THE SKINNY
Joliet Central won its second close SouthWest Suburban Blue game of the season over longtime rival Lockport and finished the regular season at 17-9, 9-5. It’s the most wins for the Steelmen since Joliet Central and Joliet West split into separate varsity programs four years ago. Lockport fell to 12-14, 6-8.
TURNING POINT
Trailing 21-17 with just over two minutes left in the first half, Joliet Central went on an 11-0 run – which Jonah Coble capped off with three straight three-pointers. That gave the Steelmen, who led 28-24 at halftime, the lead for good.
THE STAR
Coble. The senior guard finished with a team-high 17 points, 12 of them in the second quarter, and clinched the victory on a pair of free throws with 2.2 seconds to play in the game.
BY THE NUMBERS
Jason McNear scored 11 points and Antonio Dyson added five points and eight rebounds for the Steelmen. Lockport’s Grover Anderson led all scorers with 19 points, including a basket to draw the Porters to 49-48 with 43 secoconds to play. John Campbell added 11 points and 11 rebounds for Lockport.
QUOTABLE
“It’s always a big game when we play Lockport and we knew we had to come out with the W. I just hit a (three-pointer) and kept shooting. At the end I knew we had to seal the game and that’s the time to drop the free throws.” – Coble.
