MARENGO — Head coach Tim Thompson wasn’t surprised that the Rochelle Hub varsity basketball team’s Wednesday game against Rockford Christian was a high-scoring affair.

Four years removed from a triple-overtime battle where the Hubs outlasted the Royal Lions 91-88, Rochelle and Rockford Christian needed only four quarters to reach a similar scoring total on Wednesday, when the two teams squared off in the final round of pool play at the 73rd Annual E.C. Nichols Holiday Classic. Despite five players reaching double figures for the Hubs, Rochelle fell a few points short in the end, with Rockford Christian emerging victorious 88-86.

“Everytime that coach [Isaiah] Johnson and I get together, it’s a game like this,” Thompson said. “We both want to play up and down and I thought we had the advantage inside with our size, but they had the advantage with their perimeter play and shooting. It was one of those games where Rockford Christian, who hadn’t played in about 14 days, left it out there for us and they gave us opportunities to win, but we weren’t able to capitalize on those opportunities.”

Junior Carson Lewis drilled a team-high five 3-pointers for the Hubs (4-9, 0-5 Interstate 8), who remained tied with Rockford Christian 23-23 after a fast-paced first quarter. Lewis drained two triples early in the first quarter, while freshman forward Brody Bruns was the featured option down low, where the 6-foot-5 lefty put home four layups for eight of his 19 points in the game.

Lewis knocked down two more 3-pointers in the second quarter, where junior Elijah Harley caught fire from the field for the Hubs, sinking a pair of elbow triples and leading Rochelle in transition with a trio of layups. Harley finished with 18 points for the Hubs, who trailed 48-45 at halftime due to an explosive effort from Rockford Christian guards Elijah Daugherty and Christian Cummings, who combined for 59 points and 29 first-half points on Wednesday.

“I think we’re doing a better job of sharing the basketball and giving touches to guys who are playing hot at the time,” Thompson said. “We want to be playing in the high 70s and low 80s and the only way we can do that is if we have multiple guys in double figures who are sharing the ball. I was pleased with that and I was pleased with our effort this morning. We gave a really good team a good game, but we have to turn the page. We’ve had a lot of games this year where we’ve had leads or been in it to win it, but we haven’t found a way to win.”

Rochelle remained in the game after the third quarter, where senior Jack Tracey effectively drove to the basket for four layups to score eight of his 14 points in the game. Another senior took charge for the Hubs in the fourth quarter, as 6-foot-5 guard Eli Luxton soared over the Rockford Christian interior defense for four close-range field goals and a trio of free throws.

While the Hubs remained in the mix, even tying the score midway through the fourth quarter after trailing 69-65 after three quarters, the Rochelle defense had few answers for Rockford Christian’s lead guard Daugherty, who scored a game-high 36 points and used his athleticism off the dribble to beat the Hubs to the rim several times. Cummings, who finished with 23 points on Wednesday, was also effective at attacking the basket and hitting key slots late in the game.

“They have two lights-out players and they can do everything they want,” Thompson said. “They can put the ball on the floor and they can hit tough shots from deep. They shoot the ball really well and they make a lot of their free throws. It wasn’t for a lack of effort on our part, but anyone who guards those guys this year is going to see the same kind of thing. That wasn’t why we lost the game. We made turnovers in key situations and we didn’t know what was going on late.”

Luxton and Lewis each finished with 17 points for the Hubs, who will conclude the tournament with games on Thursday and Friday before returning home against Sandwich on Jan. 5.