ROCHELLE — Opening the second half with 12 consecutive points was only the lighter fluid for an unforgettable scoring explosion from the Rochelle boys basketball team when the Hubs blew the Ottawa Pirates out of the gym during Interstate 8 Conference play Wednesday evening.

The Hubs incinerated the Ottawa basket in the third quarter, where they converted eight of their season-high 16 triples including four 3-pointers from Garrett Burdin, who led Rochelle with 23 points and made seven triples Wednesday night. The Hubs torched Ottawa for 34 third-quarter points, allowing Rochelle (18-11, 8-5 Interstate 8) to coast to an 88-46 victory over the Pirates. The Hubs have won 14 of their last 16 games.

“It all started with our tempo,” Burdin said. “We were running up and down the floor and we felt that they couldn’t keep up with us. We started getting layups and then we were able to kick the ball out and find open teammates. Everybody was hitting shots, and when we can set our feet, we can make shots at a high percentage.”

Both teams set a high-scoring pace early in the game, with Ottawa standout Myles Tucker carrying the Pirates with 12 first-half points after scoring 36 during Ottawa’s first matchup against the Hubs this season. Senior Austin Brown wanted the challenge of guarding Tucker this time around, and rather than Tucker making the fancy plays, it was Brown who opened the third quarter with an old-fashioned 3-point play behind a nifty reverse layup through contact.

“The energy in the gym helped us a lot,” Brown said. “Shooting is contagious for us, especially when we’re hitting everybody in their shooting pockets. Everybody gets excited and our confidence grows… I’m always up for a challenge and I want to guard the other team’s best player. Tucker destroyed us the last time we played and I didn’t want to let that happen again. We played great team defense on him tonight.”

The Hubs led Ottawa 39-29 before Brown’s 3-point play opened Rochelle’s 12-0 run to start the third quarter. The Pirates were unable to keep Brown from getting inside, which allowed the senior guard to dribble-drive and use his spin move to not only finish tough shots at the basket, but create open corner and elbow 3-pointers for players like Burdin and sophomore Ryan Simmons, who made back-to-back triples near the end of the quarter.

“Once I get past the first defender and I see a lane, I look for the help-side defender,” Brown said. “If I see the help, my teammates and I have a connection where they know to stay in the corner and I’ll find them. I’ll always find my teammates… The start of our season was disappointing, but we have so much energy now and we’re really supporting each other.”

Sophomore forward Zach Sanford even found his way into the action, sinking his first 3-pointer of the season from the right elbow. Rochelle’s enormous third quarter concluded with a corner triple from Burdin, an inbounds steal and a short floater from Sanford as the buzzer sounded. The Hubs outscored Ottawa 34-10 in the quarter, creating a 73-39 advantage before both teams cleared their benches in the fourth quarter. Brown finished with 17 points, senior Landan Martin added 16 points and Simmons ended the game with 10 points.

“It’s huge when we have a player like Austin who can break down a defense,” Burdin said. “It gives us a lot more time to get our shots off, which increases our chances of those shots going in. It’s a complete X-factor for us… We’re locked in right now and we all have that goal of getting to the regional championships game and making something special happen, especially for our seniors. We’re all really determined and we’re playing with great tempo.”