Winnebago junior Chas Cross led the list of local boys basketball players who were named to this year’s Illinois Basketball Coaches’ Association All-State Team for classes 1A and 2A.
Cross, a 6-foot-7 center who led Winnebago to a fourth-place finish in the state, was one of 15 players in the state named to the first team. Cross averaged 16.9 points, 10 rebounds and 4.5 blocks a game for the Indians (31-2).
Two area players made the fourth team — Eastland senior forward Tyler Zumdahl and Rock Falls sophomore guard Jake Junis.
PEORIA — It’s usually a once-in-a-lifetime experience for parents to follow their children to a state tournament.
Unless your last name is Reinke.
This weekend was the third state tournament appearance for Winnebago in six years, and the name Reinke has been on every roster. Wes was a reserve player for the 2003-3004 team and a starter the following year. This year, his younger brother, Brad, is a junior starter.
Marshall 66, Winnegabo 55: All of the Winnebago players hung their heads as they walked off the court after their final game of the season Saturday.
But there were three in particular — Jake Doty, Chuck Misuraca and Russ Fiori — who were the most emotional after Winnebago’s 66-55 loss to Marshall.
“It’s tough, knowing it’s our last game ever,” Misuraca said. “It’s really hard.”
Ben Powers has been challenging this year’s Winnebago team all season long.
“I told them they’d never win as many games as we did,” said Powers, who was a starting guard for Winnebago’s first state runner-up team in 2003-2004 and is now the freshman coach for the Indians.
“I told them until they got down state, then we could start talking about it.”
Now that this year’s Indians are at state, Powers and the rest of us can make some comparisons.
Seton Academy 83, Winnebago 58: Winnebago beat a lot of good teams to enter the state tournament with a 31-0 record.
But what the Indians ran into Friday at state was like nothing they’d ever seen.
“We haven’t played against anybody with that kind of quickness all year,” Winnebago coach Joe Murphy said. “They’re a very good team.”
Oswego 60, Belvidere North 39: Belvidere North noticed the mismatches during warmups.
“They’re bigger, stronger, faster, and we knew that right away,” North coach Darrin Sisk said after his team’s loss 60-39 loss to Oswego on Wednesday.
“Just shaking hands with them before the game, I’m looking up to all of them except (one). Anytime you see they have a legitimate 6-4 point guard, you know you’re in trouble.”
North’s season ended in the semifinals of the Class 3A Rochelle Sectional. Oswego (23-6) will play Rochelle (14-16) at 7:30 p.m. Friday for the title.
Winnebago 69, Princeton 41: Winnebago’s starters struggled early, but the Indians’ second wave swamped Princeton in a 69-41 Class 2A Supersectional rout Tuesday night.
“Our second unit came in and got some steals and forced some turnovers in that 16-2 run,” coach Joe Murphy said.
No. 1-ranked Winnebago (31-0) will play No. 3 South Holland Seton Academy in the IHSA Class 2A boys basketball semifinals 6:30 p.m. Friday at the Peoria Civic Center.
Rochelle 62, Wheaton Academy 57: Shortly after clamoring out from beneath the celebration scrum that had developed at midcourt Tuesday night, senior Andy Wilkinson’s head began to shake back and forth.
“I’m stunned,” he said, staring up at the rafters of the Rochelle gymnasium just minutes after the Hubs, still below .500 on the season, shockingly advanced to the sectional finals with a 62-57 win over Wheaton Academy. “I can’t believe it. We believed in ourselves, but this ... this is amazing.”
St. Charles North 68, Auburn 52: Auburn survived three close games at regionals.
At sectionals, however, the Knights’ luck ran out.
Auburn’s season ended Tuesday with a 68-52 loss to St. Charles North in the semifinals of the Class 4A Elgin Sectional.
After making big runs to win all three of their games at last week’s Guilford Regional, the Knights couldn’t make the same comeback against a strong shooting St. Charles North team.
Belvidere North 53, Belvidere 46: The red blood stain on the front of Dominique Hall’s white number 23 jersey was all the proof one needed to see how physical Belvidere North and Belvidere played each other Friday night.
The North senior forward suffered a bloody nose late in the second quarter, when he took an elbow to the face. Hall started the second half wearing a fresh number 23 jersey with cotton stuffed in his nostril.
Winnebago 58, Rockford Lutheran 38: The Indians turned a full-court, back-and-forth battle in Friday’s Class 2A Plano Sectional championship game into a blowout, and the Crusaders never saw it coming.
Winnebago (30-0), up just 26-25 at halftime, wore down Rockford Lutheran (19-9), worked itself into position with an 11-2 third-quarter run, and pulled away for a 58-38 win. The Indians earned their third sectional title — but their first since 2006 — and posted their third
Annawan 82, South Beloit 57: There were no tears when the Sobos walked off the court Friday. There was only shock.
“I’m speechless,” South Beloit senior Matt Peterson said. “I don’t know what to say, I’m just so shocked.”
The top-ranked team in the state suffered a gigantic loss to Annawan 82-57 in the championship game of the Class 1A River Ridge Sectional. South Beloit finished the season 28-2, while Annawan advanced to play Newark at Tuesday’s DeKalb Supersectional.
Auburn 57, Hononegah 43: Xavier Pittman was a returning starting guard from last year’s 20-8 Auburn team, but he was relegated to the role of sixth man after being ineligible for the first semester.
He didn’t let that keep him from being the X factor in Auburn’s 57-43 win Friday night over NIC-10 champion Hononegah in the finals of the Class 4A Guilford Regional. The win gave the school — a basketball power in the 1960s and 1970s — its first regional title since the 1978-79 season.
Rochelle 52, Freeport 49: Late-game struggles have hampered the Freeport boys basketball team at times during the season, and Friday night at the Sterling Regional, the Pretzels had another case of late-game issues.
After leading throughout, Rochelle stormed back and stole a 52-49 win and a regional championship.
“It was a real heartbreaker,” Freeport’s Wes Gastel said. “We had them down big and they came back.
“We all had shots we feel we should have made.”
Rochelle 77, Sterling 76: Sterling’s Joseph Bertrand gave the Fighting Illini fans in attendance a taste of what’s to come with a smooth performance, but it was the Rochelle Hubs who were celebrating a 77-76 upset victory at the end of Wednesday’s Sterling Regional semifinal matchup.
Rockford Lutheran 39, Elgin St. Edwards 35: Lutheran coach Devin Smith had a couple of close shaves Wednesday at the Plano Sectional semifinals.
His Crusaders edged Elgin St. Edwards 39-35, despite a dismal performance at the free throw line, and will meet Winnebago in the Plano Sectional final on Friday.
The coach also made good on a promise after the game, allowing his players to shave his head. He told them he would part with his hair if they reached the sectional final.
Belvidere North 62, Crystal Lake Central 40: It will be an all-Belvidere Class 3A final as the Thunder and Bucs won in very different fashions in semifinal regional play Wednesday.
Belvidere North advanced with a 62-40 win over Crystal Lake Central.
After having a 27-11 lead shrink to 37-33, Belvidere North put on a 15-0 run to close out Crystal Lake Central in what seemed to be three-part game.
“When we executed and didn’t rush our shots, good things happened,” North coach Darrin Sisk said.
Auburn 59, Jefferson 50: A 10-point Auburn lead in the second quarter meant nothing.
Neither did a 12-point Jefferson lead in the fourth.
In a game between two teams known for making big runs, the only lead that mattered was Auburn’s nine-point advantage at the end.
“It was a game of runs, and unfortunately Auburn had one more than us,” said Jefferson coach Todd Brannan after his team’s 59-50 loss to Auburn Wednesday.
Belvidere 68, Woodstock Marian 61 (OT): In regulation, which ended in a 54-54 tie, neither Belvidere nor Woodstock Marian led by more than four points. That all changed in overtime when the Bucs grabbed a 64-56 lead and coasted to a 68-61 win.
“What a great game,” Belvidere coach Aaron Pearson said. “With how even both teams were, I knew it was going to come down to the final couple minutes.”
Andrew Eck, Matt Carroll, Tyler Barr and Patrick Mc-Knight combined to go 9-for-10 from the free-throw line in overtime for the Bucs.
South Beloit 66, Scales Mound 52: Coach Mat Parker and sharpshooter Denzel Woods knew it was only a matter of time.
So did the rest of the Sobos.
For Class 1A’s No. 1 team, it was only a matter of time before the pace picked up, Scales Mound would get tired and the South Beloit shots would start falling.
That time came in the second quarter of Tuesday night’s 66-52 South Beloit win over Scales Mound in a River Ridge Sectional semifinal.
Trailing 12-7 after the first quarter, Woods and the Sobos went to work, going on a 25-6 second quarter advantage to break open the game.
Winnebago 57, Morrison 45: Winnebago is known for its height advantage. So when the Indians were getting outrebounded by a much smaller team from Morrison at halftime Tuesday, they took it personally.
“We know we have the size, we just needed to box out,” Winnebago senior forward Jake Doty said. “That’s a big key for us.”
The Indians came back after halftime and redeemed themselves to beat Morrison 57-45 in the Plano Sectional semifinals.
Winnebago (29-0) will face the winner of tonight’s semifinal between Lutheran and Elgin St. Edward in Friday’s 7:30 p.m. championship game.
Hononegah 61, Boylan 51, OT: Hononegah is becoming the king of close games.
Notching their third overtime victory this season, the Indians topped Boylan 61-51 Tuesday in the Guilford Regional semifinal.
“We have been saying overtime is ‘our house,’” said senior guard Matt Carroll. “We don’t lose in overtime. Our toughness comes out and we come to play.”
Carroll had eight of his 13 points in overtime when the Indians outscored Boylan 16-6.
East 60, Dixon 58: Davin Hinkle’s two free throws with 16 seconds left capped a 13-1 run and gave Rockford East 60-58 win over Dixon Monday night at the Class 3A Regional.
D’Wan Horton led the E-Rabs with 32 points and had 13 rebounds. Horton also had seven steals.
Deontray Austin chipped in 11 points.
Nick Rains and Matt Ross led the Dukes with 15 points, while Garrett Kerr added 11.
East will take on Freeport tonight at 7:30 p.m.
Boylan 78, Harlem 39: Two months ago, Nick Bauch might not have played the way he did Monday against Harlem. But a lot has changed for the Boylan junior center since the beginning of the season.
“I definitely have done a lot of growing up during the season, as has everyone on our team,” Bauch said. “At the beginning of the year, all our posts would have probably played a little timid.”
Auburn 51, Guilford 46: With his season and his high school career on the line, Auburn senior Eddie Cade spoke up during his team’s timeout in the final minutes of the Guilford Class 4A Regional quarterfinal Monday.
“Eddie Cade was extremely vocal, saying that we cannot let them take this away from us,” Auburn coach Bryan Ott said.
His teammates responded by finishing the game with a 12-3 run to beat Guilford 51-46 and advance to the semifinals. Auburn (19-8) will play Jefferson (20-7) on Wednesday. Boylan (18-9) and Hononegah (25-3) meet in tonight’s semifinal.
Rockford FIRE 54, Crestwood 51: The Rockford FIRE won its first Illinois Homeschool state title Saturday by beating Crestwood 54-51. Sophomore David Hellstrom hit a 3-pointer with 2.6 seconds left that gave the FIRE the lead.
Hellstrom finished with 19 points, and Tom Doherty added 13.
The FIRE will compete in the Homeschool Nationals, March 16-22 in Springfield, Mo.
Scales Mound 39, Galena 35: The Scales Mound boys basketball team opened the Stockton Regional final with a flurry and closed it out at the free throw line, beating Galena 39-35.
Garrett Homb opened the game with a long trey as Scales Mound went on a 9-0 run early.
It took Galena more than five minutes to get on the board, as Adam Hocking (10 points) hit a three, followed by a layup and foul he converted to get six back quickly.
