Lincoln-Way East wins 60-55 thriller over Andrew thanks to late free throws by Evan Riiff

FRANKFORT – One. U2, Harry Nilsson and Metallica have all named a song after that magic number.

No telling if the Lincoln-Way East basketball team is a fan of any of them, but the number kept coming up again and again during its game against Andrew on Wednesday.

In the end, the difference was five, but most of the night it was all about the No. 1. Although it was a true team effort.

Evan Riiff hit four free throws in the final minute of play to give him a game-high 16 points and help the Griffins eke out a 60-55 victory in the SouthWest Suburban Conference opener for both teams.

The Griffins (4-0) were led by Riiff, Will Buchanan (11 points) and Brenden Sanders (10 points). Wes Shelby and Jonathan Aluyi each contributed eight points. But Lincoln-Way East spent most of the night either ahead or behind by one. Lincoln-Way East coach Rich Kolimas said his blood pressure may have spiked a bit near the end of the contest.

“I was so impressed by the energy in this game,” Kolimas said. “Andrew was just dynamite, made big shots and forced you to guard cuts. They’re well coached and hard to defend. ... We’re going to scrap all the way. We’re learning how to play when we’re down and when we have a lead. It’s a learning process, and we’re still learning as young as we are.”

The first quarter was a true seesaw. Anytime Lincoln-Way East looked like it was about to pull away, Andrew responded. The Griffins jumped out to an 8-2 advantage with six points from Sanders, only for Mason Moore to hit a 3-pointer.

A turnaround jumper by Shelby later gave Lincoln-Way East a 15-8 edge, only for Dionte Thigpen and Scott Dinnon to hit back-to-back layups to cut it to 15-12. Thigpen made a layup with 19 seconds left in the quarter to cut the deficit to 15-14.

The second was more of the same as the Griffins opened with a successful and-one by Aluyi, which started an 8-2 run. With 1:30 remaining in the half, Riiff hit a 3-pointer to put the Griffins up 33-23, only to see that double-digit lead disappear in the blink of an eye. The Thunderbolts closed on a 9-2 run, including a buzzer-beating half-court shot to trim the deficit to 35-32.

Sanders’ first basket since early in the first was a triple, which grew the Griffin lead to 41-35 early in the third, but a 10-0 run by Andrew put it in front for the first time all night midway through. The score remained 45-41 for an additional three minutes, but Riiff got hot to close the period with a 3-pointer as 45 seconds remained and a layup with seven seconds to put East back in front 46-45.

A layup by Ryan Dinnon with 5:45 left in the contest put Andrew back ahead 49-48. Buchanan went to the line 1:45 later and made one of two to tie the game at 49-49.

A 3-pointer by Athan Berchos with 3:09 left put Andrew ahead 52-49, but Riiff hit a 3-pointer 19 seconds later to tie it back up 52-52. Scott Dinnon went to the line with 2:41 left and made one to give Andrew a one-point edge. Buchanan went to the line just under one minute after that and made it a tie game once more, 53-53.

Sanders returned the one-point advantage to the Griffins with 1:21 left when he made a free throw. With 58.9 seconds on the clock, Jaymon Hornsby went to the line after only making one basket all night. He sank both shots, and the edge was 56-53 Lincoln-Way East.

With 23.3 seconds left, Malik Mahmoud went to the line and made both shots to cut the deficit back to that magic number again at 56-55.

The Griffins called a timeout and were called for traveling on the ensuing inbounds pass with 22.2 seconds left, giving the Thunderbolts one last chance. Riiff came up with a steal with 7.9 seconds left, made two free throws and made another pair before the game was over to give the contest its final score.

“It was just about keeping our composure and trusting the guys,” Riiff said. “We’re a strong team that plays together, and that leads to wins.”

Andrew was led by Scott and Ryan Dinnon (12 points each), Berchos (11 points) and Thigpen (10 points).

Lincoln-Way East will face Lincoln-Way Central on Saturday.