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Lincoln tops Sankofa to stay alive in Pub 'B' race

01/24/2018, 1:30am EST
By Josh Verlin

Tyree Corbett (above) and Lincoln topped Sankofa Freedom 78-66 on Tuesday afternoon. (Photo: Josh Verlin/CoBL)

Josh Verlin (@jmverlin)

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A Tuesday afternoon matchup between Lincoln High and Sankofa Freedom Charter had been shaping up for a couple weeks as a battle for the top of the Public League’s ‘B’ Division, a matchup of the only two unbeaten teams left in the 13-team conference.

And then, the night before, Lincoln lost to Frankford.

Suddenly for Lincoln, the game against Sankofa became not just a major obstacle to overcome in the path to a regular-season championship but a must-win; if the Railsplitters fell two games back with only two to play, their hopes were all but dashed. And they had less than 24 hours to pick themselves up and get ready.

Lincoln coach Al Brown knew his team would go in one of two directions.

“Sometimes they’re anxious to get back on the court the next day so they can right their wrongs and prove that last game was a bad game for us,” he said, “ (or) it could work in the opposite way where their emotions get the best of them and they let that take over, and they go out here and go crazy in terms of trying to get everything back in one possession or one play.”

Fortunately for Brown, the first group showed up.

Led by 16 points from senior Tyree Corbett, Lincoln used a strong push to open the second half to create separation, then held on for a 78-66 win over Sankofa.

Corbett, a 6-6 wing, began the season at Frankford. But he switched over to Lincoln in mid-December, where he immediately began producing for a Railsplitters squad that already had a good deal of talent and experience.

After playing mostly the ‘4’ and ‘5’ for an undersized Frankford, he’s been able to play his more comfortable spot at the ‘3’, which he showed by knocking down a corner 3-pointer and creating several other shots off the bounce.

“I was feeling the school...when I was going to school I felt as though I could really learn, and when i went to practice it was even better,” he said. “I fit in with the group...that’s how it reflects on the court, because we play good all together.”

Though he didn’t start the game for Lincoln (13-3, 9-1), Corbett was on the floor to begin the second half, which saw the Railsplitters holding just a two-point lead. In a blink, the advantage was 11, thanks in part to two Corbett buckets, including a 3-point play; he had nine points in the third quarter, which ended with Lincoln up a dozen.

Sankofa (11-6, 8-1) got the gap down to as few as six on several occasions in the fourth quarter, but no further.

Joining Corbett in double figures for the Railsplitters were seniors Shikier Morrison (12 points), Khalif Mears (11) and Jahi Randall (10 points/10 rebounds), as well as junior Emeuel Charleston (10). Sophomore point guard Travis Coleman was a boost off the bench with nine points, all coming in the second and fourth quarters.

Sankofa was led by 19 points and 13 points by junior wing Khalil Turner, plus 12 from Jair Ballard. Junior Scott Spann had nine points and eight boards but struggled with fouls in a whistle-heavy game, picking up four in the second quarter and spending much of the third on the bench.

Lincoln only has two games left in league play, against Boys’ Latin and West Philadelphia, before the Public League playoff draw, which is organized not by Pub division but PIAA classification. Sankofa has three games left, taking on E&S, Ben Franklin and George Washington.

“As long as we take care of business -- not looking past the next two games we have -- it puts us in the drivers’ seat moving forward,” Brown said. “Just an overall confidence builder, good for team morale and just a great win for our guys.”


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