Homb hit his fourth basket of the quarter and scored nine of his 14 points in the first as Scales Mound led 11-8.
DeKalb 72, Rochelle 64: Jordan Threloff (36 points) and the DeKalb Barbs held off Rochelle to earn the season sweep. Rochelle’s Andy Wilkinson scored 22.
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Hononegah 67, East 36: The Indians’ Mario Donaldson tallied 16 points and David Brown scored 13 to lift Hononegah to a dominating win over East.
East’s D’Wan Horton scored 16, but no other E-Rab had more than seven.
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Guilford 59, Belvidere North 58, OT: The Vikings got three points each from Thomas Hawkins and Leandre Harmon in overtime to help them edge the Blue Thunder. Hawkins finished with 15 points and five steals while Harmon added nine points and six rebounds.
North’s Jack Adams scored 20 in the loss.
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Polo, 58, Indian Creek 53: Grifin Buck had all the time in the world.
The Polo senior guard spotted up for a wide-open 3-pointer in the corner in the waning seconds of the Polo Regional championship game. Buck took a pass from a slashing Connor Lincoln and took his time before draining an open 3-pointer with 3.4 seconds left that gave the Marcos a 56-53 win over Indian Creek Friday.
It was the first regional title for the Marcos (27-3) in 23 years.
Annawan 66, Milledgeville 46: Annawan coach Ryan Brown had a simple game plan coming into the Eastland Regional championship game — don’t let Milledgeville scorer Kirk Engelkens beat him.
With a game plan that was executed perfectly, Engelkens and the Missiles couldn’t beat the Braves as Annawan won, 66-46.
“We knew what we wanted to do, we put it in and the kids executed perfectly,” Brown said. “I can’t credit our guys enough; they did everything we asked.”
The Braves used a 1-3-1 half court zone that prevented Engelkens from getting to the basket, or finding open looks.
Harlem 82, Belvidere 71: The Huskies’ Chaz Winters scored a season-high 36 points — bringing him to within 33 points of the school record — to lift Harlem over the Bucs. Drazen Savic added 16 points in the win,. Belvidere was led by Andrew Eck who scored 30 in the loss.
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Boylan 73, Freeport 58: After an un-Boylanlike start to the year, the Titans appear to be back in form as the postseason nears.
Boylan (17-9, 11-5 NIC-10) stormed out to a 16-point first-quarter lead and rolled over Freeport (14-13, 7-9) 73-58 on Friday night, finishing third in the conference after a rough start.
The Titans lost five of their first 10 conference games of the year, but finished with six straight league victories. They open regional play Monday against Harlem.
Rockford Lutheran 44, Rockford Christian 42: Justin Miller couldn’t turn in any direction without a Lutheran fan hugging him Friday.
“This is the most hugs I’ve ever gotten in my life,” said Miller, who tossed in a shot just before the final buzzer to lift Lutheran to a 44-42 regional final victory over Rockford Christian.
Lutheran advances to play Elgin St. Edward in the sectional semifinals Wednesday at Plano.
After building a 22-19 halftime lead, Rockford Christian pulled ahead by 10 with 1:53 left in the third quarter.
South Beloit 59, Pecatonica 52: South Beloit ended a 31-year regional championship drought with a win over Pecatonica on Friday.
The Sobos won their first regional title since 1977-78 at the Class 1A Pecatonica Regional. South Beloit (27-1) advanced to next week’s River Ridge Sectional and will play Scales Mound (13-15) in Tuesday’s semifinals.
Denzel Woods poured in four 3-pointers and finished with 18 points for the Sobos, while Antonio Little and Matt Peterson followed with 15 and 12 points.
Annawan 61, Pearl City 52: Pearl City hung with Annawan throughout, but could never take over.
Alex Coppejans (16), Heath Rakestraw (15), Sean Walker (11) all scored in double figures for Annawan.
Pearl City’s Cole Miller had 19 points, while Jared Slick had 12 and Jacob Grebener added 11.
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Milledgeville 58, Eastland 45: Led by Kirk Engelkens 21 points, Milledgeville punched a date to the regional final against Annawan at 7:30 p.m. on Friday.
Milledgeville went on a 18-8 fourth-quarter run to secure the win. Tyler Zumdahl (20) and Tony Dunlap (12) led Eastland.
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Elgin St. Edward 61, Genoa-Kingston 52: Elgin St. Edward halted G-K’s playoffs hopes.
Elgin St. Edward will play Aurora Christian in Friday’s 7:30 p.m. final.
Aurora Christian defeated Plano 54-51.
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Byron 55, Forreston 45: Forreston played better with Michael Schneiderman in the game.
The strange thing is, so did Byron.
“Isn’t it funny when it works out that way?” Forreston coach Jonathan Schneiderman said after his team’s 55-45 regional semifinal loss to Byron on Wednesday.
After missing most of the first half with two fouls, Michael Schneiderman returned in the second half to finish out the game. But when he returned, Byron also picked it up a notch and held the senior guard to three points. He averages 20.8 a game.
Rock Falls 59, Sterling Newman 47: The top-seeded Rockets couldn’t be denied led by Dylan Austin’s 17 points.
After a close first half, the Rockets outscored Newman 37-29 in the second half.
Morrison plays Rock Falls in Friday’s 7:30 p.m. final. Morrison defeated Port Byron 67-49.
Cody Behrens led Newman 17 points.
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Polo 66, Paw Paw 42: Matt Scholl did all his damage in the first half with 17 points to lead Polo.
No. 1 Polo advances to play Indian Creek at 7:30 p.m. in Friday’s finals of the Polo Regional.
Indian Creek defeated LaMoille 60-53.
The Marcos held a 51-20 halftime lead. Connor Lincoln (13) and Matt VanOosten (12) scored in double figures for Polo.
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Scales Mound 39, Lena-Winslow 38: Cameron Koester scored the game-winner with 15 seconds left that gave Scales Mound an upset victory over No. 1 seeded Lena-Winslow.
“We had a set play set up but their defense stopped it and put us in scramble mode,” Hornet coach Erik Kudronowicz said. “They took away Homb and Garrett and Cameron came off the corner.”
Koester had two baskets in the last two minutes — his only points for the tournament.
Homb scored 15 points and Joe Kelly had 13 to lead Scales Mound.
Brian McCabe scored 14 points to lead Lena-Winslow (17-12).
South Beloit 80, Dakota 61: Dakota’s offense struggled to stick with a potent South Beloit team that buried eight 3-pointers in the first half.
Dakota finished its season at 15-13.
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Winnebago 64, Oregon 38: The Indians overwhelmed Oregon in the post with 27 points from Chas Cross and another 14 points from forward A.J. Thomas. Brad Reinke chipped in 11 points for Winnebago, while Nathan Todd scored 19 for Oregon (9-19).
The Indians led 29-19 at halftime and pulled away with a 22-11 run in the third quarter.
- Emily Tropp, rrstar.com
Pecatonica 55, Aquin 42: Pecatonica was seeing its late lead evaporate Wednesday.
The Indians had led by 12 in the fourth quarter but Aquin twice cut the gap to four.
The Indians made sure they wouldn’t lose that lead, calmly sinking 13-of-15 free throws in the last two minutes, 35 seconds of the game defeat Freeport Aquin 55-42 in the semifinal.
Pecatonica will play South Beloit in Friday’s final at 7:30 p.m.
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United Township 74, Rochelle 62: Kannon Burrage’s game-high 27 points sparked United Township. Andy Wilkinson had 18 for the Hubs.
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Galena 56, Stockton 52: The Pirates rallied from a 43-40 third-quarter deficit in the Stockton Class 1A regional. Adam Hocking led Galena with 20 points. Stockton’s Jared Hess had 17.
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Freeport Aquin 74, Keith 36: Aaron Schmelzle’s 21 paced Aquin in the Pecatonica regional. Jason Jennings had 14 for Keith.
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Pecatonica 55, Durand 36: Pec rolled to a 13-4 first-quarter lead en route to the first-round win in its Class 1A regional. Kenzi Peyton powered the win with a game-high 16.
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East Dubuque 65, Orangeville 48: The Warriors cruised to the win with a 40-23 second-half scoring edge. Gunnar Leibold had 18 for the Warriors, and Austin Cramer scored 20 for Orangeville.
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Eastland 61, Prophetstown 43: Eastland’s Tyler Zumdahl had 28 and Tony Dunlap 15.
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Milledgeville 57, Erie 51: The Missiles led 39-37 entering the fourth quarter, but got eight points from Kirk Engelkens in the final period to seal the first-round win in the Eastland Class 1A regionals.
Engelkens had a game-high 23.
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Lutheran 55, Christian Life 29: A pair of 3-pointers in the second quarter by Eric Widstrom sparked the Crusaders. Lutheran used a 16-8 second-quarter run to take a 25-12 halftime lead. Widstrom finished with 11 points, while Jordan Peyton scored 11 for the Eagles.
- Emily Tropp, rrstar.com
Oregon 63, Stillman Valley 51: Oregon earned a 63-51 victory over Stillman Valley on Tuesday in the first round of the Winnebago boys Class 2A regional. The Hawks play the host school Wednesday.
Oregon’s Nathan Todd tallied eight of his game-high 20 points in the fourth quarter when the Hawks outscored Stillman Valley 22-14. Drew Smith finished with 13 for Oregon, and Ryan Rosenbalm added 12.
Shay Bubnack (15) and Aaron Palmer (13) were the lone Cardinals in double figures scoring.
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Rockford Christian 63, North Boone 49: Rockford Christian may be young, but the three seniors on the roster don’t want to be forgotten.
“They’re not ready to be done yet,” Royals coach Cedric Jones said.
Ben Erickson, Conrad Ognibene and Grant Anderson combined for 10 points on the free-throw line in the fourth quarter to lead the Royals to a 63-49 win against North Boone Tuesday at the Christian Life Regional.
South Beloit 79, Marengo Faith Lutheran 24: South Beloit (25-1) started its postseason with a 33-2 first-quarter run. Denzel Woods led with 14 of his team-high 18 points in the first quarter. Jory Sturdevant and Katonka Friar added 15 and 10 points.
- Emily Tropp, rrstar.com
Dakota 64, Alden-Hebron 49: As if being pulled up to varsity as a sophomore wasn’t enough pressure for Kyle Benning, the Dakota forward is also the coach’s son.
It took some time to adjust, but after a slow start to the season, Benning has become one of the more dangerous players in the area. On Monday, he scored 22 points to help lead the Indians to a 64-49 win against Alden-Hebron in the opening round at the Class 1A Pecatonica Regional.
Pearl City 61, Fulton 52: Jared Slick scored a game-high 19 points to lead Pearl City in the Eastland Regional. Cole Miller had 15 points and Collin Talbert 14 for the Wolves.
Pearl City will play Annawan in Wednesday’s semifinals.
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Paw Paw 69, Ashton-Franklin Center 66 OT: Paw Paw’s Heath Nicholson scored six of his 14 points in overtime at the Polo Regional. Anthony Dodaro (21 points) and Jared Penman (20) led Paw Paw.
Alec Borell paced AFC with 17 points.
Paw Paw will play No. 1 Polo at 6 p.m. in Wednesday’s semifinals.
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Scales Mound 56, River Ridge 53: Garrett Homb (14 points) hit a 3-pointer with five seconds remaining to break a 53-53 tie at the Stockton Regional. Rudy Beliz also scored 14 for Scales Mound.
Charles Deneen had 14 points and 10 rebounds for River Ridge.
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Lena-Winslow 47, Warren 44: The top-seeded Panthers held off No. 8 Warren led by Matt Martinez’s 10 points at the Stockton Regional. The Panthers outscored Warren 20-5 in the fourth-quarter. They will meet Scales Mound in Wednesday’s semifinal.
Jared McNutt and Taylor Williams each scored 15 points to lead Warren.
