Poor fourth quarter dooms Pioneers at home

NEBRASKA CITY - A switch to a 1-3-1 zone defense by Syracuse ignited a 14-0 run to start the fourth quarter and pushed it to a 59-47 victory Tuesday night over a tough and scrappy Nebraska City squad that lost its scoring punch late. 

The Rockets (3-2) jumped out to a 17-8 lead after the first quarter, getting out to a 12-3 lead immediately after the tip. It appeared they were poised to escape with a stress-less victory, but the Pioneers denied that chance initially in the second quarter.

Using an 11-2 run to open the quarter sparked by defense and offensive rebounds, Nebraska City tied the game at 19 with 4:09 to play in the first half when freshman Markus Nelson converted a three-point play. 

Syracuse responded to Nebraska City's uppercut with a right hook of its own, going on a 10-0 run late in the second quarter with 3-pointers from freshman Will Janssen and senior Logan Zoller to build a 30-22 halftime lead. 

Nebraska City (0-4) outscored Syracuse 15-8 in the third setting up the pivotal final quarter where the games momentum would swing for the final time.

Leading 38-37, Syracuse head coach Adam Stotz made the switch to a trapping 1-3-1 zone defense to start the final quarter. The middle part of the zone featured 6-foot-2 Max Parde, 6-foot-5 Cash Vollertsen and 6-foot-6 Jase Voorhees. The size and length of the Rockets irritated the Pioneers, interrupting their offensive flow. 

The result was a 14-0 run to start the quarter led by a three-man screen-and-roll game between point guard Robert Shanks, Vollertsen and Voorhees. A one-point game quickly erupted to a 52-37 advantage. 

Nebraska City finally found its first basket and points of the quarter with under three minutes to play on a Keston Holman 3-pointer, but it was too late. 

Shanks continued to beat his man off the dribble, penetrating the lane with fluidity and quickness before dishing bounce pass after bounce past to Voorhees for easy layups as Syracuse saved its best quarter for last, outscoring Nebraska City 21-10 to notch a 12-point win. 

The senior duo combined for 29 points unofficially in the Rockets second straight triumph. 

Senior Connor Causgrove unofficially scored 12 points for the Pioneers and competed well against the bigger Syracuse defenders while Kalan Fritch added 12 more off the bench in the defeat. 

The varsity girls contest, which was supposed to be played prior to the boy's game, was postponed to a later date because a lack of numbers available for Nebraska City. A makeup date is yet to be determined. 

Box Score:

Syracuse (3-2): 17, 13, 8, 21 - 59

Nebraska City (0-4): 8, 14, 15, 10 - 47