Looking to bounce back from a home loss Saturday and also avenge an earlier defeat this season, Sterling took care of business from the get-go Thursday against Moline.

The Golden Warriors scored 19 seconds into the game and never trailed in a 54-48 Western Big 6 win over the Maroons in the regular-season finale at Musgrove Fieldhouse.

“We took a tough loss when we played at their place [64-62 on Jan. 8], so I think we were all just motivated to come out strong and beat them this time around,” Nia Harris said. “The key was being patient on offense, passing the ball around and waiting for the perfect shot. And I think our defense overall was pretty good today, probably one of the best games of the season.”

Sterling (21-9, 8-6 WB6) led 12-4 halfway through the first quarter and responded each time Moline (23-7, 8-6) rallied.

The Warriors got 3-pointers from Jossy and Jae James to grab a 27-21 halftime lead after the Maroons pulled to within 19-18 early in the second quarter, then Sterling took control with an 18-4 run spanning the third and fourth quarters after the Maroons cut it to 29-27.

Macie Lofgren hit a 3 and Jae James connected with her sister Jossy for another bucket to finish off that second surge with the biggest lead of the night at 47-31 with 5:19 to play.

“We knew that we needed to win this game, and having that confidence and playing as a team just boosted it even more,” Jossy James said. “I would definitely say we brought a lot of energy, and we knew we had to do that on the defensive end. Clearly, that translated to our offense.”

With Jae James being a senior, she and junior Jossy enjoyed their final game as teammates on their home court, and getting the win was even sweeter.

“It’s everything. This program is everything and it’s shaped me into the woman that I am today. Getting to play this last one in front of a big crowd, it was electric. Every shot, every pass, we could feel the love,” Jae James said. “I just feel so loved and grateful that I’m here to play with my sister and have a whole community to support us.”

Already the Warriors’ career 3-point leader, Jossy James set another record Thursday. She hit five 3s to give her 77 on the season, breaking the previous mark of 74 set by Amee Binder – a classmate of Sterling coach Taylor Jackson.

All seven Sterling players scored, led by Jossy James’ 27; she also had five rebounds and five steals. Harris had eight points and seven rebounds, Joslyn Green added five points and seven boards, and Lofgren also scored five points to go with three rebounds. Jae James finished with eight rebounds and six assists to go with her 3-pointer, Brenley Johnson hit a 3 and grabbed three rebounds, and Alivia Gibson chipped in three points, three assists and two steals.

“Definitely our No. 1 key to winning games is our defensive intensity. That’s one of our strengths, and when that defense hits, the offense hits as well,” Jae James said. “We got a good win tonight, and I think that’s just going to give us a ton of energy going into the postseason. We know that we can win, but we’ve got to stay humble and just compete 100% every single day.”

Moline closed the final five minutes on a 17-7 spurt, but couldn’t catch up as the two teams ended up tied for fourth in the conference. Aniya Dixon led the Maroons with 18 points, four rebounds, two assists and two steals, Camilla Velasquez added seven points and five steals, and Adalynn Voss (seven rebounds, two assists, two steals), VaDarricka Reaves (three rebounds), Bridget Machado (three rebounds) and Elle Machado (three rebounds, two steals) each scored five. Ellis Schilb added a fourth-quarter 3-pointer.

“Last time we played Sterling, we were on the other end of it and they came back but fell short. We just could never quite get there,” Moline coach Katelyn Hallgren said. “We didn’t shoot well tonight, we didn’t really take care of the ball well tonight, and we did some things offensively that were uncharacteristic of us. You’re just not going to come in here and play well against this Sterling team. They’re great defenders, and that showed a lot tonight.

“It was a little bit of a gut-check, and I appreciated our girls’ fight there in the fourth quarter. I feel like if we would’ve had that intensity a little earlier on, I think things might’ve been a little bit different.”