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Sterling Newman 65, West Carroll 61: Sterling Newman went on a 23-16 fourth-quarter run in the Riverdale Regional. Cody Brehrens led Sterling Newman with 19 points.
Brady Edwards, Seth Zickefoose and Luke Ingersoll each scored 12 points to lead West Carroll.
Sterling Newman plays No. 1 Rock Falls in Wednesday’s 6 p.m. semifinal.
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Christian Life 51, Harvard 45: Jordan Peyton scored a game-high 24 points to lead Christian Life past Harvard 51-45 on Monday.
The Eagles, seeded fourth, will meet No. 1 Lutheran today at 6 p.m. in the semifinal of the Class 2A regional hosted by Christian Life.
Adam Westendorf scored 13 points for the Eagles, while Chase Blazier had 21 points for Harvard.
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Argyle 46, Warren 37: Jared McNutt scored 13 points to lead Warren, while Kirk Koehn added 6 points.
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Auburn 62, Belvidere 55: Auburn outscored Belvidere 23-9 in the fourth quarter. Xavier Pittman scored 19 points for the Knights, while Andrew Eck’s 22 led Belvidere.
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Guilford 55, East 53: Leandre Harmon hit a baseline jumper as time ran out for a Guilford victory. Harmon led the Vikings with 15 points while Quavion Kimball added 14. D’Wan Horton led East with 20 points.
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Belvidere North 63, Jefferson 62: Belvidere North’s Kyle Dovenmuehle hit two of three free throws with 11 seconds left to stun Jefferson on Saturday.
Jefferson fell to 20-6, 10-5 in the NIC-10.
Jack Adams led Belvidere North (13-11, 6-9) with 27 points, while Jordan Kerley and Mershon Wilkes had 13 apiece for Jefferson.
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Freeport guard Wes Gastel could tell as soon as the whistle blew what went wrong.
He hesitated before going up for a shot. And it cost the Pretzels one last chance to tie the game with less than two minutes to go as Hononegah won, 61-54.
“There was a long outlet pass and I got the pass and saw the defender jump,” Gastel said. “So I took my time a little and travelled.
“I should have just taken it up.”
Boylan 71, Harlem 67
Now this seems a little more like Boylan basketball.
After losing five of its first 10 NIC-10 games, the powerhouse is returning to form. Boylan won its fifth straight NIC-10 game with a 71-67 decision against Harlem Saturday.
Harlem (15-9, 9-6 NIC-10) is the third straight team to fall to Boylan after beating the Titans in the first half of the season. Boylan also beat Auburn last week and Jefferson on Friday.
South Beloit 77, Dakota 58: From the 3-point arc, to midcourt, to three-quarters down the court — the Sobos hit their threes Friday.
South Beloit sank 11 3-pointers to beat Dakota 77-58. The win gave South Beloit a share of the NUIC East Conference title with Polo. This is the first conference win for the Sobos (24-1, 12-1) since winning the Four Rivers in 2002-2003.
Boylan 75, Jefferson 68: The Jefferson boys basketball team appeared on the verge of a sweep against perennial powerhouse Boylan, but the Titans had other plans.
Boylan avenged its earlier loss to the J-Hawks with a huge second-half effort to earn a 75-68 win on Friday.
“This was a big win for us,” Boylan coach Steve Goers said. “This was a team effort. I am very happy for our kids.”
Galena 67, River Ridge 57: Nathan Bingham scored 10 of his game-high 30 points in the fourth quarter for the Pirates. Adam Hocking added 19 points for Galena, while Jeff Steele and Brandon Beyer scored 12 and 11 for River Ridge.
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Eastland 62, Stockton 38: Eastland shut out Stockton in the second quarter (18-0) and then outscored the Blackhawks 34-24 in the second half. Tyler Zumdahl (28 points) and Tony Dunlap (24) combined for 52 Eastland points. Jared Hess led Stockton with 14 points.
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East Dubuque 66, Warren 55: Mike Middendorf (15 points), Tyler McLane (14) and Kyle Huseman (11) led East Dubuque’s balanced attack. Jared McNutt had 22 points for Warren.
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Pecatonica 63, Orangeville 61: Pecatonica outscored the Broncos 22-15 in the fourth quarter led by six points apiece from Kenzi Peyton (23 points) and Nick Holeton (11). Austin Cramer had 18 points for Orangeville.
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Milledgeville 64, Forreston 38: Milledgeville used a 17-4 second-quarter run for the win. Kirk Engelkens led the Missiles with 29 points, and Michael Schneiderman had 23 for the Cardinals.
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Genoa-Kingston 58, Stillman Valley 54: Scott Suchy sank four 3-pointers and finished with 33 points for the Cogs. Ryan Muir chipped in 13 for G-K. Aaron Palmer (18), John Timm (13) and Shay Bubnack (12) were Stillman Valley’s leading scorers.
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Lutheran 48, Byron 38: Lutheran held Byron to a season-low 38 points while getting 12 points from Eric Widstrom.
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Auburn 59, Belvidere North 52: Auburn went 13 for 15 in fourth-quarter frees for the win. Kashif Maxwell (20 points), Xavier Pittman (17) and Darnell Van Vleet (11) scored in double figures for the Knights. Jack Adams scored 16 for North.
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Harlem 83, East 60: Chaz Winters and Bo Andrews scored 19 and 17 points for the Huskies, while D’Wan Horton’s 25 was the team-high for East.
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Guilford 60, Freeport 58: Guilford’s Thomas Hawkins hit a 15-foot jumper with 1.8 seconds for the win. Guilford (8-18, 4-10) jumped out to a 23-19 lead after the first quarter and held off a Freeport (14-11, 7-7) comeback in the fourth quarter, when the Pretzels outscored the Vikings 19-10.
Spencer Young led Guilford with 13 points and eight rebounds, and Hawkins followed up with 12 points (eight in the first quarter) and 10 assists. Timmy Hill added 11 points. Freeport’s Eric Douglas led all scorers with 21 points.
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Hononegah 68, Belvidere 44: Hononegah clinched the outright NIC-10 conference championship with a 68-44 home win against Belvidere Friday.
Sophomore Andrew Tapley hit six 3-pointers and finished with 21 points for the Indians (23-3, 13-1 NIC-10), who are now three games ahead of second-place Jefferson (20-5, 10-4) and Auburn (16-8, 10-4).
This is the first conference title for the Indians since they shared with Jefferson in 2003-2004. Their last outright title was 1989-90.
Eastland 65, Pearl City 58: The final five minutes of the Eastland-Pearl City boys basketball game must have seemed like an eternity to Cougar fans, coaches and players.
Eastland saw a 17-point lead chipped away to five by hard-charging Pearl City, only to hold on to win 65-58 on Wednesday.
“That might have been the longest five minutes in my 22 years of coach,” Eastland coach Tony Dunlap said. “Give Pearl City a lot of credit, we got a big lead, but they kept fighting.
Lena-Winslow 49, West Carroll 46: Lena-Winslow went 14 for 14 in free throws and was led by 11 points from Matt Martinez.
South Beloit 87, Durand 57: Antonio Little (16 points, 10 assists), Katonka Friar (15), Denzel Woods (13), Matt Peterson (10 points, 11 rebounds) and Matt Ennis (10) led the Sobos, who had their 10th 80-point game of the season.
Dakota 60, Pecatonica 53: Kyle Benning’s 26 points led Dakota, which trailed 21-20 at halftime. Makenzi Peyton (14 points), Jared Reddy (13) led Pecatonica.
Galena 73, Warren 45: Nathan Bingham scored 25 points for Galena, and Garrett Cox had 17 for Warren.
Scales Mound 68, River Ridge 57: The Hornets won their final game of the regular season behind the scoring of Garrett Homb (21 points) and Rudy Beliz (20). Joe Kelly added 13 points for Scales Mound. Jeff Steele (15) led River Ridge.
Rockford Christian 67, Faith Christian 61: Brayden Teuscher scored a career-high 31 points to lead Rockford Christian to a 67-61 win over Faith Christian from Williams Bay, Wis. Wednesday.
The win put the Royals at 20-5 on the season, making this the first 20-win year in program history.
Polo 67, Milledgeville 59: Polo trailed 43-37 after the third quarter but then outscored Milledgeville 30-16 in the fourth. Matt Scholl scored 15 of his 18 points in the final quarter, and the Marcos went 13 for 15 at the free-throw line in the fourth. Matt VanOosten and Connor Lincoln scored 21 and 20 points for Polo. Kirk Engelkens’ 21 points was the team-high for the Missiles.
Sterling 71, Rochelle 46: Joseph Bertrand had 24 points, 11 rebounds, five assists and two steals to lead the Golden Warriors. Niko Rivera followed with 17 points for Sterling, which outrebounded Rochelle 45-24. Andy Wilkinson had 18 points for Rochelle.
Genoa-Kingston 59, Somonauk 35: Trevor Muench scored 14 points for the Cogs, who used a 19-10 third-quarter run to pull away. Ryan Muir and Scott Suchy added 13 and 10 points.
Belvidere North 70, Marengo 43: Jack Adams had 22 points to lead the Blue Thunder, who led 41-21 at halftime. Dominique Hall added 11 points for North.
Winnebago 53, Oregon 52: Winnebago finished its regular season unbeaten, though Oregon gave the Indians their closest game of the season. The Hawks had possession in the closing seconds but missed a jumper and the tip-in putback. Chas Cross scored 14 points for the Indians (26-0, 10-0 BNW).
East 82, Lutheran 78, 2OT: ROCKFORD — D’Wan Horton lit up for 39 points to lead East to an 82-78 double overtime win Tuesday against Lutheran.
Horton scored 33 of his points in the second half and overtime after the teams were tied 26-26 at halftime. Caleb Cooper had three 3-pointers and 10 points for the E-Rabs (3-21, 0-13 NIC-10). Delorian Williams and Deontray Austin added 12 and 10, respectively.
Eric Widstrom (18 points), Nathan Green (17), Taylor Dixon (13) and Andrew Wieting (10) scored in double figures for Lutheran (14-8, 5-4 Big Northern West).
Rockford FIRE 49, Lakeshore Thunder (Racine, Wis.) 47: The Rockford Fire outscored Lakeshore 15-5 in the third quarter to take a 36-26 lead into the fourth and hung on for the win.
Sophomore David Hellstrom and senior Tom Doherty scored 13 points each to lead the FIRE (18-4).
West Carroll 56, Scales Mound 48: A 20-9 third-quarter edge carried West Carroll to the win. Nathaniel Law had 11 points for West Carroll, while teammates Dillon Prowant and Justin Ferguson each added 10. Garrett Homb’s 18 paced Scales Mound.
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Aquin 54, Dakota 43: Zack Martin poured in a game-high 20 for Aquin. Jon Roemer’s 16 topped Dakota.
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River Ridge 71, Galva 58: A 17-point effort by Brandon Beyer led River Ridge to the victory.
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Galena 49, Lena-Winslow 40: Galena outscored Lena-Winslow 31-22 in the second half. Galena’s Matt Hillard scored a game-high 14 points. Brian McCabe had nine points for Lena-Winslow.
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Belvidere 66, Sycamore 56:: Andrew Eck’s 24 points powered the Bucs to the victory. Tyler Bair and David Delacy each added 12.
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LaMoille 68, A-FC 38: A-FC was outscored 41-15 in the first half. Alec Borell had 13, and Brian O’Connell 10 for A-FC.
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South Beloit 70, Milledgeville 69: South Beloit improved to 22-1 with the victory. Denzel Woods’ 30 led the Sobos, who outscored Milledgeville 29-20 in the final period.
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Rock Island 76, Harlem 66: Rock Island rallied from a 31-30 halftime deficit. Chaz Winters scored 22 and Casey Beck 12 to pace Harlem.
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Jefferson 60, Freeport 59: The J-Hawks survived despite being outscored 14-5 in the fourth period. Jordan Kerley scored 10 of his game-high 20 points in the first quarter, as Jefferson grabbed a 22-10 advantage.
