By RYAN ARENA

Sports Editor

Riverside’s hot outside shooting on Friday night helped the Rebels to push visiting Newman to a fourth quarter battle.

But in the end, the Greenies were able to outlast the Rebel charge. Newman secured a season sweep of Riverside, winning 55-45.

Kane Keller scored 20 points to lead a Riverside offensive attack that saw the Rebels hit 10 3-pointers over the course of the game.

But Newman was able to force Riverside (13-15, 0-6) into some key turnovers late to help the Greenies tuck away the win.

Nevertheless, the Greenies didn’t have it as easy as they did in the last meeting between the teams, a clash on Jan. 18 that saw Newman win at home, 62-38.

“This time, we’d seen them and had a better feel for them,” said Riverside Coach Ben Wilson. “We had some different guys in the mix this time that made a difference.”

One of those new faces was forward Justin Newbauer, who scored seven points in his first game back from injury. Newbauer started the game after missing three months with a broken arm.

“He did a real good job,” said Wilson. “He hit a couple of threes to help keep us in it.”

Newman (14-14, 5-1) led 12-6 after a quarter, but Riverside cut the lead to three, 25-22, at halftime.

Newman pushed ahead by outscoring the Rebels 13-9 in the third quarter, and 17-14 in the fourth.

Bobby Smith scored 11 for the Rebels.

Riverside (had two more chances to secure a district victory following the Newman game – away games at Fisher yesterday (after press time) and John Curtis on Friday night.

Wilson says that his team is gaining traction, and needs to stay the course, with a few adjustments.

“We just need to make better decisions. They’ve got both the heart and the effort necessary to win,” he said.