However it was a junior guard that stole the show in front of big crowd.

Five-foot-ten Johnnie Clift scored 28-points, including 8-of-9 free throws, as the host Warriors pulled away in the fourth quarter for a 64-59 win over the Bombers in Egyptian Illini Conference play.

When the Warriors have shot the ball well from the outside this season they have been difficult to defend.

Head coach Vince Rohr of Brownstown can attest the that statement.

The Warriors nailed seven 3-pointers on the night with six different players connecting from long distance.

Although they didn't shoot a great percentage from the floor (22-of-50 for 44 percent) they held a substantial rebounding edge (32-23) along with 10 key offensive boards.

Which turned into an abundance of second chance points.

Coach Joe Eddy's club withstood a couple of Bomber air strikes in the second half, never giving up the lead as the Warriors improved to 17-10 overall and 4-3 in the EIC.

Following Clift on the scoring sheet for Patoka was senior Jake Orrell with 11-points.

The 6-foot-2 forward was the only one of the seven players who scored for the Warriors that didn't make a 3-pointer.

Senior Drew Back added nine points for Patoka in the triumph while Quinn Wadkins added seven.

Sheldon Felchlia, Seth Allen and Trey Lowery all scored three points, each hitting a 3-point shot in the contest.

“Patoka is a very capable team. They can put the ball in the hole, especially with their outside shooting,” said Coach Rohr. “They have a couple of guys that can really dribble penetrate. They finished well tonight.”

Getting the ball inside with Clift doing damage, set up the Patoka outside assault.

Patoka also forced 12-turnovers in holding down the high scoring Bombers.

“We made a conscious effort to get the ball in the lane. We had to get to the middle because you can't settle for jump shots,” said Coach Eddy. “On defense, I don't know exactly what they have been averaging a game, but scoring is their strong point and we held them to under 50-points. Three of the top five scorers from our area are from Brownstown so I knew they were capable of putting up some points. I thought we did a good job keeping them under 50.”

Junior guard Jake Behrends topped the visitors with 21-points, including five 3-pointers of his own.

Senior Matt Sefton added 15-points while 6-foot-4 senior Austin Hunter added nine.

Brownstown finished with just a 16-of-43 effort from the field (37 percent) and lost all chances of a comeback due mainly to its inability to convert at the foul line.

The Bombers hit just 11-of-24 from the stripe, including 2-of-5 in the fourth quarter when their final run at the Warriors failed.

Coach Rohr had his club playing well early in a contest that produced eight lead changes in the first quarter.

Behrends hit a pair of hit treys in the first quarter and his two free throws late in the frame gave Brownstown its final advantage.

Allen nailed a 3-pointer to put the Warriors back in front, 15-14 at the end of the quarter.

Brownstown wouldn't get another lead in the contest, but they stayed within striking distance until the final minutes.

Trailing 29-19, Brownstown made a run at the hosts.

Hunter and Sefton each scored twice in an 8-0 scoring spree and got the Bombers to within 29-27.

However Drew Back hit his only shot of the contest, a 3-pointer from the top of the arc for a 32-27 halftime edge.

Not being able to contain Clift on the night turned out to be an issue for the Bombers.

Clift scored seven consecutive points in the early stages on the second half.

All three of his baskets came on drives to the goal and he added a conventional three-point play in the run as well.

By the time he scored on an acrobatic lay in that went high off of the glass and fell through the net, Patoka led 39-29.

After trailing for most of the contest, Brownstown tied the game at 46-all with a 7-0 run with Behrends hitting two of his five treys in the fourth quarter.

When his second bomb found the mark, Patoka was forced to use a timeout with 4:59 to play.

Unfortunately for Brownstown from that point forward, the Warriors took over.

An 11-1 run sparked by Clift making his only 20-footer and Wadkins coming up with a steal for a coast-to-coast fast break lay in got the Warriors some breathing room.

Wadkins then took a sideline inbounds pass for a driving lay up for a 57-47 lead with just :52 left.

“A lot of tonight was just taking care of the ball at key times. We are a bunch of guards. We can't muscle people, we aren't bigger than people, but we are quicker and can out run people,” said Coach Eddy. “Quinn Wadkins is a one-man press sometimes and he got a couple of big steals for us. That is where his offense comes from and when he is doing that (making plays) we are that much better.”

The Warriors closed the game out from the foul line, hitting 5-of-6 from the stripe.

Coach Eddy's club hit 13-of-17 for the contest.

Brownstown finished it regular season with a 10-15 overall mark and were tied with Patoka at 4-3 in the EIC, which is good enough for third.

The Bombers are the sixth seed at the 1A St. Elmo Regional and will play Cowden-Herrick on Tuesday night at 7:30 pm while Patoka is seeded third at the 1A Woodlawn Regional and will open with EIC rival Mulberry Grove on Tuesday also at 7:30 pm.

“We have gotten better from the free throw line this season but tonight, if you don't knock those free throws down it is very hard to win,” said Coach Rohr. “Offensively I thought we took ourselves out of the game because we weren't looking to share the ball and we were taking tough shots.”