Ryan Hickey ignited Freeport’s comeback with 11 of his team-high 19 points in the second quarter.
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Homewood-Flossmoor 52, Boylan 47: Boylan built a 21-18 halftime lead, but couldn’t hold on. The Titans were outscored 16-10 in the fourth quarter. Michael Morman was the lone Titan in double figures with 18.
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Auburn 48, Moline 46: Anthony Strickland hit the game-winning 3-pointer with 7.5 seconds remaining in Auburn’s victory over Moline on Saturday.
Strickland sank five 3s to lead the Knights with 15 points. Teammate Eddie Cade added 11.
Auburn rallied from a 12-4 deficit after the first quarter to take a 23-18 halftime lead. Strickland scored nine points and Cade had eight during the second period.
Strickland scored six fourth-quarter points.
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LaSalle-Peru 54, Dixon 45: Matt Ross had 20 points in the loss for Dixon.
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Sterling 63, Ottawa 43: A 46-point second-half propelled Sterling. Niko Rivera had 19 points and Clay Hadley 16 for Sterling.
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East Dubuque 58, Pearl City 54: Kyle Huseman led East Dubuque with 13 points. Travis Schiess scored 10 for Pearl City.
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Genoa-Kingston 49, Lutheran 46: Ryan Muir had 20 points and Scott Suchy 18 for the Cogs. Nathan Green led Lutheran with 11.
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Byron 85, Oregon 81: Led by Adam Head’s 25 points, Byron survived Oregon’s 33-point fourth-quarter to earn the win. Byron led 63-48 after three quarters. Drew Smith scored 20 for Oregon.
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Rochelle 79, Yorkville 61: Andy Wilkinson (18), Brandon Svela (16), Ben Schwartz (13) and Nate Eyster (11) combined for 58 points for the Hubs.
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Winnebago 83, Stillman Valley 60: Russell Fiori scored 22 points to lead Winnebago. Aaron Palmer had 16 points Stillman Valley.
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Rockford Christian 82, Alden-Hebron 68: Drew Anderson scored 12 points to lead Rockford Christian, which rallied after trailing 38-35 at halftime.
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Jefferson 70, East 50: Thaddeus Perry scored 20 points to lead Jefferson. D’Wan Horton had 21 and Deontray Austin had 12 for East.
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Hononegah 78, Guilford 67: David Brown had 18 points and Dustin Meier 14 for Hononegah. LeAndre Harmon scored 20 points, Thomas Hawkins 11 and Spencer Young 10 for Guilford.
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Belvidere North 58, Belvidere 54: Jack Adams scored 15 of his 17 in the second half to lead Belvidere North. Austin Burns scored 17 points for the Bucs while Andrew Eck added 15.
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Boylan 53, Auburn 51: Michael Morman scored 14 points to help Boylan overcame a 40-36 third-quarter deficit. Eddie Cade led Auburn with 16.
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Freeport 53, Harlem 48: Eric Douglas doesn’t have too many opportunities to block a shot. Freeport’s junior guard, listed at 5-foot-11, had a powerful one Friday against Harlem with a minute to go in the third quarter.
That defensive intensity seeped into the fourth quarter and helped the Pretzels to a 53-48 NIC-10 boys basketball victory.
“I don’t get that many blocks but I tried to get that one for the team after a goofy turnover,” said Douglas, who finished with 12 points, a game-high 13 rebounds, three assists and four steals.
Galena 64, Warren 22: Galena led 47-18 at the end of the third quarter and rolled to victory. Nathan Bingham scored 16 points and Michael Staver scored 14 points to lead Galena. Garrett Cox scored 11 points to lead Warren.
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Forreston 56, Lena-Winslow 45: Jordan Bagley had 11 points and 10 rebounds, and Michael Schneiderman scored 14 points to lead Forreston over Le-Win.
Matt Martinez scored 15 points, while Wes Ertmer and Brian McCabe added 12 points for the Panthers.
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Morrison 73, Milledgeville 51: Morrison broke open a tight game with a 38-16 second half.
Devin Mouw and Jason Smith scored 15 points apiece and Travis McBride added 11 to lead Morrison.
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Eastland 64, River Ridge 54: Tyler Zumdahl scored 27 points, including hitting 4-of-4 free throws, to lead Eastland. Tony Dunlap hit four 3-pointers to finish with 18 points for Eastland.
Charles Deneen and Jeff Steele each scored 13 points for River Ridge.
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Faith Christian 52, Rockford Christian 49: Rockford Christian fell behind Faith Christian after the second quarter and couldn’t rally, resulting in a 52-49 loss. Brayden Teuscher scored 15 points, while Conrad Ognibene added 13 to lead the Royals.
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North Boone 66, Pecatonica 46:Tyler Bielski had four 3-pointers and finished with 20 points to lead North Boone to a 66-46 win Wednesday.
Bielski had three 3-pointers in North Boone’s 19-11 first-quarter run. Ethan Wirth added 12 for the Vikings, who owned a 39-31 halftime lead.
Kyle Lepak (19 points), Kenzi Peyton (14) and Jared Reddy (13) scored in double figures for the Indians.
Durand 46, Ashton-Franklin Center 35: Durand jumped out to a 12-1 lead in the first quarter. Bryan Rhyner and Zac Schafer scored 13 points apiece for the Bulldogs.
Alec Borell had four 3-pointers and scored 16 points for A-FC.
Genoa-Kingston 72, Indian Creek 60: Ryan Muir led GK with 21 points.
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South Beloit 80, Harvard 57: Antonio Little scored 13 of his 21 points in a 31-point third-quarter for the Sobos (21-1).
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Lutheran 58, Christian Life 32: Balanced scoring paced the Crusaders’ victory led by Jimmy Clark’s nine points. Jordan Peyton scored a game-high 17 points for the Eagles.
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Winnebago 67, West Carroll 48: Brad Reinke led the Indians with 17 points and Russell Fiori had 10. Nathaniel Law had nine for West Carroll.
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Rockford Fire 57, Sterling Christian 53: Jordan Scott hit 3-of-4 free throws in the last minute to seal the win for the Fire (17-4).
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Scales Mound 72, Warren 53: Garrett Homb led the Scales Mound attack with 23 points. Jordan Nichols topped Warren with 14 points.
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Hononegah 60, Belvidere North 55: Mario Donaldson scored 21 points and Matt Carroll added 14 for the Indians. Kyle Dovenmuehle scored 21 points and Jack Adams had 15 for North.
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Milledgeville 62, Freeport Aquin 60, OT: Levi Harris made three free throws in overtime, and Kirk Engelkens had 19 points to lead Milledgeville. Zach Martin led Aquin with 20 points.
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Freeport 51, Sterling 50: Led by Austin Davis’ 20 points, Freeport rallied for the win.
Joseph Bertrand led Sterling with 19 points and Dustin Fritsch had 17.
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Eastland 53, Lena-Winslow 48: Tyler Zundahl and Brad Dunlap led Eastland with 17 and 16 points, respectively. Wes Ertmer had 19 points for Lena-Winslow.
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Pecatonica 46, Durand 40: Josh Benters scored 13 points and Nick Holeton added 12 in Pecatonica’s win. Zac Schafer led Durand with 15 points.
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Elgin St. Edward 57, Stillman Valley 48: A 22-12 third-quarter push provided the boost for Elgin St. Edward. Aaron Palmer had 21 points and Shay Bubnack 15 for Stillman Valley.
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Pearl City 58, Stockton 37: Jared Slick scored 15 points and Cole Miller added 14 to lead Pearl City.
Stockton’s Brock Hawley had 14 points and 10 rebounds, and Josh Yaeger added 10 points.
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Polo 59, Forreston 54: Another win, another night with numerous heroes.
That’s becoming the theme for the Polo boys basketball team as the Marcos needed every player’s best effort in their 59-54 win over Forreston.
“Every guy on this team can step up and take over a game,” Polo’s Grifin Buck said. “That’s what’s different about this year.
“Last year, we don’t win this game.”
Polo needed big efforts from multiple players, as the Marcos and Cardinals engaged in a seesaw affair.
Ashton-Franklin Center 57, Indian Creek 51: Ashton-Franklin Center won its first game of the season behind four 3-pointers ad 20 points from Alec Borell.
Brett Henson and Adam Herwig added 16 points apiece for the Raiders (1-20).
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Orangeville 62, Warren 53: Austin Cramer (21 points) and Clayton Shick (19) combined for 40 of Orangeville’s points for the win.
Taylor Williams (17), Jordan Nichols (12) and Garrett Cox (10) scored in double figures for Warren.
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Rockford FIRE 54, Huntington (Ind.) 45: Justin Schneider scored 17 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for Rockford. Tom Doherty and David Hellstrom added 14 and 12 points, respectively.
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Eastland 50, West Carroll 43: Tyler Zumdahl poured in 19 and Tony Dunlap 14 to propel Eastland to the win. Jaron Ferguson had 19 for West Carroll.
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Le-Win 50, Stockton 36: Brian McCabe scored 11 and Fritz Werhane and Wes Ertmer 10 each for Le-Win.
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Westminster Christian 57, Christian Life 40: Jordan Peyton had 14 points to pace Christian Life.
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Stillman Valley 64, Oregon 56: Shay Bubnack had 19 points and Aaron Palmer 15 for Stillman Valley.
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Milledgeville 73, A-FC 55: Kirk Engelkens scored a game-high 22 to spark Milledgeville.
Brian O’Connell dropped in 13 of his team-high 17 points in the second half for A-FC.
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Winnebago 59, Rockford Lutheran 52: Finally, after 22 fairly easy wins, Winnebago had a close game Saturday.
With the conference title on the line, the Indians were up for the test.
Winnebago had its closest game of the season as it hung on to beat Lutheran 59-52. The Indians improved to 23-0 and clinched the outright Big Northern West title.
“It was good experience for us, because we had never really had a close game,” Winnebago junior Brad Reinke said.
“It’s definitely been exciting. We knew we’d have a good year, but we’re exceeding all our expectations.”
Freeport 44, Monroe 35: Josh Lewis had 14 points, including two 3s, for Freeport, which outscored Monroe 18-4 in the fourth quarter.
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Auburn 64, East 47: Four Auburn players scored in double figures, led by Kashif Maxwell’s 20.
D’Wan Horton had 15 for East.
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Guilford 70, Harlem 67: Guilford stunned Harlem 70-67 at home Saturday behind Leandre Harmon’s 22 points and a solid night at the free-throw line.
After their first conference victory Jan. 23, the Vikings (7-17, 3-9 NIC-10) have now won three of their past six.
Harlem (14-6, 8-4) dropped its second straight game after heading into the weekend tied for second place.
“It certainly boosts our confidence and gives us some momentum going into our last conference games,” Guilford coach Casey Kilduff said.
Freeport 57, Auburn 56: Freeport saw a 17-point third-quarter lead evaporate and a last-second shot by Auburn fall short as the Pretzels earned a NIC-10 boys victory Friday.
“We started taking some quick shots and making turnovers,” Freeport junior forward Austin Davis said of Auburn’s comeback. “But we got it back together at the end and got the win out of it.”
Freeport led 39-22 with 6:26 left in the third period before Auburn turned up the defense and hit several 3-pointers to slice the deficit to 45-44 midway through the fourth quarter.
Harlem never saw it coming.
In fact, most of the people in the gym never saw it coming.
With five seconds left in regulation and the conference championship on the line, Hononegah did not design a play for all-stater David Brown.
The honors instead went to sophomore Andrew Tapley, who swished his first and only basket of the night with one second remaining to send the game to overtime. Hononegah went on to beat Harlem 61-54.
After it was over, a swarm of Hononegah students rushed to Tapley to slap his back and ruffle his hair.
