Linton overcame a poor third quarter with a bountiful fourth Saturday.

That quarter also was enough to carry the Lions past the No. 9-ranked Dickinson Trinity Titans.

Held to just four points in the third quarter, Linton outscored the Titans 18-3 in the final eight minutes to post a 41-32 win at the Bismarck Civic Center Jamboree.

Down 29-23, the Lions took control with a 12-0 run to open the fourth, and held on for their sixth win in nine games.

"Things didn't go well at all in the third, but we stepped it up after that," said Linton senior Kevin Schneider, who scored 10 points. "It was frustrating, but we stayed positive. The game was still close. We knew we could come back."

Schneider scored five points in the decisive fourth-quarter run, including a 3-point play with 1:43 left that made it 35-29. Eighteen seconds later, Robbie Morey netted a triple for what proved to be Trinity's only points of the quarter. The Lions answered that score with a Travis Humann basket with 52 seconds left. Later, Justin Purintun and Jon Pavlicek both went 2-for-2 from the free-throw line in the final 19 seconds to close it out.

"(The Titans) were on a roll, but we came out and stopped the momentum. … That was a big key," said Linton coach Dan Carr, now 1-4 against Trinity. "Our defense played well, and after struggling a bit, our offense got on track."

Trinity's late scoreless spell lasted 7:45. After Morey's 3-pointer, the Titans went 0-for-3 from the floor, 0-for-1 from the charity stripe, and committed two turnovers.

"I thought the key to that fourth quarter was composure," Trinity coach Gregg Grinsteinner said. "(The Lions) had it, and they executed down the stretch. We had little composure, and we didn't have quality possessions. We weren't patient, and that's something we're still learning. You've got to be able to break teams down and get the shots you want. We took too many shots they wanted us to take."

The Titans trailed 19-15 at halftime, but surged ahead in the third frame behind a strong defensive effort. A quarter-ending 8-0 run put them ahead 29-23.

The Lions managed just two Pavlicek baskets.

"(The Titans) put lots of pressure on us in that quarter," Carr said. "You always can expect Gregg Grinsteinner's teams to play tenacious defense. The pressure was still there in the fourth, but we were able to get good shots, and get to the free throw line."

Carr, whose team snapped a three-game losing streak, was happy to have Schneider back on the floor after a two-game absence. A blister on the ball of Schneider's right foot developed blood poisoning and required minor surgery. He was sidelined for 10 days, returning to practice last Wednesday.

"We didn't know how much we'd get out of him today. … Maybe a half," Carr said. "But he gave us around three quarters, and they were quality minutes. He's a good scorer and rebounder for us. It's good to have him back."

Schneider said he's still healing, but discomfort wasn't a problem Saturday. Fatigue was.

"I got pretty tired out there," he said. "I was at practice the last three days, but I didn't put in a full one. But it felt good to be back out there again. I missed it."

Pavlicek, Linton's 6-foot-7 junior post, added nine points and five blocks.

Matt Klug and Morey led the Titans with 11 and 10 points, respectively.

Linton 13 19 23 41

Trinity 6 15 29 32

LINTON (41): Justin Purintun 14, Kevin Schneider 10, Jon Pavlicek 9, Travis Humann 4, Beau Schmaltz 3, Collin Hulm 1. Totals: 13 14-24 41.

TRINITY (32): Matt Klug 11, Robbie Morey 10, Jon Ficek 4, Jared Keller 3, Aaron Grinsteinner 2, Tommy Peters 2. Totals: 13 3-7 32.

3-pointers: Linton 1 (Schmaltz), Trinity 3 (Morey 2, Klug). Fouls: Linton 10, Trinity 20. Fouled out: Keller.