Lima Senior had a lineup with three players at 6-feet-4 and 6-3 guard Anton Hutchins, who is being recruited by Penn State and Wisconsin.

But Sandusky played taller in the first half, building a 20-point lead through two quarters.

But Spartans coach Shawn Allen said when you get out to a big lead, it’s easy to relax.

With 14 turnovers for the Streaks in the third quarter and Hutchins slamming two dunks on his way to a game-high 42 points, the Spartans stole an 84-81 victory.

“Our inability to handle (the pressure) in the third (quarter) hurt us a lot,” Sandusky coach Steve Keller said. “We got tentative, and they went on a long run.

“We tried to slow them down with timeouts and such.”

The Streaks also were plagued with foul trouble from four starters — Jay Page, Cordney Strickland, Jarrod Williams and Dominique Stovall.

Williams had a team-high 22 points for the Streaks, with Strickland tallying 21 points and seven steals.

Strickland and Williams combined for 14 fourth-quarter points, giving the Streaks an 81-77 advantage with three minutes remaining, but were unable to score after that.

 Keller said he was even prouder of Williams, who played through sickness from influenza.

“Jarrod Williams gave a valiant effort playing through sickness and I told the kids we got to let tonight go and get ready for Mansfield tomorrow,” Keller said. “Win or lose, our young men have a lot of heart. Our young men have a lot of desire. We just have to put it together for 32 minutes.”

Despite the loss, Keller said he couldn’t have been prouder of his players.

“They didn’t quit. We fought, we battled and didn’t stop,” Keller said. “(The Spartans) made some big plays in the end and unfortunately we didn’t come out on top.”

The Streaks were outscored 20-17 in the fourth quarter, with Hutchins contributing 13.

Lima Senior allowed 26 points to the Streaks in the first quarter and trailed 52-32 at half. 

Allen said the biggest problem for his team was the 31 turnovers they committed.

“A basketball team can live on bad shots, because you can make some bad shots. You can’t live on turnovers because you can’t get points with turnovers,” he said. “We just did not play very smart.”

The Streaks, who host Mansfield Senior tonight, accounted for 33 of their own turnovers on the night — 12 coming in the first half. 

Allen also said his team’s shot selection led to the first half deficit.

“We spent the whole first half jacking up shots from the perimeter,” he said. “Even our best player was playing beyond the perimeter.”

Jermonte Healey contributed 19 points for the Spartans, including two from beyond the arc.

Page contributed 12 points, eight rebounds and six assists for the Steaks, with Jarron Green chipping in with 12 points and five put-backs.

Lima Senior also took the JV game, 66-51.