Rockford FIRE 61, Cincinnati Landmark 51: Led by David Hellstrom’s 23 points, the Fire moved to 15-4 with its win against Landmark at the NCHBC Midwest Regionals in Cincinnati. Hellstrom, a sophomore, has scored 82 points in three games. Teammates Justin Schneider scored 12 points and Tom Doherty added 11.
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River Ridge 66, Warren 47: Jeff Steele (19) and Terry Wilthshire (18) led a balanced scoring attack for River Ridge. Garrett Cox scored 14 points for Warren.
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East Dubuque 53, Scales Mound 48: East Dubuque held on for the win led by Tyler McLane’s 14 points. Garrett Homb had 12 and Joe Kelly scored 10 points for Scales Mound.
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Rochelle 91, Sycamore 76: Andy Wilkinson scored a game-high 34 points to lead the Hubs. Wilkinson went 6 of 7 from the free-throw line. Kevin Fane added 18, Ben Schwartz had 17 and Nate Eyster had 10 for Rochelle, which outscored Sycamore 28-14 in the third quarter.
Shane Carnahan scored 25 points and Michael Buckner scored 16 for the Spartans.
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Dakota 47, AFC 38: Kyle Benning scored 10 of his 17 points in the second half to help lead Dakota past AFC. Austin Oberbruner added 14 points for the Indians, who led 34-23 after three quarters. Adam Herwig scored 15 and Alec Borell had 12 for AFC.
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Durand 46, Orangeville 43, OT: Durand’s Zac Schafer made two free throws and Thomas Harms hit a 3-pointer in overtime to secure the win against Orangeville. Schafer finished with 20 points, while Harms had 15. The game was tied at 41 at end of regulation. Trace Hanson scored 10 points, including his team’s lone basket in the overtime.
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Jefferson 82, Guilford 59: Jordan Kerley scored 18 points to lead Jefferson past Guilford. Thomas Hawkins had 22 points for Guiford.
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Belvidere 73, East 58: Tyler Barr scored 29 points for Belvidere in a rout of East. Eric Hollins scored 19 points and D’Wan Horton had 17 for East.
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North Boone 52, Rockford Christian Life 40: Christian Life’s slow offensive start worked in favor of North Boone, which earned a 52-40 win Friday.
Jared Boehmke scored 12 points to lead four Vikings in double figures. Kyle Gurman and Alex Albrecht each scored 11 and Ethan Wirth added 10.
North Boone led 10-1 in the first quarter and pushed it to 35-29 in the third quarter.
Reggie McGee had five 3-pointers for 15 points and Jordan Peyton added 13 for Christian Life.
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St. Johns (Mich.) 75, Rockford FIRE 69: David Hellstrom scored 35 for Rockford (14-4) in its second regional game.
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Rockford FIRE 76, Lexington (Ky.) Bluegrass United 42: Tom Doherty’s 29 points sparked the victory in the NCHBC Midwest Regional at Cincinnati.
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South Beloit 77, Pecatonica 66: The Sobos got 22 from Katonka Friar. Roland Wortman had 21 for Pec.
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Milledgeville 59, Sterling 51: The Missiles rode Kirk Engelkens’ 21-point effort to the victory.
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Genoa-Kingston 64. Byron 61: Trevor Muench had 21 and Scott Suchy 20 to power the Cogs. Kyle Smith led Byron with 20.
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Polo 69, Prophetstown 43: Griffin Buck hit five 3-pointers and tallied 21 points to pace Polo.
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Freeport Aquin 62, AFC 50: Aaron Schmelzle scored 20 points and Zach Martin had 12 for Aquin. Alec Borell led AFC with 22 points.
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Lena-Winslow 58, East Dubuque 51: Le-Win’s Brian McCabe scored 10 of his 14 points in the first half as his team took control.
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Rockford Christian 82, Keith 46: The Royals dominated from start to finish, led by Brayden Teuscher’s 19-point outing. Keith’s Jason Jennings had 16.
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Milledgeville 54, Durand 35: Durand scored four points in the second quarter and eight in the third as Milledgeville ran off with a win. Carrigan Hunter topped the Missiles with 14 points, scoring all but two in the second half.
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River Ridge 57, Stockton 47: River Ridge used a balanced attack and a strong second-quarter defensive effort to hold down Stockton. Charles Deneen led the way for the Wildcats with 13 points and six assists while Terry Wiltshire added 12 points and eight rebounds. Stockton got 14 points from Jared Hess and 12 points and eight rebounds from Josh Yaeger.
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Rockford FIRE 65, Sterling Christian 57: Led by sophomore David Hellstrom’s 20-point, nine-rebound performance, the FIRE held off Sterling Christian’s late rally. Tom Doherty added 12 points and 12 boards for the FIRE, while Sterling Christian was sparked by Devan Goodiell’s 23-point night.
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Belvidere North 81, East 70: North’s Kyle Dovenmuehle scored 27 points to lead the Blue Thunder over East. East, which outscored North 26-18 in the fourth quarter but still fell short, was led by Eric Hollins who scored 22.
Byron 65, Stillman Valley 43: Byron’s Kyle Smith got the Tigers off to a good start with 11 first-half points, and Justin Rosecke helped finish off Stillman Valley with nine second-half points. Smith finished with a game-high 16 points and Rosecke added 13. Stillman Valley had three players with 10 points each.
Lutheran 60, Oregon 55: Lutheran rallied from a two-point halftime deficit to overcome Oregon down the stretch. Oregon’s Ryan Rosenbalm scored 23 points in the loss, while Lutheran was led by Taylor Dixon and Jimmy Clark, who each scored 11.
Winnebago 62, Genoa-Kingston 42: Winnebago held Genoa-Kingston to 13 points in the second half and strolled to a 62-42 victory Tuesday for the Indians’ 21st win in a row to open the season.
Winnebago, which trailed 16-15 after the first quarter, led by five at half and pulled away with a 16-8 third-quarter run.
Chuck Misuraca led the way for Winnebago with 14 points and Jeff Sartorius added 12. G-K got 11 points from Scott Suchy.
South Beloit 83, Forreston 73: South Beloit spotted Forreston 20 points in the first quarter, and still, the Cardinals couldn’t keep up with the Sobos.
“Our guys really believe that, no matter who they play, eventually, they’re going to wear them down,” South Beloit coach Mat Parker said after his team’s 83-73 come-from-behind win at Forreston on Tuesday.
“We’re going to be relentless the whole game. We truly believe that we’re going to outlast everyone physically.”
Rockford Christian 51, Wales (Wis.) Ethan Allen 45: Grant Anderson led Rockford Christian on Monday with 13 points and Drew Anderson added 12.
Dakota 62, North Boone 46: Kyle Benning sank seven 3-pointers and finished with 38 points to lead Dakota to a win Monday against North Boone.
Jared Boehmke added 11 points for the Indians, who pulled away with a 17-4 third-quarter run.
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Stillman Valley 67, Pecatonica 60: The Cardinals had four players score in double figures, led by Shay Bubnack’s 17-point effort, and made 30-of-34 from the free-throw line to stave off Pec.
The Indians led by three heading into the fourth quarter, but Stillman Valley made 16-for-18 from the line in the final period to outscore Pec by 10. The Indians got 17 points from Kenzi Peyton and 15 from Josh Benters.
ROCKFORD — In the past week, the Rockford Christian boys basketball team hasn’t had much success when it comes to overtime games.
Heading into Thursday’s contest against rival Christian Life, the Royals had lost twice in overtime games against Rockford Lutheran and Kenosha (Wis.) Reuther.
The Eagles, playing in a packed home gym, made the Royals work extra hard before Rockford Christian pulled out a 65-63 triple-overtime victory.
Brayden Teuscher’s basket with 4.3 seconds remaining in the third overtime became the game-winner.
Hononegah junior Mario Donaldson didn’t have to look far to find a role model as a young player.
His own father — Mario Donaldson Sr. — played professional basketball for the Rockford Lightning when Mario was growing up.
“I know he’s helped me out a lot,” Donaldson Jr. said. “He’s always giving me tips, and he’s always been there for me. I’m really proud of him, and I’ve always tried to follow his lead.”
But Friday it was the son who made the father proud, as Donaldson scored 16 points to help lead Hononegah to a 57-48 victory against Jefferson.
WINNEBAGO — Mike Mann’s first 3-point attempt in the first quarter was an air ball. He tried another three in the second quarter, and it was a brick.
But the only shots anyone will remember about the Winnebago junior from Thursday’s game are the ones Mann took in the third quarter.
Mann drained four 3-pointers and scored all of his season-high 16 points in the third to lead Winnebago to a 63-49 win against Byron. The Indians improved to 20-0 and remained unbeaten in the Big Northern West (5-0) at the halfway point of their conference schedule.
Harlem 49, Auburn 47:Chaz Winters was quiet in Friday’s first half. Then again, so were the rest of the Harlem Huskies.
“We couldn’t do anything right,” Winters explained after his team went 4 for 13 from the floor in the first quarter and trailed by 12 at halftime.
After a furious third-quarter comeback and a back-and-forth battle in the fourth quarter, however, Winters’ tip-in with less than two seconds remaining lifted the Huskies to a 49-47 road win over Auburn.
Stillman Valley 63, Rockford Lutheran 60: Shay Bubnack scored 19 points Friday night to help Stillman Valley to a 63-60 overtime upset of Big Northern West second-place Rockford Lutheran.
The Cardinals (4-15, 1-5) have now won two games in a row after ending a nine-game losing streak. But they’ve also given undefeated Winnebago, ranked No. 3 in Class 2A, it’s closest game, losing by eight points to the Indians.
South Beloit 89, Orangeville 70: The Sobos rained in 16 3-pointers. Six different Sobos made a 3-pointer, including five by Katonka Friar (19 points). Matt Ennis (17 points) and Antonio Little (11) made three each for the Sobos, ranked No. 9 in Class 1A. Denzel Woods added 16 points for South Beloit (18-1, 7-1), which led 50-34 at the half.
Clayton Shick topped Orangeville with 17 points and Austin Cramer added 14 and Chris Brinkmeier 11 for the Broncos.
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Boylan 83, East 66: Michael Morman scored 23 points and Jason Painter and Chris Miller added 18 apiece to lead Boylan. The Titans led 49-28 at the half. D’Wan Horton led the E-Rabs with 24.
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North Boone 52, Marengo 43: Tyler Bielski made five 3-pointers and scored 19 points to lead the Vikings (7-11, 3-2 Big Northern East). Shaun Babcock added 10 points. Kyle Garman had nine points on a trio of 3-pointers as North Boone made more 3-pointers (nine) than regular baskets (eight).
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Bureau Valley 93, Sterling Newman 56: Tyler DeVenney scored 29 of his 31 points in the first half to lead Manlius Bureau Valley. Cody Behrens led Sterling Newman with 15 points.
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Dakota 52, Durand 32: Kyle Benning poured in 25 points to lead Dakota (8-9, 4-3), which held Durand scoreless in the second quarter to open up a 27-10 lead. Zac Schafer topped the Bulldogs with 14 points.
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West Carroll 73, Stockton 47: Jaron Ferguson scored 17 points Seth Zickefoose 13 to lead West Carroll, which broke the game open by outscoring Stockton 29-8 in the third quarter. Alex Kriebs scored 12 points, Brandon Wampfler 11 and Jared Hess for Stockton, which trailed 32-23 at the half.
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Galena 50, Scales Mound 46: Nathan Bingham (14 points) hit two late free throws to seal the win for Galena. Adam Hocking led the Pirates with 18 points. Garrett Homb scored 16 and Joe Kelly 11 to lead Scales Mound, which made only 4 of 14 free throws.
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East Dubuque 71, River Ridge 57: East Dubuque built a huge 49-23 halftime lead then held on, behind Kyle Huseman (14 points), Luke Harris (11), Tyler McLane (11) and Stephen McDermott (10). Charles Deneen had 20 for River Ridge.
