph-Ogden tallied six points against Unity's five to end one of the most exciting basketball games in the St. Joe-Unity rivalry.
"Both teams played really hard," Franks said. "A game like this could have gone all night. It was great basketball."
A free throw away from a second overtime, Franks said his game plan would have been to stay poised and composed if they had to go another session.
"(We would) stay in the moment. It's all about the next possession, and we'd have to just focus on that," he said. "St. Joe is a great team, and it takes a great effort to beat them."
Duval was expecting a dogfight and had no illusions, counting unhatched chickens. Earlier in the season, SJO suffered two losses in the last-second heartbreakers. The first in a
non-conference game at Beecher 55-53, and the second on a
buzzer-beater in the Small School Division State Farm Holiday Classic championship game to El Paso-Gridley.
"There were two good teams battling back and forth. We knew they were going to throw another punch," he said. "They are at home. They always play better at home."
Also contributing to SJO's scoring effort was Luke Landrus, who finished with 13 points, and Coy Taylor, 3-for-3 at the line, with 12 points. Tanner Siems had eight points, and Tanner Jacob drained a pair of treys and a free throw to finish with seven points.
Andrew Thomas, Henry's twin, finished with 13 points, and Dalton O'Neill, who went five-for-six on free throws, contributed 12 points. Eric Meibach (9), Dane Eisenmenger (5), Jay Saunders (3), and Tyler Henry (2) contributed in the Rockets' effort. Coleton Langendorf hit a solo free throw for one point.
"It was like a sectional championship game," Duval said, talking about the atmosphere. "That was huge. I am proud that our guys found a way to win."
Game Gallery
Dye wasn’t the only standout for Danville, as Jerry Reed III added 17 points and went a perfect 2-for-2 from the free-throw line, while Javaughn Robinson contributed 16 points, making all four of his free throws.
Unity controlled much of the game, taking a 38-32 halftime lead after hitting all nine of their second-quarter free throws. They entered the fourth quarter ahead 55-53 but couldn’t maintain their momentum. The Rockets shot well from the line overall, finishing 17-for-19. Brayden Henry led the way with a perfect 5-for-5 performance, and Colton Langendorf went 4-for-4. Overall, the Rockets were 17-for-19 from the line.
Dane Eisenmenger led Unity with a team-high 17 points, Henry finished with 13 points, and Langendorf chipped 10 points to lead the team's scoring effort in the loss.
With the loss behind them, the Rockets now turn their focus to a critical road matchup against St. Joseph-Ogden (18-7) tonight at 7 p.m. With an undefeated Illini Prairie Conference record on the line, a Unity win would secure them the outright conference championship. A loss, however, would create a potential tie for the title with the Spartans, who sit at 6-1 in IPC play.
The Rockets have navigated a challenging schedule this season leading up to this game, squaring off against larger programs and top-ranked teams, including three area Big 12 teams: Danville, Centennial, and Central, along with Tuetopolis and Lincoln-Way East. Playing away shouldn't pose a significant challenge for Unity, boasting an impressive 9-1 record on the road this season.
MONTICELLO - Their second game of the season against Warrensburg-Latham was over by halftime. The Unity girls' basketball team enjoyed a 23-9 lead thanks to Addison Ray's three treys in the first two periods en route to a 49-34 regional semifinal win over the Cardinals on Monday.
Illinois College recruit Raegen Stringer (six rebounds, four assists) led all scorers with 17 points for the Rockets. Ray tacked on five points to her first-half total, finishing with 14 points and five rebounds. Clare Meharry came off the bench and contributed double digits, contributing 10 points to the cause.
Unity's Lauren Haas and Meredith Reed finished the game with four points each. Haas, who dished out three assists, led the team on the boards with eight rebounds.
Two weeks ago, the Rockets beat the Cardinals at home in their non-conference game, 54-46.
Sophomore Delaney Garner paced the Warrensburg-Latham scoring effort with 12 points. Meanwhile, Breanna Dutcher went four-for-four from the free-throw line to finish with seven points.
Advancing to the Monticello regional title game, Unity will face Paris, who are also 19-11. The Tigers advanced after knocking off the host Sages, 42-37.
