Galesburg High School's boys basketball team gets off to fast start, beats UT
GALESBURG — The Galesburg High School boys basketball team got off to a fast start against United Township on Friday night in Western Big 6 action at John Thiel Gymnasium.
The Silver Streaks ended up letting their early lead slip away but fought back and hung on for a 59-55 victory over the Panthers.
Galesburg (5-1, 2-1) opened the contest with a 13-0 run on United Township (4-4, 0-3), and Panthers coach Ryan Webber, a 1997 GHS grad who hit the hardwood for the Silver Streaks, was forced to call a full timeout with 4:04 left in the first quarter.
With 2:57 left in the stanza, United Township senior Darius Rogers scored and the Panthers trailed 13-2. Galesburg's Carl Dortch made a bucket in the paint with 2:38 remaining in the first, and the Panthers closed the quarter with a 5-0 run and faced a 15-7 deficit after the first eight minutes.
The second frame was a back-and-forth battle. Galesburg and UT both ended up with 12 points in the quarter, and the Streaks held a 26-19 lead at the half.
UT outscored Galesburg 23-16 in the third quarter, and the affair was knotted up at 42-all heading into the final eight minutes.
The Streaks took the lead for good with 6:15 left in the fourth when senior Koen Derry scored two of his game-high 26 points for a 46-45 Galesburg advantage.
Streaks senior Dre Egipciaco chipped in 14 points, and senior point guard Jeremiah Babers finished with 11 points for Galesburg.
Junior Omarion Roberts and Rogers had 14 points apiece for United Township. Senior Mahki Johnson added 11 points for the Panthers.
Matthew Wheaton can be reached at (309) 315-6073 or at mwheaton@register-mail.com. Follow him on Twitter @matthewlwheaton
This article originally appeared on Galesburg Register-Mail: IHSA Boys Basketball: Streaks hold off Panthers