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Polo 67, Freeport Aquin 62: Matt Scholl, honored before Friday’s game for reaching the 1,000 point mark earlier this season, showed he could he could effect the game in so many other ways.
Scholl recorded a quadruple double with 14 points, 16 rebounds, 12 assists and 10 steals to help Polo edge Freeport Aquin 67-62.
Scholl scored 10 of his 14 points in the first quarter to help the Marcos get out to an 8-2 lead that was cut to one by the end of the quarter. He was dominant around the rim in the quarter, grabbing nine of his 16 rebounds.
Guilford 73, Belvidere 71 (OT): Balance carried the day as five different Vikings scored in overtime to help Guilford edge Belvidere 13-11 in the extra period. Spencer Young led Guilford (6-15, 2-7) with 19 points, while Leandre Harmon added 16, Quavion Kimball 12 and Thomas Hawkins 10.
Andrew Eck scored five of his 17 points in overtime to lead Belvidere (7-11, 2-7). David Delacy also scored 17 for the Bucs, while Tyler Barr added 15 and Austin Burns 12.
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Belvidere North 52, Freeport 49: Freeport’s troubles behind the 3-point line were like one of the Pretzel cheerleaders’ flips down the court in the fourth quarter — the form was dead-on, but they couldn’t stick the landing.
A Ryan Hickey 3-pointer, with more than two defenders contesting the shot, fell short just before time expired in a 52-49 boys basketball loss to Belvidere North. The Pretzels finished 5-for-26 from behind the 3-point line, including 1-for-9 by Hickey. The Blue Thunder were 3-for-12.
Harlem 85, Jefferson 79: For the second straight night Saturday, Harlem had to play a high energy team with a better NIC-10 record on the road.
And for the second straight night, the Huskies walked away the winners.
“This was a very good weekend for us,” Harlem coach Mike Moore said with a smile after his team’s 85-79 win at Jefferson. “But, it doesn’t get any easier after this.”
Auburn 57, Guilford 48: Darnell Van Vleet converted three 3-pointers to finish with 16 points in Auburn’s win against Guilford on Saturday.
The Knights held a 31-23 halftime lead. Ayrryous Ford added 15 points for Auburn and Kashif Maxwell had 13.
LeAndre Harmon led Guilford with 17 points and Thomas Hawkins had 12.
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Freeport 62, Belvidere 43: Belvidere’s one-point lead fell apart in the second half as Freeport went on a 39-19 tear.
Ryan Hickey led Freeport with 15 points. Austin Davis had 13 and Trent Huntoon added 10.
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Rockford FIRE 56, Crestwood 45: David Hellstrom led the FIRE with 16 points, while Tom Doherty had 12 and Jordan Scott chipped in 10 in a win.
Justin Schneider had eight points and recorded 11 rebounds and three blocks for the FIRE (12-3).
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Stockton 36, Durand 32: Brock Hawley led Stockton’s win with 10 points, Chris Timmerman led Durand with 12 points.
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Erie 55, Galena 42: Lucas Jepson led Erie’s scoring effort with 22 points. Nathan Bingham tallied 19 points for Galena.
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Lena-Winslow 47, Fulton 35: Clayton Stouffer scored 18 points and Brian McCabe added 13 for Lena-Winslow.
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Hononegah 58, Boylan 52: For more than 28 minutes it looked as if Boylan was going to turn the NIC-10 boys basketball race into a five-team scrum.
Instead, Hononegah ratcheted up its full-court press and half-court trap and managed to escape with a 58-52 win at Boylan and maintain its one-game lead.
Somanauk 66, Hiawatha 34:Ricky Failla and Frankie Doles led Kirkland Hiawatha with seven points each in a 66-34 loss to Somanauk.
Polo 76, Ashton-Franklin Center 43: Matt VanOosten scored 10 of his team-high 18 points for Polo in the Marcos’ 34-8 first-quarter run. Grifin Buck added 13 points — all of which came in the first quarter — and Garrett Scholl chipped in 12.
Galena 55, River Ridge 43: Nathan Bingham had a game-high 17 points for the Pirates.
Pearl City 44, West Carroll 43: The Wolves went 6 of 6 in fourth-quarter free throws. Jared Slick (14 points) and Cole Miller (11) scored in double figures for Pearl City. Dillon Prowant led West Carroll with 12 points.
Scales Mound 67, Lena-Winslow 44: Scales Mound (8-11) won its fifth straight game by knocking Lena-Winslow (11-7) out of first place in the NUIC West. Garrett Homb led the Hornets with 22 points.
Eastland 48, Stockton 40: Eastland’s Tony Dunlap sank three 3-pointers and finished with 21 points.
East Dubuque 67, Warren 55: Kyle Huseman scored 23 points to lead East Dubuque, while Warren’s Kirk Koehn and Ryan Vick scored 14 apiece.
Reuther Central 77, Rockford Christian 66 (OT): Reuther Central outscored the Royals 16-5 in overtime. Doug Anderson scored 26 points for the Royals.
Genoa-Kingston 66, Harvard 55: Nick Lopez went 8 for 9 at the free-throw line in the fourth quarter to lead the Cogs. Scott Suchy led Genoa-Kingston with 24 points, and Lopez finished with 10 points.
Christian Life 55, Oregon 53: Jordan Peyton poured in 20 points for Christian Life, and Jacob Bach added 10. Ben Jacobs (18 points), Ryan Rosenbalm (13) and Nathan Todd (10) scored in double figures for the Hawks.
South Beloit 70, Dakota 61: Antonio Little had four 3-pointers and finished with 27 points for the Sobos. Denzel Woods and Katonka Friar added 16 and 14 points, and Matt Peterson had nine rebounds.
Belvidere North 66, Woodstock 51: After leading by one point at the end of the third quarter, North outscored Woodstock 28-14 in the fourth. Jack Adams and Alex Gomez finished with 21 and 16 points, respectively.
Freeport 72, Guilford 55: Austin Davis scored nine points in the first quarter to give Freeport an early lead on its way to a 72-55 win over Guilford Tuesday.
The Pretzels outscored Guilford 24-9 in the first quarter. Davis finished with 14 points. Ryan Hickey (15 points), Eric Douglas (13) and Josh Lewis (13) added double figures. Spencer Young led the Vikings with 14 points.
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Forreston 50, Milledgeville 46:Forreston remained in first place in the NUIC East with a 50-46 win against Milledgeville Tuesday.
Both teams had their share of momentum in the fourth quarter, but it was two inside baskets by Jordan Bagley (16 points) with one minute remaining followed by late free throws that secured the win for Forreston (11-8, 6-1 NUIC East).
“What a roller coaster,” Forreston coach Jonathan Schneiderman said.
Forreston remains tied for first with Polo (18-3, 6-1) and South Beloit (17-1, 6-1), while Milledgeville (9-8, 3-3) dropped to fifth.
Durand 42, Orangeville 36: Led by Bryan Rhyner’s 13 points, Durand survived Orangeville’s late charge to earn the win.
Durand led 26-22 heading into the fourth quarter. Austin Cramer led Orangeville with 13 points.
Robbie Savala and Zac Schafer each scored 10 points for Durand.
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Princeton’s 14-man rotation paved the way in a 68-55 nonconference boys basketball win over Byron on Monday.
“They were switching five guys out at a time,” Byron guard Kyle Smith said. “They just beat us down.”
Smith led Byron with 22 points and Adam Head added 17. Byron led 14-8 in the first quarter, but Princeton took control with a 12-0 run and wasn’t threatened.
“Every game this season, we’ve had at least 10 guys in the scoring column,” Princeton coach Jesse Brandt said. “We definitely shared the ball.”
ROCKFORD -- David Brown sat on the bench scowling in pain in the final minutes of the fourth quarter at Auburn Saturday.
The Hononegah senior had a bruised hip, four fouls, only four points and a sprained ankle that still wasn’t 100 percent.
And yet, when Hononegah coach Mike Miller turned to him for help, Brown never hesitated.
“I looked at him and said ‘How about if I put you back in and you win this for us?’” Miller said. “And he did it. He won it for us.”
ROCKFORD — Only one Byron player had more than one basket until the final two minutes. Only one Lutheran player finished with more than two.
“We’re teams that focus so predominantly on half-court defense, when we get together, it’s like we set basketball back 50 years,” Lutheran coach Devin Smith said.
And that’s fine with Smith. Especially when his Crusaders take an early lead. Byron never got closer than six points after the first period as Lutheran led wire-to-wire in a 45-33 boys basketball victory Saturday night that moved the Crusaders into second place in the Big Northern West.
Lutheran coach Devin Smith said the biggest barrier for his team lately is shooting.
“We just haven’t been shooting the ball very well lately,” Smith said. “I’m not sure how we keep winning.”
The answer is good defense. That’s what worked for the Crusaders in overtime Thursday at Rockford Christian.
Lutheran beat the Royals 56-50 by forcing three Rockford Christian turnovers and holding its 6-foot-8 center scoreless in the extra period. The nonconference game will have postseason seeding implications, as the teams will likely compete in the same Class 2A regional next month.
Even though he’s been to almost every Durand home game for 11 years, Jake Stockdale never cheers for the Bulldogs.
He has a more important job. Stockdale runs the clock.
“It’s kind of a fun job,” Stockdale said. “I like being around the kids. I know a lot of the parents. It’s just something that I do.”
The job seems fairly simple. Clock keepers sit at the scorer’s table and start and stop time at the officials’ command. They count baskets and fouls. They flip switches and push buttons. Easy stuff.
Forreston 80, Aquin 52: Michael Schneiderman hit five 3-pointers and finished with 29 points for the Cardinals.
Chad Hefner followed with 18. Aaron Schmelzle’s 12 points led Aquin.
West Carroll 70, River Ridge 60: West Carroll overcame a 34-27 halftime deficit.
Brady Edwards had 31 points for the Thunder, and Charles Deneen’s 25 points led River Ridge.
Mooseheart 57, Keith 38: Jason Jennings scored 10 points for Keith.
Dakota 60, Alden-Hebron 37: Dakota also finished 3-1 with the win over A-H. Kyle Benning poured in 34 points, which included six 3-pointers.
Polo 62, Dakota 48: Matt VanOosten scored 14 of his team-high 23 points in the first quarter when Polo outscored Dakota 24-12.
Scott Scholl and Connor Lincoln added 12 and 11 points, respectively.
Polo beat Mooseheart 70-65 later in the day to finish 3-1 in the tournament.
South Beloit won its own Martin Luther King Tournament Monday with two wins against Keith and Alden-Hebron.
The Sobos (16-0) started with an 80-42 win against Keith led by Antonio Little’s 20 points. South Beloit outscored Keith 31-17 in the first quarter and then broke the game open for good with a 31-7 second-quarter run.
Denzel Woods chipped in 15 points for the Sobos. Jason Jennings scored 22 points for Keith.
Hoffman Estates 71, Guilford 54: Timmy Hill scored a team-high 16 points for Guilford.
Zion-Benton 76, Hononegah 63: Hononegah coach Mike Miller wanted some of the state’s best talent in his Martin Luther King Classic.
He just would have preferred to have his talent come out on top.
Ohio State recruit Lenzelle Smith scored 29 points to lead Zion-Benton to a 76-63 win over the Indians Monday at Hononegah’s King Classic. The loss cost Hononegah first place in the tournament. Neuqua Valley won with a 4-0 record, while Zion-Benton and Hononegah both finished 3-1.
Sterling 69, Normal Community 63: Joseph Bertrand (15 points), Devin Johnson (14), Dustin Fritsch (14) and Niko Rivera (11) scored in double figures for Sterling.
Normal West 49, Sterling 43: Normal West held Sterling’s Joseph Bertrand to nine points. Dustin Fritsch led the Golden Warriors with 11 points.
Neuqua Valley 62, Guilford 44: D.J. Richmond and Dontay Hanson scored 17 and 11 points for the Vikings.
