DANVILLE – Centennial's boys' basketball team put on an impressive finish in Tuesday's Big 12 Conference game against an opponent it last played 92 days earlier.

With the end of the regular season coming in two days – when Centennial and Danville have their Senior Night sendoffs at home – the Chargers closed out their season sweep of the Vikings by making their final 16 shots.

Nine were free throws, seven were field goals and three of those were from beyond the arc. The shooting prowess came in the final quarter when coach Tim Lavin's team missed by two points of doubling the offensive output it had for three quarters. The Chargers prevailed 54-41, rallying from a one-point deficit in the final 3:55.

"You can't argue with perfection," Danville coach Gary Tidwell said.

The final quarter started with Lawrence Kinney missing a three-pointer, but from there it was all good.

Kinney nailed two three-pointers – one to put Centennial ahead to stay 38-36 – Josh Piper closed out his game-high 22-point performance by sinking three shots. Corvon Butler drained a three-pointer and two free throws. Javonte Leshoure had a basket and three free throws. Taylen Alexander hit 4 of 4 free throws.

"Big time," Lavin said of the free throw accuracy, which was 12 for 13 for the game. "It was nice to see. At times, we have struggled."

Danville's zone frustrated all Chargers, except Piper, for three quarters. Centennial was 0 for 12 on three-pointers in the middle two quarters.

"Teams are closing in on Josh and making us shoot," Lavin said.

That was Tidwell's strategy.

"Our objective was to make them shoot from the perimeter," he said. "Our guys did a solid job overall. Our defense gave us a chance."

Thanks to a layup by Danville's Jaron Cunningham – the game's only player with a double-double – the Big 12 rivals were tied at 28 after three quarters. Cunningham had 10 points and 12 rebounds.

Through 19 minutes, Piper scored 20 of Centennial's 32 points in a game that was tied.

Normal Comm. 61, Central 51. Clayton Jones scored 18 points, 12 from beyond the arc, in the Maroons' loss at Normal.