ROCK FALLS It took quite a while, but the Newman boys basketball team put itself in a position to take mercy on Mercer County.

The Comets overcame a rough start before pulling away for a 75-55 victory against the Golden Eagles on Saturday in the Rock Falls Shootout. It was a similar effort to Friday night, when the Comets struggled against Prophetstown before rallying to win.

What Coach [Ray] Sharp preached in the locker room was weve got to play better than we did [Friday] night, junior guard Trevor Bolin said.

I think we kind of overlooked Prophetstown, Bolin continued. Everybody was talking about [Saturday], playing Mercer County, because we beat them in football, and everybody was so excited about that.

We overlooked Prophetstown, but today, we came together, bounced back, and got the win.

Newman (14-0) led by just one point (25-24) after Mercer Countys C.J. Aldinger cashed in on a free throw with 3 minutes, 31 seconds remaining in the second quarter.

But it was all Comets the rest of the way.

They closed the half with a 12-0 run, then began the second half with a 12-4 surge, capped by a 3-point play from Nate Terveer. That 24-4 run was accomplished with the starting five on the floor, but that same unit was pulled early in the second quarter for an effort that coach Sharp described as lackadaisical.

I got mad because we werent playing hard, so we subbed five for five, Sharp said. Sometimes youve just got to do that. They think theyll get their minutes, but if you dont play hard, youve got to come out.

The Newman bench was able to show what it is capable of doing. It scored 34 points, with Bolin (10 points), Nolan McGinn (4 points, 6 rebounds) and Shayne Allen (6 points) leading the way.

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