03-08-05
BY JACK BULLOCK
CARBONDALE - It seemed like just a matter of time. The Webber Township faithful were expecting another comeback; another big fourth quarter rally to turn sure defeat into improbable victory as it had happened in its team's previous four postseason wins.

But on this night at SIU Arena, Nashville would have none of the heroics that had taken the Trojans to their finest hour.

More specifically Lucas O'Rear had seen enough.

A big third quarter by the 6-foot-6 sophomore that included three slam dunks and the strongest defensive effort that Webber had seen this season from him and his teammates, Nashville ended the dream season of the Trojans with a 55-45 win Tuesday night at the Carbondale Class A Supersectional.

O'Rear's numbers were staggering: 21-points, seven rebounds, six blocked shots and three assists. O'Rear was also perfect from the field with a 9-of-9 effort, including three slam-dunks in the third quarter.

He did it all, as he has done for the whole season, for the Hornets.

For all we know, he could have driven the team down to Carbondale.

He and his teammates will now take a bus up north to the state finals in Peoria where they will tackle the state's top ranked team Hales Franciscan, an 82-61 winner over Lisle (Sr.) at the Wheaton College Supersectional.

That quarterfinal matchup will take place Friday afternoon at 1:45 pm at Carver Arena.

Brother Calvin O'Rear also had a fine game, scoring nine points while yanking down ten defensive rebounds.

But it was his defensive effort on Webber's Jabe Michel in the game that made the biggest difference.

"I think it (defense of Michel) was the key of the game. He (Calvin) played outstanding tonight," said Webber coach Clarence Gross, whose team ended its phenomenal season at 28-4.

"Their guards played well and Coach Lee got some good minutes from his bench tonight. They (Nashville) stepped up and beat us and we can live with that. I would like you to find me a team that can guard that kid (Lucas O'Rear) one-on-one."

Michel, who had scored 80 points in four postseason games, was held to eight points on just 2-of-5 shooting from the field.

The younger O'Rear got help scoring from 6-foot-5 senior Andrew Wilson, whose nine second half points added up to 16 on the night.

For the first time in four games since the beginning of the regionals, Webber Township got off to a grand start.

Hitting 5-of-12 first quarter shots, the Trojans jumped out to a 9-2 lead in the early going.

Ullery got the Hornets into immediate foul trouble, enticing Wilson into two quick personals and subsequently an early trip to the Nashville bench with 5:17 to play.

Michel hit on his only two point field goal of the game on the Webber run which also featured a basket by Ullery on a spinning hook shot in the lane over L. O'Rear and a back door bucket by Porter on an assist from Ullery.

But Lucas got loose early for six points in the quarter, with all three baskets in close. His brother banked home a shot with 2:23 remaining to cut Webber's lead to 9-8.

Two free throws by Michel and another spin move in the paint by a 'posted up' Ullery followed by Wilson's first basket of the game, closing the opening period at 13-10 Trojans.
Nashville scored the first seven points in the second quarter to take the lead in the game for good. Despite this fact, Webber stayed in the contest up until the very end.

A bucket each from the 'Brothers O'Rear', sandwiched around a Wilson 3-pointer from the top of the arc off of a screen, gave the Hornets a 17-13 lead that prompted a Webber Township timeout at 6:19 until intermission.

Two huge baskets by Nashville reserve Blake Patton late in the quarter gave the Hornets a big lift heading into halftime.

His first shot from the left corner, a 17-footer while Webber was attempting a 'triangle-and-two' defense, made it 19-16 Nashville.

His second shot was a dagger; a 3-pointer from nearly the same spot on the floor as his previous basket, that pushed the Hornets lead to 24-16.

"We hit some big buckets in the first half, Blake Patton hits a big 3-pointer at the end of the second quarter for us," said Nashville coach Darin Lee.

However, as they have done all of the postseason, Webber responded with points.

An Ullery 3-pointer from the left wing closed out the scoring at 24-19. But it was clear that the Trojans were in for a much bigger fight than they had faced in its previous four games in the tournament.

"I thought we played tentative at times tonight and I knew that we couldn't do that coming in," added Gross. "Every time we made a run they answered it and that is a true sign of a champion."

It only took a few seconds in the second half to see that Nashville was set to 'up' the defensive 'ante.'

Lucas O'Rear got the Nashville crowd roaring with a steal near mid court and a race to the basket that resulted in a thundering slam-dunk. Wilson followed that slam with another mid-range shot to make it 28-19 Nashville.

Ullery come back with a pair of free throws but the Lucas O'Rear show continued on the next two Hornet possessions.

He made perhaps the best move of the night; a drop step post move to his right that resulted in another one-handed slam to give Nashville a 30-21 lead with 5:04 to in the third quarter.

But this sophomore still had another high-rise shot in his arsenal.

After a Webber miss, O'Rear took a long baseball pass from Wilson and he threw down a two-handed dunk that gave the Hornets its first double-digit lead at 32-21.

"That steal and score was a big play to open the second half," Lee added. "I am not a big fan of 'the dunk' but it is a high percentage shot when it goes down."

