Lincoln boys tangle with Superior

Calling themselves Mountain Cats, the basketball combine of Alberton - Superior came to Lincoln Jan. 4 to lay claim to “Top Cat in the Western C Conference.”

The road to that achievement looked promising since the Lincoln Lynx top scorer and 2019 All-Conference standout, Nathan Brown, was benched with a disabled ankle that was injured last week.

Surprises were the order of the day, however. With athletic feats of jumping, scoring and stealing, Brodi Henderson took the reins of the squad and led them to a thrilling tie game with 50 seconds left. The final buzzer loomed. But then, the fast paced intense tempo caught up with the Lynx. Henderson and Trenton Grantier both fouled out, replaced by Trever Tolan and Wesson Dempster, eighth graders playing in their second varsity contest. They may have been only junior highers, but they knew their stuff and didn’t seem intimidated by the Mountain Cats who were three and four years older.

The Lynx began every quarter period slightly ahead on the scoreboard. But the final numbers, 43 - 48, reflected the close game and the significant contribution of the maturing younger players. High scoring man was junior guard Henderson with 18 points, four rebounds and two steals. Ryan Greenwood added 13 and six rebounds; Grantier posted ten points and 5 rebounds. Bradley Howard had one basket and used his strength to muscle down five rebounds from the taller opponents.

The hometown, post-holiday crowds are filling up the bleachers so come early to get a seat.