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Burlington Central knocks off Genoa-Kingston

Burlington Central's Saturday night boys basketball matchup with Genoa-Kingston had a little bit of everything: big shots by both teams, technical fouls, bodies on the floor, raucous student sections for both sides. When the dust finally settled, the Rockets had a big road win, knocking the Cogs from the undefeated ranks in the Big Northern East with a 55-47 decision.

Zach Schutta led 4 Rockets in double figures with 15 points. Ryan Fitzgerald, Drew Wiss, and Ta Vontae Harris added 12, 11, and 10 points, respectively. Schutta, Fitzgerald, and Luke McCurdy each grabbed 5 rebounds.

Leading 49-42 with under a minute left, the Rockets picked up a foul and were hit with a technical, leading to a possible 7 - point play and a tie. Tommy Lucca made all 4 free throws, but was long on a 3-pointer on the ensuing possession. Harris then made 2 free throws for a 5-point lead.

Fitzgerald and Harris each added 2 more free throws in the closing seconds to keep the Rockets safely ahead.

Genoa scored the first 6 points of the second half to tie it at 23. The Rockets (8-12, 3-3) answered with a 10-0 run to take the lead for good. Three-pointers by Schutta and Wiss got it started.

"We've been playing pretty well, but our fourth quarters, with free throws and turnovers, have hurt us over this stretch," said Central coach Brett Porto. "It was nice to see our guys hit some free throws and battle through some adversity at the end."

Harris played well while replacing the injured Stefan Jochum in the starting lineup.

Lucca finished with a game-high 16 points for Genoa (10-6, 5-1), while Griffin McNeal added 12.

The game was not necessarily a thing of beauty. BC hit 6 of 10 field goal attempts in the fourth quarter to pull its percentage up to 36 for the game. The Cogs finished at 30 percent and also committed 17 turnovers.

Genoa scored the game's first 6 points. A 3-pointer by Schutta started an 8-0 run that gave the Rockets their first lead.

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