And it was never close, not even after sirens and flashing lights went off in the Potterdome and a man on the p.a. said the commotion was either a false alarm or we should gather our possessions and hold our loved ones close because we might have to evacuate the building. Well, maybe not all of that, but I did hear the word “evacuate.”

Only four minutes into the night’s entertainment, Morton led, 12-2. Then, for five minutes of real-world time, the ear-piercing noise (a child in front of me covered her ears) and the bright blink-blink-blinking lights suggested calamity coming. Meanwhile, school-building folks searched for the problem.

I had been there before. I could look it up in the archives. But it is late tonight and Casey the Cat says hurry up, bobo, and serve the salmon pate, with fresh water, if you will. Anyway, once upon a time, there was smoke in the Potterdome that was traced to the popcorn machine in the lobby.

So history does repeat itself. Finally, the all-clear signal came. It was again safe to be in a gymnasium that is attached to a $7 million construction project. I asked a school official what happened, and the school official, using technical language the way school officials do, explained the problem. He said, “The popcorn machine went on the fritz.”

For three minutes and 18 seconds of game time, the Potters themselves went on the fritz, going scoreless while allowing Lincoln two points. But from 12-4, Morton did a series of fritzless blitzes. A 10-1 run preceded a 20-2 sprint. At 2:02 of the third quarter, it was Morton 42, Lincoln 13.

“They were stuck on 13 for an awful long time,” Bob Becker, the Potters coach, said.

Lincoln scored its 12th point at 1:24 of the second quarter. It scored its 13th at 2:44 of the third. That’s 6:40 on the clock. A long time.

All those numbers say the Potters were much the better team. (Not that Potter fans should be giddy. It is true that Lincoln is the defending state 3A champion. True, the Railsplitters had won 75 of 76 games the previous two seasons. True, they did it with a starting five of girls who had been beautifully synchronized from the fourth grade on. Also true, but sad for the Railers, those girls have graduated and Lincoln is now 0-2 this season.)

What’s inside the numbers is more important for Morton than tonight’s domination that raised its record to 3-0. The Potters were effectively aggressive at both ends, which Becker saw as valuable for a team dealing with a scheduling quirk. Because Morton’s annual Thanksgiving tournament fell apart – only Lincoln of four schools honored its contract by coming to town – the Potters will play their next 11 games on the road, not returning home until January 3 against Chatham-Glenwood.

“Thinking ahead,” Becker said, “we won’t be in the Potterdome again for over a month. Things like defense, rebounding, getting on the floor after the ball, gritty hustle plays – all that will travel on the road. Good things will happen. This is unique for this year’s team. I think they’ll embrace it. They’ll rise to the challenge of being road warriors.”

Tonight’s game was a different challenge. Lincoln had beaten Morton three straight times, twice a year ago, last with a running clock. The Potters won this one with work that might be summarized in two words: Ellie VanMeenen.

The senior captain scored six points, one a three-pointer with the game 24 seconds old and another in the last minute of the third quarter (with seven misses in-between). VanMeenen did all the other good stuff that Becker loves: relentless pressure on defense, diving onto loose balls, finding the open man with a pass downcourt, moving the ball in the offense. She led the Potters in rebounds (7), assists (5), and steals (3).

“I wish a couple more of those had gone in,” she said. “But at the end of the day, it’s about whether we win or not and how we’re playing as a team. I think we played great tonight.”

Becker, a shooter himself once upon a long time ago, said, “Shooting runs hot and cold. We want Ellie to take those shots. She’s earned it. Some night soon, she’ll make 8 of those.”

Morton plays Monday at Pleasant Plains, which is somewhere down there past Springfield. Road warriors, the man said.

Tonight’s Potters scoring: Paige Selke 17, Abby VanMeenen 10, Julia Laufenberg 7, Ellie VanMeenen 6, Katie Brock 6, Anja Ruxlow 5, Abby Brooks 3, Payton Hays 3, Penelope Brand 3. (Eight Potters made 3’s, total of 11 3’s.)