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Lyons' big 3s stop Prospect

Prospect came up a bit short, thanks to long bombs by Lyons on Saturday in Mount Prospect.

Lyons' Nolan Delaney drained a 3-pointer as time expired to lift the Lions over the Knights 59-56 in a nonconference game.

Lyons (8-12) trailed 45-37 with 6:11 to play. The Lions then nailed all 5 of their three-point attempts down the stretch as the Lions scored on 8 consecutive possessions to lead 56-63 with 1:19 to play.

After a missed front end of a one-and-one with 31 seconds to play, Prospect had a final opportunity. After a timeout with 17 seconds left, David Swedura got the ball to a wide-open Frankie Mack, just outside the arc. Mack drilled the 3 to tie the game at 56 with 9 seconds to play.

Eschewing the timeout, Lyons pushed the ball up court and we're looking for Noah Niego, who had converted 4 triples, including 2 in the final quarter. But Prospect denied Niego the ball and it found its way to Delaney, who didn't hesitate to shoot the game-winner.

"I wasn't really expecting the ball," Delaney said. "With that little time left on the clock you just have to take the shot and and it went in."

Prospect (13-8), coming off an emotional victory Friday against Hersey, took just over a quarter to hit its stride against Lyons. The Knights found themselves behind Lyons 22-17 with 3:20 left in the first half when they finally found their legs.

With their defense spearheading the play, forcing Lyons to turn the ball over 7 times, the Knights closed out the half with a 10-0 run to lead 27-22.

"Both teams were coming off of big conference games Friday night," Prospect coach John Camardella said. "It was a just a couple of teams battling it out."

Prospect was able to continue battle behind the play of Mack, Matt Szuba (14 points), David Swedura (10 points), Liam Benson, Grant Whitebloom and Michael Ritchie as the Knights extended their lead to 42-35 just before the end of the third quarter.

With the lead and Lyons with 6 fouls, Prospect began to extend the floor in the fourth quarter. That strategy seemed to pay dividends as the Knights controlled the lead and the clock.

But that's when Lyons caught fire. The Lions had three consecutive trips down the court where they converted 3s. And on the fourth trip, they got a 3-point play to lead 54-50 with 1:48 left.

"We did a good job of battling back," Lyons coach Tom Sloan said. "We did a better job of attacking their 1-3-1 trap. We actually were able to get shots off. We didn't get shots off in the first half."

Mack, who led the Knights with 22 points, including 3 three-pointers, said his team was disappointed with the loss. But the Knights' focus now moves to Friday's game, with first place at stake in the MSL East as Prospect faces Elk Grove.

"A couple guys were gassed coming into this game," Mack said. "Our effort was solid, but we were tired down the stretch. We are not too worried about the loss. We have a big one coming up in Friday."

Prospect showed its fatigue, hitting at one point just 3 of 18 shots from outside the arc and finishing 7 of 25. Lyons made 7 of 12 from long range.

"We were a bit broke," Camardella said. "To their credit, they made their shots, especially when they had to."

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