This one, 58-53 Thursday night over Lewiston, means just a little bit more. Because of the opponent, of course, and because it unofficially locked up the No. 1 seed in the Class A East boys’ basketball tournament.

EL (17-1) rallied from 13 points down to win in overtime at Cony on Tuesday, routed Mt. Blue at home Wednesday, then trailed 35-24 one possession into the third quarter before roaring back for a regular-season sweep of the Blue Devils.

“That was an incredible game,” EL coach Mike Adams said. “Three games in three days. One practice in six days. They’re tough kids. I’m very proud of them.”

Lew Jensen led the Red Eddies with 19 points and 12 rebounds. Kaleb Main drained four 3-pointers and finished with 16 points.

Ian Mileikis supplemented his 10 points with seven assists, finding the open man almost every time the Devils’ defense collapsed on him.

“They were stepping up a lot every time I drove, so I was just looking for people in the lane,” Mileikis said. “Everybody was making good cuts.”

Jensen scored seven points in the pivotal third quarter. Main and Thomas Cedre each knocked down an open 3-pointer.

Isaiah Harris’ 3-point play with 7:33 left was Lewiston’s lone field goal of the period. The Devils missed their next nine shots and committed six of their 16 turnovers in that stanza, including two steals apiece by Jensen and Mileikis.

“Mike’s got a way of getting those kids to believe they’re going to win every second,” Lewiston coach Tim Farrar said. “Our kids thought they were going to win too. I don’t want to take anything away from our guys. We had a game plan, and we executed and gave ourselves a chance.”

Mileikis’ theft and coast-to-coast layup awoke stagnant EL, which shot only 33 percent in the first half while Lewiston connected at a 56 percent clip.

Jensen started a 3-point play via the offensive glass to get the Eddies within six. Mileikis reversed the ball to Cedre, who cut the lead in half.

After a tip-in by Jensen, Mileikis scored the go-ahead basket with just under three minutes to play in the period. Main also converted a drive and a trey in the final 90 seconds.

“I was feeling good tonight,” Main said. “I was feeling the 3. I just kept going and I wanted to win.”

Main and Elijah Roe had big nights in a January win over Lewiston.

With Lewiston’s 6-foot-10 Trever Irish and 6-4 Isaiah Harris negating some of Mileikis and Jensen’s strength in the middle, Adams challenged Main to take advantage of the spotlight once again.

“We said before the game, you can’t be the disappearing Kaleb,” Adams said. “With what Lewiston does defensively, that mid-range shot, Kaleb shoots that as good as anybody, and you’ve got to step up and hit those shots.”

Lewiston (11-7) used two free throws by Harris and an end-to-end drive by Quintarian Brown to make it 50-48 with three minutes left.

Ace Curry was whistled for a technical foul on EL’s next possession. Although the Red Eddies missed both free throws, they cashed in with a Jensen 3-point play.

Jensen and Thomas Cedre each had a basket to pad the lead down the stretch. Charles Cedre chipped in a free throw.

Roe added seven points for EL.

“Again, hopefully we proved that we’re more than just Ian and Lew,” Adams said.

Harris finished with 18 points, nine rebounds and five steals for the Blue Devils. Irish produced 16 points, 13 boards and three blocks.

Ryan Bell scored 10 of his 11 points in the second quarter. The score was tied four times in that chapter, but the Devils finished with a 7-0 run to lead 32-24.

Lewiston had its five-game winning streak snapped. The Devils will be seeded No. 4 and face Cony in the quarterfinals Feb. 14.

“I was happy with the way we competed. We competed until the end,” Farrar said. “If we make one more shot, one more play. But you can’t expect it to happen. You have to make it happen against them.”

koakes@sunjournal.com

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