Trico, Sparta and Egyptian all picked up opening night wins in the 11th annual Trico Pioneer Invitational Tournament Monday.
Trico overcame a five-point first half deficit to defeat Red Bud 54-42. Sparta withstood a late rally by Shawnee to win by 12, 57-45. Egyptian outscored Steeleville 22-9 in the fourth quarter to pull away with a 73-45 win.

Egyptian 73, Steeleville 45
The experience factor was easily spotted in the opening game of the tournament as Egyptian pulled away late for a 73-45 victory over the Steeleville Warriors.
Steeleville came into the game with no returning starters and just two players with any varsity experience. Egyptian came into the contest with four returning starters and had already played in a tournament after winning the Christopher Turkey Tournament championship last weekend.
The Warriors were outscored 24-6 in the first quarter and 22-9 in the fourth for the difference. Steeleville finished the game with 28 turnovers.
Leading 10-6 in the first quarter, Egyptian finished the frame with a 14-0 scoring run for a 24-6 lead. Five different players scored in the quarter for the Pharaohs. Steeleville had seven turnovers and were 0-for-5 from the floor during that stretch.
Consecutive putback baskets by junior Darin Winkelman capped a 9-3 scoring run by Steeleville early in the second quarter to cut Egyptian’s advantage to 27-15.
The Pharaohs responded with a 13-2 run to push its advantage up to 23 points, 40-17.
Steeleville battled back to score the final seven points of the half to trail 40-24 at the break.
Winkelman continued his strong play in the third quarter scoring three early baskets to help his team cut the deficit back down to 12 points, 42-30. Steeleville outscored Egyptian 12-11 in the third to trail 51-36 heading into the fourth. Jacob Combs added four points in the quarter for the Warriors.
Steeleville couldn’t keep up the momentum in the fourth. The Warriors turned the ball over eight times and made just 2-of-10 shots. Egyptian opened the frame with a 7-1 scoring run to pull away for the 18-point decision.
Egyptian had four players reach double figures in scoring led by Devante Price with 21 and Marcus Marable with 17.
Winkelman finished with 16 to pace Steeleville, while Combs added 11.

Trico 54, Red Bud 42
Trico overcame a slow start to knock off Red Bud 54-42.
In the first half, the Pioneers had 10 turnovers and made just 8-of-22 shots from the floor.
“First game jitters had a lot to do with it,” said Trico coach Shane Hawkins. “We started three guys with very limited varsity experience. So we knew it would take some time for them to get comfortable. We missed a lot of shots early and played too fast in the first half. It just took us awhile to get into a flow.”
Trailing 27-20 in the third quarter, Trico goes on a 14-2 run to take its first lead of the game. A lead the Pioneers would never relinquish as they outscored Red Bud 19-9 in the third and 17-10 in the fourth for the 12-point win.
“In the second half, we were able to take advantage of our size and slow down the game,” added Hawkins. “Once we started to make some outside shots, the team was able to relax and just play. Once we got going, we were able to score in a variety of ways. Our seniors really led the way.”
It was a typical start for two teams making their season debut. Trico was just 4-of-12 from the floor with six turnovers in the first quarter. Red Bud was 4-of-13 with three turnovers.
Garrett Salger and Jordan Schneider each made a three-pointer in the quarter to lead the Musketeers to a 12-9 first quarter advantage.
Schneider continued his success scoring in the second quarter as he put up seven points.
“Jordan got a lot stronger in the off-season and I think that has given him some confidence,” said Red Bud coach Dave Gillingham. “He is our best perimeter defender and his offense is coming on, as well.”
The Musketeers outscored the Pioneers 11-9 in the second for a 23-18 lead at the break. Trico was just 4-of-10 from the field and 1-of-6 from the foul line.
Early in the third quarter, Salger scored on consecutive plays to push Red Bud’s lead to 27-20.
But it was all Trico after that. Trico’s two returning starters Dylan Witthoft and Chase Heins led the way with six points apiece in the quarter to spark a 14-2 run. Daron Meyerhoff capped off the quarter with a buzzer beating three-point to give the Pioneers a 37-32 lead heading into the fourth.
Trico scored the first 11 points of the fourth quarter to push its advantage up to 16 points, 48-32, as Red Bud was held off the scoreboard until the 2:34 mark.
The Musketeers were able to cut the lead down to 11 points late but that would be as close as they would get.
“In the first game of the season, you never know what to expect,” said Gillingham. “We started against one of the better teams in southern Illinois and that was tough. Defensively, this is the best team since coming to Red Bud. We don’t have a lot of size and Trico took advantage of that in the second half. We are without some players right now and we hit a dry spell in the second half. But this team fought to the end against a very good team. I am pleasantly surprised with the way we played in the opener.”
Heins finished with 14 points to lead Trico, while Meyerhoff added 13. Jacob Kueker led Red Bud with 14, while Schneider finished with 12 and Salger added 10.

Sparta 57, Shawnee 45
Shawnee made a late run against Sparta’s reserves but besides that stretch, the Bulldogs controlled the game and cruised to a 57-45 victory over Shawnee.
“We had some minor ball handling mistakes but I was pleased with the way we won this game,” said Sparta coach Rich Williams.
It was Sparta’s high-pressure man-to-man defense that coach Williams is known for that proved to be the difference in the game.
The Bulldogs forced 23 turnovers and converted many of those to easy layups on the other end.
“We played good Sparta, high intensity defense,” said Williams. “Our defense really helped our offense get going. I was real pleased with the way the team guarded.”
Senior Austin Peck scored Sparta’s first eight points of the game, six of that coming from two made three-points, to help his team grab a 13-10 first quarter lead.
“Austin showed good senior leadership tonight,” said Williams. “He was aggressive early on when we needed him to and looked for his teammates in the second half.”
Peck added six more points in the second half and Aaron Rushing came off the bench with a pair of baskets. The Bulldogs outscored Shawnee 16-11 in the second quarter for a 29-21 halftime lead.
Sparta continued to pull away in the third quarter, outscoring Shawnee 17-12 for a 46-33 lead heading into the fourth. Sharvel Austin scored five points for the Dawgs in the third, while Rushing and Tyler Morrison each had four.
The Bulldogs used an 8-0 run early in the fourth quarter to push their lead to 21 points, 54-33. Shawnee had one run left in them and against the Sparta reserves scored the next 12 points to slice the deficit down to 54-45 with under a minute to play.
The late run did nothing but make Williams put back in a few starters. Orlando Oliver converted a traditional three-point play to seal the win and final score of 57-45.
Peck finished with 14 points, all coming in the first half. Rushing added 12 and Sean Lukes had eight.