Playing at full strength for the first time this season, Marissa--Coulterville made a strong statement Tuesday night with a 48-43 win at home over Lebanon.
“It was a huge lift to have Logan Tabor back,” said Marissa-Coulterville coach Dirk Miller. “He gives us another senior ball handler and another outside shooting threat. With him back, we were also able to pressure Lebanon’s guards a bit more and go to man-to-man defense instead of relying on zone.”
Lebanon, which had a huge size advantage over the Meteors, scored 10 of its first 13 points from inside the paint in the first quarter.
Marissa-Coulterville made 7-of-12 shots in the opening quarter as Joey Smith and Tabor each knocked down a three-pointer to give their team a 17-13 lead. Smith, the second leading scorer in the St. Louis metropolitan area, had eight points in the opening frame.
The Meteors cooled down in the second quarter making just 3-of-13 shots in the second quarter. Lebanon’s top player, Tommy Pilackas was more aggressive in the second quarter, scoring seven points. The Greyhounds outscored Marissa-Coulterville 12-9 in the second quarter to trail by just a point at the break, 26-25. Smith once again led the Meteors’ offense with seven points.
 Lebanon came out of the gate in the second half with a 5-0 run to claim a 30-26 advantage. The Marissa-Coulterville defense took over not allowing another point to be scored in the quarter. The Meteors ended the third with a 9-0 run as Austin Place knocked down two jumpers and Smith made a three-pointer and two free throws as their team grabbed a 35-30 lead heading into the final frame.
Pilackas put his team on his back, scoring all  his team’s 13 points in the fourth quarter. But Marissa-Coulterville were clutch from the free throw line (7-of-9) down the stretch to preserve the win.
“This was the best team victory we have had this season,” added Miller. “Our offense didn’t look very good tonight but our man-to-man defense and work on the boards was the difference. Lebanon is a good team and this is my first win over them as head coach.”
Smith finished with 23 points to lead the Meteors, while Tabor had nine.
Pilackas scored 25 for Lebanon.
Marissa-Coulterville improved to 4-3 overall and 2-1 in the Cahokia Conference Kaskaskia Division. Lebanon dropped to 3-4 overall and 2-1 in conference play.