SOUTH BELOIT — There’s no doubt anymore. South Beloit is the real deal.
The Sobos remained unbeaten with a convincing 72-52 win against Polo Saturday at South Beloit’s Martin Luther King Tournament.
Polo (13-3) was one of the area’s top preseason picks and reached the finals of the Forreston Holiday Tournament last month. But the Marcos couldn’t keep up with the fast-paced Sobos (16-0), who forced seven turnovers in the deciding third quarter while also hitting 11 3-pointers in the game.
ROCKTON — David Brown returned from injury early to lead Hononegah to a 2-0 start in its fifth annual Martin Luther King Classic Saturday.
Brown scored a combined 39 points in Hononegah’s wins against Normal West and Sterling just one week after going down with a high ankle sprain.
Hononegah initially feared he broke his ankle. When the Indians found out it was a sprain, he was expected to miss two weeks.
He returned in seven days.
ROCHELLE — After starting Western Sun play at 0-6, an old friend was just what the Rochelle basketball team needed to reverse its fortunes.
The Hubs (7-12) defeated former NCIC conference mate Dixon, 67-54. The win snapped a 4-game losing streak for Rochelle, which last won against Streator, another NCIC team.
GENOA — Rockford Lutheran senior Jacob Koehler has made the kind of improvements that his coach Devin Smith knew would make him into a formidable force on the basketball court.
Koehler, a 6-foot-2 forward, proved his worth down the stretch against Genoa-Kingston on Friday when he hit 3-of-4 free throws to help Lutheran win 46-39 in Big Northern West Conference action.
Senior guard Eric Widstrom led the Crusaders with 11 points, while Koehler had eight.
Le-Win 54, West Carroll 44: Lena-Winslow’s balanced attack, led by Brian McCabe’s 11 points, was too much for West Carroll.
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Forreston 80, Orangeville 60: Clayton Shick scored half of Forreston’s 18 in the first quarter and went on to score 22 in the 20-point win.
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East Dubuque 50, Stockton 47: Kyle Huseman scored 17 to lead his East Dubuque squad to a late victory over Stockton.
The Indians got 20 points from Brock Hawley.
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Burlington Central 53, North Boone 49: Tyler Bielski had 20 points and drained five 3s, but his Vikings trailed throughout.
Mark Mastio led BC with 18 points.
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Pecatonica 56, Dakota 33: Led by Kyle Lepak’s 14-point night, Pec rolled to the win.
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Winnebago 67, Stillman Valley 59: Despite four 3-pointers and 24 points from Aaron Palmer, the Cardinals could not catch up to Winnebago.
The Indians jumped out to a 22-9 lead in the first quarter and held on. Brad Reinke scored 16 for ’Bago.
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Christian Life 59, Hiawatha 43: Reggie McGee went 5-for-8 from 3-point range to lift Christian Life to the win.
South Beloit 75, Durand 35: South Beloit climbed to a 23-9 first-quarter lead, then later climbed to 12-0 with the win.
Katonka Friar led the way with 16 points.
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Harlem 73, East 51: Harlem’s Chaz Winters went 7-for-7 from the free-throw line and scored 21 points as the Huskies rolled over the E-Rabs.
Drazen Savic added 15 for Harlem while East’s D’Wan Horton had a game-high 27 in the loss.
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Hononegah 51, Belvidere 30: Chase Robinson and Dustin Meier each scored 12 points as Hononegah did just enough to earn a win over Belvidere.
Eleven players scored for Hononegah, while the Buc got 12 from Andrew Eck and had just five players reach the scoring column.
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BELVIDERE — Jack Adams scored his 1,000th point, but Belvidere North faded down the stretch during Friday’s 53-39 loss to Auburn.
Adams finished the night with 12 points and now has 1,003 for his career. He was the lone Blue Thunder player in double figures, however.
Auburn was led by Kashif Maxwell (12 points) and Darnell VanVleet (11).
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MILLEDGEVILLE — In the battle of two of the top teams in the NUIC East, and one of the area’s best rivalries, Polo and Milledgeville put on another dramatic game, with the Marcos prevailing, 54-50.
“It’s always a hard-fought, clean game when Polo and Milledgeville play,” Polo coach Matt Messer said. “I’m really proud of the way my kids played, and I’m as proud as I can be of the Milledgeville kids.”
The game, and the top players on the floor, lived up to their billing, as Milledgeville led only once, but Polo was never in total control of the game.
Dixon 72, Oregon 66: Ben Jacobs had a team-high 22 points for Oregon, while Ryan Rosenbalm and Drew Smith added 16 apiece.
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South Beloit 77, Beloit Turner 64: The Sobos (11-0) remained unbeaten thanks to 18 points and nine rebounds from Matt Peterson.
Antonio Little (17), Matt Ennis (13), Katonka Friar (11) and Steven Counts (10) also scored in double figures.
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Aquin 61, Stillman Valley 37: Noah Diemer had five 3-pointers and finished with a game-high 20 points for the Bulldogs.
Aquin jumped out to a 24-10 lead after shooting five 3-pointers in the first quarter.
John Timm had 14 points for Stillman Valley.
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Scales Mound 64, River Ridge 58: Terry Kelly scored 17 points for Scales Mound.
Zito Deneen had a team-high 15 for River Ridge.
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Milledgeville 70, Pearl City 50: Kirk Engelkens poured in 27 points for the Missiles, who led 36-18 at halftime.
Carrigan Hunter (13) and Levi Harris (12) also scored in double figures.
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Kaneland 63, Rochelle 59: Kaneland went 15 of 16 in free throws, while Rochelle never stepped to the line.
Kyle Furman (15), Brandon Svela (13) and Nate Eyster (13) scored in double figures for the Hubs.
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Winnebago 80, Pecatonica 47: Chas Cross (20 points), Russell Fiori (15), Chuck Misuraca (11) and Brad Reinke (11) scored in double figures for Winnebago.
Eastland 56, Christian Life 31: Tyler Zumdahl’s 17 points was the team-high for Eastland.
Jordan Peyton led the Eagles with 12.
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FORRESTON — Four players scored in double figures to lead Forreston to a 57-48 win against West Carroll Tuesday.
Michael Schneiderman led with 16 points and eight rebounds. Chad Hefner and Jordan Bagley followed with 13 apiece, and Matthew McCoy chipped in 12 for Forreston (7-7).
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OREGON — It wasn’t the prettiest exhibition of basketball, but as the old saying goes, “a W is a W.”
Oregon came up the W and Stillman Valley the L in a 58-45 contest that gave fans from either team little to cheer about in a very quiet BlackHawk Center.
“It wasn’t too fun to watch was it,” Oregon’s Ben Jacobs said. “It was a sloppy game all together.”
“I was pretty disappointed with our energy,” Oregon coach Quinn Virgil said. “After playing Lutheran hard for three quarters and Hinckley for four, it’s been a long week.”
ROCKFORD — For the second straight night, Jefferson turned a tight game into a runaway with a late run to move into a tie for second in the NIC-10 race.
Rockford East converted an eight-point halftime deficit into a 40-40 tie at the end of three quarters behind a 14-point explosion from guard D’Wan Horton.
But the J-Hawks opened the fourth quarter with a 13-1 run and cruised to a 66-50 win Saturday at Jefferson. Friday, the J-Hawks used a 14-0 third-quarter run to beat Freeport, 65-50.
ROCKFORD — If you can’t stand the humidity, get out of the gym.
Winnebago and Lutheran did just that Saturday night when their Big Northern West boys basketball game was suspended because the humidity in the packed Lutheran gym made the floor too slick.
“We don’t have this problem on a regular basis, unless we have 800 people in here, which we have right now.” said Pam Blume, Lutheran’s assistant athletic director.
The game has been rescheduled for 7 p.m. Monday.
BELVIDERE — Boylan coach Steve Goers is one game away from tying the IHSA’s record for career coaching wins.
Goers’ 82-53 win against Belvidere on Friday put the Titans at 10-3 on the season and gave Goers his 825th career win.
Dick Van Scyoc holds the record with 826. Goers could tie the record with a win tonight at Auburn.
Michael Morman’s 12 points led the Titans, who had 12 players score.
Belvidere’s Tyler Barr scored 16 of his team-high 19 points in the first half, hitting four 3-pointers. Teammate David Delacy contributed 14.
Boylan built a 42-26 halftime lead.
ROCKTON — Even without their scoring and rebounding leader David Brown on the floor for most of the night, Hononegah shook off everything that Belvidere North threw at them during Friday’s 47-30 home win.
ROCKFORD — The score went from a tie to a 13-point Jefferson lead in a blink of an eye.
That’s what the J-Hawks’ pressure can do to teams.
“Our kids are pretty quick, and our defense won it,” Jefferson coach Todd Brannan said. “That’s the way it been all year. Our pressure creates our offense.”
Jefferson finished the third quarter with a 14-0 run Friday and went on to beat Freeport 65-50 at Jefferson High School.
Kenosha (Wis.) Luther Central 57, Rockford Christian 48: Brayden Teuscher led the Royals with 14 points, while Austin Uhrig and Grant Anderson added nine apiece.
Oregon 63, Hinckley-Big Rock 50: Ben Jacobs sank four 3-pointers and finished with 24 points for the Hawks. Nathan Todd followed with 20 points, and Ryan Rosenbalm chipped in 14.
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SOUTH BELOIT — Antonio Little had seven 3-pointers and finished with 30 points to lead South Beloit to a 79-58 home win Thursday over North Boone.
The Sobos (10-0) outscored North Boone 31-10 in the second quarter thanks to three treys from Little.
Denzel Woods and Katonia Friar added 11 points apiece for South Beloit. Kyle Garman’s nine points was the team-high for North Boone (3-8).
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ROCKFORD — Nisreen Al-Basha and the Keith girls basketball team kept their composure and rallied late to defeat Faith Christian (Williams Bay, Wis.) 50-39 on Thursday.
Al-Basha scored 13 of her 15 points in the fourth quarter, while junior Nishawnda Smith had 19 points to lead the way for Keith (9-4, 4-1) against Faith Christian (5-4,3-1), the defending Indian Trails Conference champions.
For Al-Basha, the victory was extra special after losing twice to Faith last season.
BYRON — Adam Head didn’t have time to slowly adjust to varsity basketball. A first-year starter, the Byron junior obviously didn’t need it.
Head has scored at least 20 points in each of his past three games. His 24 points Thursday led the Tigers to a 68-55 home win against Genoa-Kingston to keep Byron undefeated in the Big Northern West.
This is Head’s first season on varsity. Last year the 6-foot-4 forward led Byron to the BNW title at the sophomore level.
FREEPORT — A little more than a month ago, the Freeport Aquin boys basketball team played its first game of the season against South Beloit and coach Rich Chang said he didn’t think his team was ready to play.
Wednesday night, the Bulldogs appeared to be ready for the challenge the Sobos (9-0, 4-0) brought, but still ended up on the losing end of a physical contest, 72-54.
“It was a much more physical game than we like it or we would anticipate,” Chang said. “I mean, we knew it was going to be intense and high-tempo. But I think the physicality of the game threw us (off).
West Carroll 67, Warren 60: Jaron Ferguson’s 23 points led all scorers as West Carroll held on to beat Warren.
Jared McNutt led the Warriors with 18 points and Garrett Cox added 14.
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Michael Schneiderman hit five 3-pointers and led all scorers with 34 points to lead Forreston over Dakota on Wednesday night.
Jordan Bagley added 15 points for Forreston, who used a 25-9 first quarter to its advantage.
Dakota was led by Landon Ketchum’s 11 points while Kyle Benning added 10.
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Polo 68, Durand 33: Matt VanOosten’s 21 points was almost enough to beat the Bulldogs by himself. But Grifin Buck added 14 for Polo and the Marcos rolled past Durand.
The Bulldogs were led by Zac Schafer’s 13 points, who scored 11 of Durand’s 15 first-half points.
