Boys Basketball: Nic Weishar writes feel-good story for Marist

Nic Weishar never quit. The Marist sophomore overcame his own free-throw misses and flu-like symptoms to score on a rebound basket as time expired to lift the host RedHawks to a 45-44 victory over Harlan on Saturday evening.

‘‘(Weishar) hasn’t played or practiced since Tuesday,’’ Marist coach Gene Nolan said. ‘‘He was throwing up at halftime and we considered not playing him in the second half. But he doesn’t believe in making excuses.’’

Weishar stepped to the line two times in the last six seconds of the game and only made the first of his four free throws. His final miss came with three seconds left and he found himself with the ball on the left side of the basket for the winning bucket.

‘‘Lexus (Williams) made a great play to tip it out to me,’’ Weishar said. ‘‘We shot poorly all game. That happens. We didn’t let that hinder us.’’

The RedHawks (16-4) shot 7-for-17 from the free-throw line and 2-for-17 from three-point range, but fought their way back in the third quarter.

Trailing 36-29, Marist ripped off nine consecutive points to take a 38-36 lead early in the fourth quarter. Weishar scored six of his 22 points during that span including the go-ahead bucket.

‘‘He is an absolute warrior,’’ Nolan said of Weishar. ‘‘I sometimes feel like I’m coaching someone in their twenties. He is mature not only physically but more so mentally.’’

Harlan (11-6) stormed back to take a 42-38 lead with two minutes left. Anthony Knight (12 points) scored a basket in that stretch and Andre Hogan converted a layup off a pass from Knight to give the Falcons a 44-42 lead with 18 seconds remaining.

L.J. McIntosh added 12 points for the RedHawks.

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