Sports

Lincolnton ekes out a pair of  home wins over Shelby

STAFF REPORTS

Jan. 16, 2002 - Eric Wilson picked the perfect time to end his struggles at the free throw line.

The sophomore guard hit eight of nine free throws, including six straight in the final two minutes, as Lincolnton held on to beat Shelby 54-51 Tuesday night at home.

Wilson, who finished with a team-high 16 points, scored the Wolves' final seven points, all from the charity stripe.

"He's been struggling a little," Lincolnton coach Bob Cowie said of Wilson's free throw accuracy. "He's shooting about 60 percent, and he should be up around 75 percent. But he knocked those down tonight."

The win, Lincolnton's second straight in the Midwest 2A Conference, was an encouraging sign for a team that has lost several close games this year, including two conference setbacks by a total of four points.

"We showed some maturity against Bandys (a 66-61 win) last Friday, and we did again tonight," Cowie said. "We're starting to play better. We made good decisions, knocked down free throws and did the things it takes to win close basketball games."

Lincolnton made fewer mistakes down the stretch than Shelby in a game that was tight throughout. Shelby led 27-25 at the break, and the biggest lead of the second half was only four points.

After Lincolnton tied the game at 49 on two Eric Wilson free throws, the visiting Golden Lions (7-6, 3-2) made three turnovers in the final 1:36.

Meanwhile, Wilson cashed in at the line, giving the Wolves a four-point lead at 53-49 with 39 seconds remaining.

Shelby's final turnover came with six seconds left, and Wilson added a free throw to make the score 54-51.

 The Golden Lions still had a chance to force overtime, but Will Young missed a 25-footer as time expired.

Eric Wilson was the only Lincolnton player in double figures, but there was balanced scoring through the rest of the lineup. Darren Wilson, Jeremy Degree and Bryan Finger had eight points apiece for the depth-shy Wolves, who dressed out only eight players.

The Wolves turned up their defense in the fourth quarter, limiting Shelby to only seven points for the eight-minute stretch.

Young led Shelby in scoring with 16 points on 8-of-13 shooting.

After a 1-7 start, Lincolnton has improved to 3-7 overall and 3-2 in the Midwest 2A Conference. Cowie thinks the Wolves can make a run in the so-called "second season."

"The conference race is wide open. Everyone in the conference has at least one loss.  We have a chance to make these bad times at the beginning into something positive," Cowie said.

The Wolves travel to Bunker Hill on Friday and return home next Tuesday to face East Rutherford.

Girls

Lincolnton 48, Shelby 45

A freshman turned in the game-winning play as Lincolnton improved to 4-1 in the Midwest 2A Conference (5-4 overall).

With her team trailing 45-44, Shantae Shank drove into the lane and hit a running jumper with 30 seconds remaining, putting Lincolnton ahead to stay.

Shelby missed a shot on its next possession, and Lincolnton's Andrea Smith scored on a putback with three seconds left to seal the win.

Lincolnton's balanced attack was led by Andrea Stroup with 16 points, Lauren Bartholomew with 11 and freshman Lindsey Sain with 10. Smith had a strong game on the boards with 10 rebounds.

© 2001 Lincoln Times-News  

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