EDINBURGH

Three Jackson County boys basketball teams entered Sectional 62 play, but just one kept its season alive.

Trinity Lutheran topped Crothersville in a nail-biter to open postseason play while Medora fell to Shawe Memorial in tournament action at Edinburgh High School on Tuesday.

Cougars edge Tigers

Like the two teams’ meeting in the regular season, little separated Trinity Lutheran and Crothersville on the hardwood Tuesday.

The night cap contest proved a barn burner at EHS, with Trinity (8-16) coming out on top 74-71 over the Tigers (15-9).

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In the first quarter, the Tigers jumped to a 7-2 lead behind four different scorers by the 4:43-mark.

A 3-pointer from Jack Marksberry and layup by Tyler Goecker pulled the Cougars back within two points before Josh Thomas hit a 3-pointer for Crothersville to put the Tigers up 12-7.

Another trey by Marksberry cut the Cougars’ deficit to 16-12 by the end of eight minutes of play.

Five straight points by Trinity gave the Cougars the lead at 17-16 with 6:26 left in the half.

The teams then got into a shootout.

Before the halftime buzzer, the teams traded the score eight times.

Jacob Rowe’s 3-pointer with 25 seconds on the clock would prove the difference, as Trinity held a 28-26 lead at the break.

Four points by Rowe and a 3-pointer from Goecker extended the Cougars’ lead to 35-28 two minutes into the third quarter before the teams traded baskets for the next four minutes.

While the teams exchanged points, Trinity would maintain the edge as they sank four 3-pointers in the stretch.

A trey from Josh Rowe and a basket by Marksberry before the buzzer gave the Cougars a 53-43 lead going into the final eight minutes of play.

The Tigers went on a 9-3 run to open the fourth quarter to cut the Cougars’ lead to 56-52.

From the 4:30- to 1:50-mark, the Tigers closed the gap to 65-61 on five straight points from Brewer.

Goecker hit four free throws to put the Cougars up 73-69 before Brewer put the Tigers back within a score on a basket with 4.6 ticks left.

After A.J. Goecker split free throws on the intentional foul, and Brewer was able to hoist a 3-pointer from the right side of the arc but didn’t hit.

Marksberry, a freshman, led the Cougars with 22 points and Jacob Rowe added 15.

The Cougars hit 11 total 3-pointers in the game, with Marksberry hitting four.

Brewer topped the Tigers with 27 points — including 13 in the fourth quarter — while Wilson and Thomas each chipped in 18. The Tigers will graduate five seniors from the program.

Trinity will play West Washington at 7:30 p.m. on Friday in the sectional semifinals.

Hilltoppers beat Hornets

In the early game, Medora couldn’t manage a comeback against Shawe Memorial.

Shawe (5-19) used a fourth quarter scoring burst to top Medora (4-20) 51-38 on Tuesday.

The Hilltoppers opened the game with a pair of field goals before three points by Owen Sullivan cut the Hornets’ deficit to 6-3 with 3:55 on the clock.

Following a score form J.D. Fish, the Hilltoppers closed the opening quarter with a 5-0 run to lead 12-6.

The Hilltoppers dominated the glass in the opening eight minutes, outrebounding the Hornets 16-4.

A 3-pointer by Sullivan and layup from Skylar Jones closed the Hornets’ gap to 15-11 with 5:13 left in the half before the Hilltoppers scored six unanswered.

Fish added five more points in the final 2:08 of the half, but the Hornets trialed 25-16 at the break.

Out of intermission, the Hilltoppers went on a 7-0 run to extend its lead to 30-18.

The Hornets answered with a 10-0 run, behind four points by Jayvin Spurgeon and Sullivan each, to bring the score to 30-28 with 4:09 on the clock.

In the final 2:50 of the third, the Hilltoppers outscored the Hornets 7-1 to lead 37-29 at the end of 24 minutes play.

An 11-2 run in the first five minutes of the fourth quarter put the Hilltoppers up 46-33.

The Hornets went 5-for-8 from the free throw line in the final four minutes, but couldn’t close the gap.

Sullivan and Fish led the Hornets with 12 points each and Schuyler Edwards topped the Hilltoppers with 25 points.

The Hilltoppers won the rebounding battle 36-18 and turnover margin 13-15.

Medora will graduate four seniors from its program.