LINESVILLE - Eisenhower appeared to be peaking at the right time ahead of the District 10 Class A playoffs with three straight victories entering Monday's make-up game at Conneaut Area High School.
The Knights (8-14) took a step back on Monday.
Playing with little intensity and against a tough Class AAA school with plenty of size, the Knights saw their three-game winning streak end with a 78-51 loss to the Eagles in Linesville.
"It was their Senior Night and they came out fired up. We did not," said Ike coach Dave Allenson whose Knights are among the six teams in the D-10 Class A playoff field. "We just didn't play with any intensity. Both of their scorers are big guys at 6'4 and 6'5. They just beat us up inside tonight."
After trailing by five points after a quarter, the second quarter was particularly difficult for the visitors. With Noah Uplinger and Tyler Bartlett beginning to heat up, the Eagles held a 21-6 advantage in the second quarter and led 36-16 at halftime.
Uplinger finished with a game-high 30 points with Bartlett adding 25 points of his own. The Knights were led by Colin Shine's 16 points. Ryan Williams added nine points, Aaron Lundmark eight points and Alex Johnson six points in defeat.
Fact Box
EISENHOWER (51): Casey Vincent 1 0-0 3, Aaron Lundmark 3 0-1 8, Jarrett Johnson 1 0-0 2, Colin Shine 5 5-6 16, Nathan O'Brien 2 1-2 5, Chris Sanders 0 2-2 2, Alex Johnson 2 2-3 6, Ricky Zortman 0 0-1 0, Ryan Williams 3 0-0 9,John Potts 0 0-0 0, Grant Venman 0 0-0 0, Ben Harvey 0 0-0 0, Totals: 17 10-15 51
CONNEAUT (78): Martini 1 3-4 5, Smith 1 1-2 3, Bartlett 9 5-8 25, Uplinger 11 7-12 30, Holcomb 1 0-1 3, Varree 2 0-3 5, Barder 0 3-4 3, Merritt 1 0-0 2, Gallo 1 0-0 2, Totals: 27 19-34 78
Eisenhower 10 6 22 13 - 51
Conneaut 15 21 19 23 - 78
3-pointers: E- Vincent, Lundmark 2, Shine, Williams 3; C- Bartlett 2, Uplinger, Holcomb, Varree
Junior varsity game
EISENHOWER (31): Casey Vincent 5 0-0 13, John Potts 3 1-4 7, Grant Venman 1 0-2 2, Ricky Zortman 1 0-0 2, Ben Harvey 2 1-2 5, Allan Jackson 1 0-0 2, Carter Farrell 0 0-0 0, Alex Johnson 0 0-0 0, Chris Sanders 0 0-0 0, Totals: 13 2-8 31
CONNEAUT (44): Gallo 4 2-2 10, Litwin 2 0-0 4, Merritt 3 4-6 10, King 3 2-3 8, Dilley 1 2-2 4, Fairbanks 1 0-0 2, Stevenson 0 2-2 2, Holcomb 1 2-2 4, Totals: 15 14-17 44
Eisenhower 5 4 8 14 - 31
Conneaut 7 8 8 21 - 44
3-pointers: E- Vincent 3; C- None
Despite finishing the regular season with an 8-14 record, Eisenhower has an excellent draw in the Class A quarterfinals, scheduled for 8 p.m. Friday at Oil City High School. The Knights open with Commodore Perry - a team that finished just 5-17 this season.
Three of the six teams in the Class A field will qualify for the PIAA playoffs. Of those six teams, four enter the postseason with losing records. The exceptions are top seeds Kennedy Catholic and Cochranton.
Conneaut won the junior varsity game, 44-31. Casey Vincent led the Knights with 13 points.