But like a dog back into a corner with their season and dream of a state tournament trip in jeopardy the Trojans took a 'bite' out of the Hornets lead in the form of a 9-0 run, their best such sprint of the night.

Michel finally shook free from the Nashville defensive heat to stroke home a 3-pointer from the top of the key to get the Webber run started.

While employing full-court pressure Michel took a charge against L. O'Rear, sending the sophomore to the bench for a brief time with his third foul.

After this turnover, Webber scored the games next six points to pull within two of the lead.

Ullery must have made the Nashville defenders dizzy for most of the night on all of the spin moves he made while posting up defenders.

He scored four points on a move in the lane and two free throws on a later trip while being fouled in the lane. Those four points on either side of a fast break lay in by McKenzie had the Webber fans thinking yet another upset.

On the McKenzie score, reserve forward Cory Braden got a hand on an attempt by Wilson. Ullery corralled the rebound and his long pass to McKenzie on the fly resulted in points.

After those free throws by Ullery, with the score 32-30 Nashville, Coach Lee took a timeout with 2:18 to go.

In a game that turned into one of 'back-and-forth' runs the Hornets got the next big one, a 7-0 scoring burst to close out the third period and begin the fourth.

Calvin O'Rear scored on shot in the lane and his brother came up big with a tip in on a missed shot from his brother and closed out the quarter by making 1-of-2 charity tosses, to send the teams to the bench at 37-30 heading into the final frame.

The Trojans found enough energy for one final charge at Nashville, in the form of a late 8-2 run.

McKenzie connected on his only 3-point attempt to get Webber going.

After a transition basket by C. O'Rear, the next five points belonged to Webber with Ullery scoring on a drive and Porter and McKenzie combining for 3-of-4 from the foul line.

When Porter hit both of his shots after being fouled by Clint Harre, the Trojans found themselves down just four points at 49-45 with :51 remaining in the contest.

However at this point of the proceedings, and for the first time in the magical Webber Township postseason parade, Coach Gross' club showed signs of fatigue.

The Trojans didn't score again as they saw their school record campaign come to a close.

Unable to get Nashville to turnover the ball in the final minute, Webber was forced to pressure the ball that resulted in a pair of easy Hornet hoops.

Scott Forys and Wilson were recipients of assists on easy baskets.

Wilson's was on the fast break variety as Nashville handled the Webber overplay in the backcourt.

A 1-of-2 trip by Lucas O'Rear closed out the game scoring at 55-45 before the reserve units from both teams finished out the final seconds of the Sweet 16 contest.

"They (Webber) have had so much confidence with all of the comebacks that they have had this postseason," said Coach Lee, who will make his fourth appearance in the state finals this Friday. "We didn't play our smartest basketball tonight but we got the job done."

Ullery led the way for Webber, as his 23-points top all scorers.

Michel and McKenzie finished with eight points each, Porter added four points and Braden added one basket for two points.

"Calvin did a good job tonight on Michel and Lucas and Andrew both got in foul trouble trying to guard Ullery," explained Lee. "Ullery is a tremendous athlete and he is a bit unorthodox but he got us off of our feet a few times tonight."

In spite of foul problems by both of their top players, the Hornets survived with a huge defensive effort holding Webber Township to just 14-of-41 shooting overall (34 percent).

Nashville managed a 24-of-44 performance from the field. Although they shot just 4-of-10 from the foul line, the game never hinged on any of the free throw attempts.

"He (Lucas O'Rear) is just a talented kid and there is no question he is a great presence to have," added Lee. "It is important to get easy baskets because it is the team that gets the most easy ones that usually wins games."

The extraordinary season of the Mid-South Conference champion Trojans ended at a place few people back in November thought it would: SIU Arena.

"We have nothing to hang our heads about. The only people I feel bad for right now are our four seniors that pulled off that jersey tonight for the final time," added Gross. "I feel bad that I won't get to watch them practice anymore and be around them on the court. It is over now and I want to congratulate Coach Lee and Nashville and I know that they are going to represent the South very well at state. Our kids didn't quit and I knew that they wouldn't, but sometimes you just don't have enough firepower and that was the case tonight. This has been a great run for our community and our players and I hope everyone can look back on this season and cherish what we accomplished. We just lost to an outstanding basketball team tonight."

Webber Township (45) - McKenzie 2 1 1-4 8, Ullery 6 1 8-9 23, Porter 1 0 2-2 4, Swartz 0 0 0-0 0, Michel 1 1 3-4 8, Loker 0 0 0-0 0, Chambliss 0 0 0-0 0, Braden 1 0 0-2 2, Truitt 0 0 0-0 0.
2FG-11, 3FG-3, FT-14-21, PF-15
Nashville (55) - Harre 0 0 0-2 0, Wilson 5 2 0-0 16, Forys 2 0 0-0 4, L. O'Rear 9 0 3-6 21, C. O'Rear 4 0 1-2 9, Price 0 0 0-2 0, Kostecki 0 0 0-0 0, Patton 1 1 0-0 5, Keller 0 0 0-0 0.
2FG-21, 3FG-3, FT-4-10, PF-15.
Fouled Out - None.
Technical Fouls - None.
Attendence - 4,720.