Boys Basketball: Third-quarter triples spark Rochelle against Sycamore

Lewis and Gerber combined for eight 3-pointers as Hubs win 73-50

Russell Hodges
Posted 1/9/24

Sophomore guard Van Gerber drilled a trio of triples and sparked a 3-point shooting outburst from the Rochelle Hub varsity basketball team on Wednesday evening, when the boys hosted Sycamore in search of their first Interstate 8 Conference win of the season.

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Boys Basketball: Third-quarter triples spark Rochelle against Sycamore

Lewis and Gerber combined for eight 3-pointers as Hubs win 73-50

Posted

ROCHELLE — Sophomore guard Van Gerber drilled a trio of triples and sparked a 3-point shooting outburst from the Rochelle Hub varsity basketball team on Wednesday evening, when the boys hosted Sycamore in search of their first Interstate 8 Conference win of the season.

Holding a 35-34 halftime lead, Rochelle caught fire from the perimeter during the second half, draining 10 triples while smothering the Sycamore offense with its full-court pressure on the defensive end. The first-year varsity guard Gerber was one of three Hubs to knock down a 3-point shot in the third quarter, helping Rochelle cruise over the Spartans for a 73-50 win. The Hubs (6-11, 1-5 Interstate 8) snapped a five-game conference losing streak with the victory.

“I felt like we did really well as a team on defense,” Gerber said. “Our press really worked today and we were able to make a lot of 3-pointers. I made my first shot and I just felt it. My shots started going in and we all started doing really well on defense… The adjustment to varsity was a little difficult at first and I was a little nervous, but I’ve adjusted and it’s a lot more fun now.”

Turnovers plagued both teams during the first half, where neither Rochelle nor Sycamore were able to take a significant lead. While the Hubs committed 18 turnovers in the game, Rochelle’s full-court pressure and ball pressure in the half-court setting led to 24 Sycamore turnovers. The Hubs, who scored 31 points off turnovers, took a one-point halftime lead on a buzzer-beating shot from freshman Brody Bruns, who notched a double-double with 10 points and 16 rebounds.

Rochelle took the game over in the third quarter, where Gerber drained three triples and junior guard Carson Lewis nailed a pair of triples to push the Hub lead into double digits. Despite a quiet start to the game, Lewis became a big-time threat from the 3-point line in the second half, where he sank five of his team-high six triples to finish the game with a team-high 21 points.

“Our game plan was to press them because we knew that both of their point guards were out and we wanted to get after them,” Lewis said. “We didn’t do that well in the first half, but we came out with tons of energy in the third quarter and when they turned the ball over, they gave us open shots. Our skip passes were open against their 1-3-1 and I was able to get open.”

The Hubs outscored Sycamore 25-8 during the third quarter and limited the Spartans to only six second-half field goals. Rochelle sealed its victory in the fourth quarter, where Lewis put home his final three triples of the evening to cap off the team’s first Interstate 8 win of the season. Senior guard Eli Luxton recorded a double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds, while junior guard Elijah Harley added 11 points and seven rebounds for the Hubs in Wednesday’s win.