News editor
When Hillsboro took on Lyons in its third game of the Moundridge tournament Friday, they did so with a question mark: What Trojans team would show up?
Would it be the one that thrashed Inman 57-38 in the first round, or the one that suffered a fourth-quarter meltdown in a 49-44 loss to Moundridge the night before?
As it turned out, it was neither.
This time, the Trojans went flat late in the first quarter after Austin Cross protested a foul call and was slapped with a technical foul. Lyons hit all 4 free-throws to take a 12-8 lead.
Over the next 6 minutes, Hillsboro hit just one basket, halting the skid when Elias Worth connected on a 3-pointer with 3 minutes, 7 seconds left in the second quarter. He followed that with a driving layup, but the Trojans trailed 22-15 at the half.
Coach Darrel Knoll kept the Trojans in the locker room until just 15 seconds remained of halftime. After the Trojans turned the ball over on their first two possessions of the third quarter, he called a timeout.
The extra coaching was to no avail, as Lyons extended its lead to 12 points, 32-20.
But the Trojans turned the tide in the final 1:39 of the period. They scored 9 points, punctuated by a Werth 3-pointer as time ran out, pulling to within 34-29.
With 3:05 remaining, the Trojans had tied game at 40. Lyons then missed six consecutive free throws. Cross grabbed a rebound to give Hillsboro the ball with 1:29 remaining.
After a timeout, the Trojans ran a set play, but no shot was available, so they let almost a minute elapse before going for the final shot.
The ball came to Werth, who drove into the lane and pulled up for a soft 10-footer that went in with 1.3 seconds left, giving Hillsboro its only lead of the game.
Lyons got off a long 3-pointer that missed, giving the Trojans a 42-40 win. They finished the tournament 2-1.
Hillsboro will play Thursday against Remington at Brown Gymnasium.