EDINBURGH — Playing three basketball games in less than 30 hours perhaps took its toll on Edinburgh and Indianapolis Lutheran as both squads appeared sluggish at times in the Lancers’ two-day tournament consolation battle Tuesday evening.
In the end, Lutheran showed a bit more aggression and benefitted at the free throw line down the stretch to pull out a 62-53 victory for third place. Edinburgh, which went 1-2 in the eight-team event, falls to 3-7 on the season.
Both teams played evenly throughout the first half. The Saints held just a 31-29 lead at intermission before the Lancers managed only six points in the third quarter and came up just short of a momentum-swinging rally midway through the final quarter.
Twice, coach Drew Glentzer’s crew cut Lutheran’s lead to six points late in the game, and a driving layup by Christian Cox pulled the Lancers to within 55-51 with a minute remaining, but the Saints sank five of eight free throws as time melted away en route to the win.
“I think both teams played flat, but (Lutheran) made the bigger plays down the stretch,” Glentzer said. “We were right there a couple of times where a play here or there could have changed things, but the (Saints) just played a little harder.”
Cox kept Edinburgh (3-7) competitive with consistent play throughout the contest to finish with 19 points and eight rebounds, while Kyle Pendleton added 14. The duo connected on four of the team’s six 3-pointers to match Lutheran (5-4) from beyond the arc.
Pendleton, who scored a combined 46 points in Edinburgh’s two games on Monday, struggled offensively against the Saints before suffering a knee injury with 2:33 left in the contest. Fellow senior Bobby Simpson, who registered a two-game total of 34 points Monday, finished with just five.
Lutheran, meanwhile, got a big game from their big man inside where 6-foot-4 senior Shane Miller led all scorers with 23 points and nine rebounds. He got help from the outside from Tommy Miner, who drilled a trio of triples on his way to 17 points.
“We play these guys again in about a week, and the results could be entirely different,” Glentzer said. “This tournament has given us the opportunity to play familiar teams like Lutheran, as well as new teams like Medora and Indianapolis Manual, which only helps us in the long run.”