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Eastland 69, East Dubuque 68: Tyler Zumdahl and Eastland won a fourth-quarter battle of free throws to hold off East Dubuque.
Zumdahl hit a 3-pointer and went 4-for-4 from the line in the fourth, finishing with 27 points. Teammate Reed Lossman added 22 and also went 4-for-4 from the line in the quarter.
East Dubuque was led by Tyler McLane (19) and Kyle Huseman (16).
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Stockton 44, Galena 41: Only four players scored for Stockton, but that’s all the Blackhawks needed as Jared Hess (20 points) and Brock Hawley (14) held off a late Galena charge.
The Pirates were led by Nathan Bingham’s 13 points while Adam Hocking added 11.
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Milledgeville 68, Orangeville 52: Kirk Engelkens is proving he can be an asset on the basketball court, too. The Millegeville football star scored 22 points, going a perfect 12-for-12 from the free-throw line in the Missiles’ victory.
Jake Workman added 19 points and three 3-pointers.
Orangeville was led by Clayton Shick’s 23 points.
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SOUTH BELOIT — Antonio Little was heartbroken after he broke his wrist at the end of last season, but now the South Beloit senior feels he benefitted from it.
“It was horrible, because it was the last game before regionals started,” said Little after hitting five 3-pointers to lead South Beloit to an 89-50 home win against Ashton-Franklin Center Saturday.
“My junior year I was doing a lot more of driving to the rim and scoring that way. But when I broke my wrist, I had to be careful with it, and that’s when I figured I had to develop a shot.”
Despite not playing a home game yet this season, Winnebago defeated Hampshire 57-41 on Saturday to remain undefeated at 13-0.
The Indians’ Dec. 9 home game against North Boone was postponed until Jan. 22.
Chad Cross led all players with 18 points, scoring 11 in the first half. Chuck Misuraca added nine points, and Russ Fiori hit two 3-pointers for six of his eight points.
Winnebago is scheduled to play its first home game Tuesday versus Genoa-Kingston.
Richwoods opened the game with four 3-point baskets to open to a 12-4 lead and hit three more in the final minutes of the second quarter to take a 37-14 lead into halftime.
Mason Alwan hit five 3-pointers for Richwoods and Jontell Lindsay added three more.
Alwan led all scorers with 15 points.
Freeport was led by Eric Douglas’ 10 points. Jon Mason chipped in five.
Freeport’s Ryan Hickey was named to the All-Tournament team.
FORRESTON - Chas Cross stands out on the court because of his height.
But the 6-foot-7 Winnebago junior is more than just tall.
“He’s tall, and he’s got a seven-foot wingspan, his arms are so long,” Winnebago coach Joe Murphy said. “And he can move on top of it.
“If I was on the other side of the court, I’d be frustrated by him, too.”
Cross was too much for anyone to handle at this week’s 49th Annual Forreston Holiday Tournament. A two-year-starter, Cross led the Indians to their second-straight title with a 62-49 win against Morrison in Friday’s championship.
ROCKFORD — Michael Morman had three 3-pointers and 13 of his team-high 21 points in the second quarter to lead Boylan to a 68-45 home win Saturday against Guilford.
Boylan led by three (18-15) after the first quarter but then pulled away in the second with a 21-14 run.
Kieran Jansen and Jason Painter added eight points apiece for the Titans.
Dontay Hanson’s 18 points was the team-high for the Vikings.
Chuck Dayton Holiday Tournament
FORRESTON — Dakota outlasted Christian Life 39-37 Thursday in the Forreston Tournament.
Dakota took a 10-point lead into halftime, but Christian Life outscored Dakota 25-17 in the second half.
Jesse Jansen had a team-high 11 points for Dakota. Cody Maddox and Landon Ketchum each added eight points.
Christian Life sophomore Adam Westendorf scored a game-high 12 points and Reggie McGee followed up with 11 points, including three 3-pointers.
Oregon 63, Lena-Winslow 50: After a 26-all halftime score, Oregon went on to outscore Lena-Winslow 37-24 in the second half.
FORRESTON — Freeport Aquin held on for a 59-58 win against Oregon on Wednesday at the Forreston Tournament.
Aquin led 28-23 at halftime, but the Hawks outscored the Bulldogs 35-31 in the second half.
Amboy 58, Christian Life 57, OT: Amboy survived a tight match that was tied at 25-25 at halftime and again at 51 at end of regulation.
River Ridge 65, Dakota 40: Dakota hung early with River Ridge, but a 29-point third quarter would secure the win for the Wildcats. River Ridge led 23-19 at halftime, but extended it to 52-36 by the end of the third.
Winnebago wins pool at E.C. Nichols Tournament
MARENGO — Winnebago won its pool at the E.C. Nichols Holiday Tournament Tuesday with a 54-41 win against Hampshire.
Chas Cross scored 19 points for Winnebago, which will play two games Saturday. The Indians are trying to win their fifth straight championship.
Elgin Tournament
ELGIN — Palatine Fremd knocked Auburn out of the championship bracket with a 46-38 win.
It was the second day in a row that Fremd (2-7) pulled an upset in the tournament thanks to its defense. Fremd beat Batavia 57-28 Monday. Auburn dropped to 7-2.
FORRESTON — The Forreston Holiday Tournament hosts got an early boost with a 49-47 victory over Pecatonica in the tourney’s opening-day action Saturday.
Michael Schneiderman had 18 points and Colton Scott added 15 as the Cardinals turned a 27-25 halftime deficit into a five-point lead heading into the fourth quarter. Pec, led by Makenzi Peyton’s 16-point effort, outscored Forreston 12-9 in the fourth, but it was not enough.
Forreston Tournament
ROCKFORD — Boylan outrebounded North by nine and had four players score in double figures to beat the Blue Thunder 91-61 Friday.
Shane Zackery led the Titans with 14 points. Chris Miller and Armani Flannigan scored 12 points apiece, and Frank Salamone chipped in 10.
The Titans launched eight 3-pointers and outrebounded North 36-27.
Jake Billon (14), Kyle Dovenmuehle (13) and Alex Gomez (11) were North’s leading scorers. Boylan held last year’s NIC-10 leading scorer Jack Adams to three points.
FREEPORT — Auburn used a 10-0 run in the first quarter and a 10-2 run in the second to beat Freeport 62-45 Friday and remain unbeaten in the NIC-10.
“Boy, if that’s not the best team that could win the NIC-10,” Freeport coach Jeff Lawfer said after his team’s home opener. “I’ll be very surprised. That’s an awfully good basketball team.”
Freeport might feel out of place tonight in its own gym.
After eight straight road games, the Pretzels will be home for the first time tonight against Auburn.
“It will be nice to get home and get some home cooking,” Freeport senior Ryan Hickey said.
The Pretzels only hope they’ll play as well in Freeport as they have these first eight games. Freeport improved to 6-2 (3-0 NIC-10) Thursday with an 82-59 win at East.
“We’re extremely happy,” Hickey said. “For us to go 3-0 so far is great because it’s a lot tougher to win on the road.”
ROCKTON — Hononegah boys basketball coach Mike Miller is assured of a least one thing.
The Indians’ defense will be a force in the NIC-10 after taking down Harlem 58-38 Friday for their second straight conference victory.
The team’s offense may be coming around too.
David Brown scored 22 points on an array of midrange shots, free throws and 3-pointers to lead the Indians (6-1, 2-1).
POPLAR GROVE — Byron scored 11 of its 17 field goals from behind the 3-point line to beat North Boone 52-29. After taking a 19-14 lead into halftime, Byron pulled away in the third quarter to outscore North Boone 22-5.
Kyle Smith hit four 3’s and scored a game-high 17 points for Byron. Doug Lillibridge added three more 3’s for nine points.
North Boone’s Addem Wynstra had a team-high eight points.
Richmond-Burton 53, Oregon 24: The Rockets pulled away in the second quarter with a 17-4 run. Ryan Rosenbalm led the Hawks with nine points.
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Jefferson beat Hononegah on the first night, then lost to Harlem the next. Hononegah lost to Jefferson, then bounced back to beat Boylan. Auburn beat Harlem, then the Huskies turned around and beat Jefferson.
And that was just the first weekend.
If the first two nights are any indication, this could be one of the more exciting conference races in NIC-10 history. Not just between two or three teams, but between four or five or more.
MACHESNEY PARK — Harlem kept up with Auburn for three quarters, but all that work vanished in a blink of an eye in the fourth period Friday.
A quick Auburn team turned a three-point lead into an 11-point lead in under two minutes in the fourth quarter and went on to win 54-46 at Harlem. It was the conference opener for both teams.
The Knights’ full-court defense forced 29 Harlem turnovers, three of which came during Auburn’s 8-0 deciding run halfway through the fourth quarter.
ROCKTON — Hononegah’s fans were eager to chant “MVP” when Indian senior David Brown powered past conference rival Boylan Saturday.
They had to wait until the fourth quarter, but the crowd finally got its wish.
After Boylan held Brown to just one point through the first three quarters, the defending NIC-10 MVP scored eight points in the fourth to help lead Hononegah to a 44-30 home win against the Titans.
“Obviously he struggled offensively,” Hononegah coach Mike Miller said. “But David made a lot of plays late. A great player knows how to make the plays when it counts.”
Darnell Van Vleet hit five of Auburn’s nine 3-pointers to help the Knights beat Guilford 77-53 Saturday at Auburn. With the win, the Knights take sole position of first place in the NIC-10 (5-1 overall, 2-0 NIC-10).
Van Vleet finished with a game-high 26 points, with four 3s coming in an 18-point first quarter. Kashif Maxwell added 12 points and two 3-pointers. Guilford’s Dontay Hanson had a team-high 17 points.
MACHESNEY PARK — A night after coughing the ball up 29 times in an eight-point loss to Auburn, Harlem cut its turnovers to 18 and pulled away late for a 63-52 win over Jefferson.
Jefferson, which was coming off an impressive 16-point win over Hononegah Friday, suffered its first loss of the season after starting with six straight wins.
“Today was a big difference for us. We handled things much better,” Harlem junior guard Bo Andrews said. “That’s still too many turnovers. We need to get it down to eight or 10 a game.”
Jefferson basketball coach Todd Brannan stood on the sidelines Friday after his J-Hawks knocked off Hononegah 64-48, and enjoyed the moment.
“We haven’t had this kind of excitement in this gym in a long time,” the first-year coach said, watching the Jefferson fans and players celebrate at midcourt.
In the middle of the crowd was junior guard Mershon Wilkes, who scored nine of his 16 points in the first quarter when Jefferson (6-0, 1-0) took a 16-7 advantage.
It was a lead the J-Hawks never relinquished.
ROCKFORD — Twelve different players scored for Boylan as the Titans beat East 91-58 in their NIC-10 season-opener Friday at Boylan.
Boylan led 17-15 after the first quarter and then pulled away in the second with a 23-8 run. The Titans (4-1, 1-0 NIC-10) led 40-23 at halftime.
Nick Bauch and Jason Painter led the Boylan scorers with 13 points apiece. Chris Ogilby (12), Frank Salamone (11) and Shane Zackery (10) also scored in double figures, but every player on the roster scored at least two points.
George Barron led the E-Rabs (0-5, 0-1) with 14 points.
POPLAR GROVE — North Boone basketball coach Lennie Doetch put his depth to the test Friday in the Vikings’ 41-35 win over Rockford Lutheran.
Doetch played both his starting five and his second string effectively throughout, which powered North Boone to the home win.
“Our second string came in and held it down,” said Vikings starter Tyler Bielski, who had eight points. “That helped in our win.”
Rivera, Bertrand send Sterling to victory
J-Hawks get buzzer-beating tourney win
MUNDELEIN — Mershon Wilks drained a shot at the buzzer to help Jefferson knock off Grayslake 56-55 in Mundelein Tournament play Friday night.
Wilks, