MASCOUTAH – Jaylon Tuggle hit a big three down the stretch, and Nic Hemken hit four clutch free throws, including the game winners with 10 seconds left in regulation, to give Edwardsville a big come-from-behind 60-57 win over Mascoutah Friday night at the Indians’ gym.
The Tigers trailed 48-42 with five minutes left but chipped away from the free throw line to set up the late game heroics.
“We had balanced scoring, and competed hard on the defensive end,” said Tiger coach Dustin Battas.
Tuggle led Edwar
dsville with 18 points, while Brennan Weller had 17 points and Hemken 11 in the win.
“We had good play from our guards tonight,” Battas said, “and we assisted on a lot of our baskets as well.”
In addition to contributions from Tuggle, Weller, and Hemken, A.J. Robertson drew the defensive assignment on Mascoutah’s top scorer and held him to five points on the night.
“Great job by A.J.,” Battas said. “He played really hard, and got good help from his teammates.”
Jarred Johnson led the Indians with 18 points on the night.
Battas praised his team for their best effort of the season.
“It was one of our best performances of the year,” Battas said, “and to beat a team that’ll win 20 games on their home court.”
The Tigers are now 7-17 on the year and return home to play Collinsville on Tuesday night and Alton next Friday night. Game time for both will be 7:30 p.m.
“I’m so happy for the guys,” Battas said. “They deserve a big win, and we also had great support from our bench tonight.”
