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Lincoln gets jump on North in playoff PORTLAND � North Medford fell behind from the beginning and could never make up the difference in a Class 4A first-round boys basketball state playoff game Tuesday. The Lincoln Cardinals, the No. 4 seed out of the Portland Interscholastic League, ended North�s season with a 66-49 home victory. The Black Tornado, fourth in the Southern Oregon Conference and 9-15 overall, finished the year with six straight losses. Lincoln (15-10) advances to the second-round of the playoffs on Thursday against Willamette in Eugene. Lincoln jumped out to a 12-3 first-quarter lead and extended the margin to 35-15 at halftime. The Cardinals connected on all four of their 3-point goals in the first half and forced nine turnovers in the opening 16 minutes. Lincoln�s three-quarters-court press kept North off balance in the initial part of the contest. "They picked us up early, then packed it in with a 2-3 zone," North Medford coach Gene Quilhaugh said. "We weren�t able to get going against their early zone." North had more success after intermission and cut the margin to 14 points in the fourth quarter. "Our kids picked it up and we played a better brand of basketball in the second half," Quilhaugh said. "It just wasn�t enough to overcome 20 points." Travis Poulton turned in a determined performance for North. The junior forward scored nine of his 11 points in the second half and tied for a team-high seven rebounds with Kevin Foreman. "He (Poulton) played very, very hard, which is his trademark," said Quilhaugh. Lincoln junior wing Sean Sosnovec tallied a game-high 23 points. Sosnovec was effective with midrange jumpers and had an impact on the boards. For North, Ben Anderson registered a team-high 13 points. Thomas O�Brien gave the Black Tornado a lift off the bench with five fourth-quarter points. "We spotted them a huge first-half lead," said Quilhaugh. "To our credit, we came back and made a go of it." NORTH MEDFORD (49) � Anderson 13, Poulton 11, Olson 9, O�Brien 5, Weeks 4, Foreman 3, Birchfiel 3, Deline 0, Lucas 0, Timmerman 0, Wessels 0. Totals: 14-38 16-21 49. LINCOLN (66) � Sosnovec 23, Strachan 12, DeWeese 10, Darden 3, Robinowitz 2, Libby 2, Simpson 2, Hopkins 2, Waible 0, Zumwalt 10 Carson 0, French 0. Totals: 23 16-25 66. North Medford...................................... 3 12 13 21 � 49 Lincoln................................................. 12 23 12 19 � 66 3-point goals � North Medford 5 (Olson 2, Anderson 2, Birchfiel 1), Lincoln 4 (Zumwalt 2, Sosnovec 1, Strachen 1). Fouled out � Weeks. Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.