In a game heard on WEZC and online at dewittdailynews.com, Monticello overcame a frigid start and got by Athens 49-42 from the Illini Prairie/Sangamo Conference Shootout at the Sievers Center in Monticello Saturday afternoon.

Monticello went 0-for-10 from the floor in the first quarter and 5-for-6 from the foul line and only trailed 9-5 after the first quarter.

Cody Tobias hit a three to open the scoring for Athens in the second quarter but the Sages answered with seven straight points in 42 seconds to pull with 14-12 at the 4:13 mark of the second quarter.

Pryor Reynolds hit a pair of free throws with 3:56 left that put Athens up 16-12 and Monticello a 6-2 run finished by a Trey Welter three-pointer at the 1:14 mark that tied the game at 18-18. 

Out of the half, Monticello pulled out to a 26-20 lead with 5:14 left for the quarter. Monticello led by as many as 11 in the third quarter, outscoring Athens 17-6. 

Colton Vance and Carter Foran provided a nice spark off the bench for the Sages. Vance scored three straight points to put the Sages up 11 then hit a layup at the end of the third quarter to help re-establish the double-digit advantage. He also grabbed a couple of rebounds in limited minutes.

Foran provided an added ball handler for Monticello and dished out a couple of assists on nice dribble-drive plays. 

In the fourth quarter, the Warriors could not get any closer than five as the Sages hit enough free throws down the stretch to hold on for the win.

Each team shot 33 percent from the floor. Each team made five three-pointers. Athens shot 13-for-18 from the foul line while Monticello shot 16-for-23. 

Monticello held the rebounding edge, 34-25, and turned 16 Athens turnovers into 10 points. They also had 11 second-chance points on 11 offensive rebounds.

Welter led Monticello with 15 points. Jack Weidner added ten points. Ike Young led Monticello with eight boards. 

Athens drops to 15-11 overall. Monticello goes to 12-11. They will travel to Pontiac Tuesday night for a 7 pm contest. Pontiac pulled away from New Berlin in double overtime in the game before Monticello/Athens on Saturday. Hear Tuesday's action on 95.9 FM WEZC and online at dewittdailynews.com.