Last-Second Heroics Carry Lyons Basketball on to Sectionals

 A man down Wednesday night, wasn’t at full strength going into its sectional semifinal meeting with Curie.

The 26-2 Lions still found a way to win.

After Illinois State-bound guard Nick Zeisloft injured his ankle on practice Tuesday—rendering him inactive for Wednesday’s game—the Lions overcame a competitive Curie side, 66-64, at Argo High School.

“It says a lot about our team character that we can pull through in adversity,” senior guard Mark Sewall said. “Everybody steps up at the right time and we seniors aren’t ready to go home.”

Lyons trailed 64-61 with 36 seconds left, but senior Eric Powers’ game-tying three ball was followed by a Curie turnover, gifting the Lions the ball back with 25 seconds left. Senior forward Nick Burt’s strong drive and lay-up gave the West Suburban Silver Conference champs what proved to be the definitive lead with 1.6 seconds remaining.

Following the win, Zeisloft, Lyons’ leading scorer on the season, spoke praise about the team's clutch performance, refusing to comment on his own status.

“I don’t want to talk about playing Friday or not,” Zeisloft said. “I expected everyone to step up tonight and they did. I had faith in each one of my teammates.”

Lyons senior Eric Powers took on the high scoring role with Zeisloft watching from the bench, scoring 21 points including the game-tying three point shot with 35 seconds left in the fourth quarter.

“I was just so pumped,” Powers said. “I looked to the scoreboard to make sure it was tied. [Zeisloft] is obviously a huge loss but we couldn’t keep our heads down.”

In a thrilling game, neither team led by more than seven points over the course of the evening. A 32-32 halftime score and a 51-50 Curie lead after three quarters was characteristic of the hotly contested matchup.

And while the Lions narrowly escaped Curie’s clutches, they are to face reigning state champion and the Chicago Tribune's No. 2 ranked outfit Simeon on Friday, again at Argo.

With a chance to avenge their 65-35 loss to the Wolverines from last season—a loss that eliminated them from the playoffs—the Lions will likely be forced to play a second game without the standout Zeisloft, who was on crutches during Wednesday's affair.

Powers insisted that the team must be focused, especially without its sharpshooter, to stay competitive Friday.

“We have to play through it,” Powers said. “We have to come ready to play Friday and shoot the ball well. It’s going to be a tough game.”