Late trey lifts Knights

PALMER — When Jared Turner stepped on to the court Tuesday evening to face the Palmer Moose, the guard was simply among a group of Colony reserves.

But when the sophomore left the court, he was the hero.

Turner nailed the go-ahead three-pointer with 30 seconds left in overtime to give the Knights the 50-49 win over the Moose at Palmer High on Tuesday.

“Who’s to predict?” Colony head coach Jeff Bowker said. “None of us came into the this gym and thought Turner was going to make a three to win it. Not a single person, not even Turner. But you just keep playing and stuff happens.”

Turner’s trey capped a small rally for the Knights, who used a 7-2 overtime run to improve to 5-2 overall and 3-0 in Northern Lights Conference play.

With Colony trailing 49-47 deep into overtime, Colony captain John a — who typically fires the final shot — held the ball at the perimeter in the Colony offensive zone. With the Moose defense collapsing, the Colony senior found an open Turner on the right side, and Turner nailed the game-winner.

“I’m just glad we won,” Turner said after the win. “I just shot it. You don’t’ think about it, you shoot it.”

Turner’s three-pointer followed a Scott Herman bucket and a pair of John Palmer free throws during the overtime frame.

Herman scored a game-high 16 in the win, while Palmer added 11.

Senior Mike Lanners grabbed a pair of late steals to keep the Knights’ hope of scoring the win alive.

“I told the guys in the locker room, it was a total team effort,” Bowker said.

Junior Sean Niekamp led the Moose with a monster effort inside, posting a team-high 14 points and a game-high 15 rebounds.

“We struggled with Niekamp the whole time,” Bowker said.

Senior Kyle Titus scored 12 points for Palmer. Junior Hunter Dean hit a trio of three-pointers in the second half, and finished with nine points.

After trailing at halftime, Palmer took a 35-34 lead into the fourth quarter of a contest in which the score was tied 10 times during regulation.

Dean sparked the Moose with a pair of threes during the third quarter. He hit his first-three pointer at the 2:58 mark to give Palmer the 30-28 advantage, Palmer’s first lead since early in the second quarter.

After a Colony four-point run, Dean hit another three-pointer to give the Moose the 33-32 advantage.

Dean answered a John Palmer three-pointer with his third trey of the game. Midway through the fourth, the Colony senior hit a deep three ti give the Knights the 39-38 lead. Dean followed with a shot to give the Moose the 41-39 advantage.

Titus sank a pair late free throws to give Palmer the 43-41 deep into the fourth quarter, but John Palmer tied the score with a layup with 1:28 left in regulation.

Lanners grabbed a steal at halfcourt to help send the game into overtime. Colony also missed a free throw late in regulation.

Jackson Buresh scored four of his six points during overtime and Christian Odom added a pair of free throws to help the Moose start the extra period on a 6-2 run.

Contact Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com.

Colony 50, Palmer 49 OT

Tuesday, Palmer High School

Colony 15-9-10-9-7—50

Palmer 13-8-14-8-6—49

Colony (50) — Lanners 3 0-0 7, Turner 1 0-0 3, McCann 0 0-1 0, Palmer 4 2-2 11, Herman 5 5-8 16, DePriest 1 0-0 2, Ray 1 0-0 2, Summers 4 1-2 9; Totals: 19 8-13 50.

Palmer (49) — Titus 4 4-4 12, Dean 3 0-0 9, Buresh 3 0-0 6, Niekamp 6 2-4 14, Odom 3 2-2 8; Totals: 19 8-10 49.

3-point field goals: Colony 4 (Lanners, Turner, Palmer, Herman 1), Palmer 3 (Dean 3); Total fouls: Colony 16, Palmer: 19; Foueld out: Palmer- Bohman.