In a game heard on WEZC and at dewittdailynews.com, Ty Pence and Logan Smith led St. Joseph-Ogden over Monticello 66-53 in Illini Prairie Conference boy's basketball action from St. Joseph Friday night.

St. Joe scored the first eight points of the game and led 17-3 with just over three mintues to go in the first quarter. 

The 6-foot-6 Pence went to the bench with his second foul late in the first quarter but Monticello missed an opportunity to significantly cut into the deficit and Smith scored 13 points in the second quarter to help the Spartans' offense without Pence on the floor.

St. Joe led 35-23 at the intermission and Ty Pence hit back-to-back three-pointers to start the third quarter the Spartans went up 41-23 and led by 20 at a couple of points, never letting the Sages get closer than the final deficit of 12. 

Drew Sheppard scored 13 of his 16 points in the first half and Trey Welter scored 18 of his 23 points in the second half. 

Sheppard recorded his 3rd double-double this season grabbing a game-high 11 boards and shooting 12-for-17 from the foul line providing most of Monticello's offense on second-chance opportunities in the first half. 

Sheppard was the ServPro of Piatt/DeWitt Counties Player of the Game.

St. Joe shot 49 percent from the floor to Monticello's 33 percent and the Spartans had 32 points in the paint. 

The Spartans move to 18-4 overall and 3-2 in the Illini Prairie while the Sages drop their second straight to go to 13-9 and 2-3 in the IPC.

Monticello visits Rantoul Tuesday night at 7 pm. Hear the action on 95.9 FM WEZC and online at dewittdailynews.com.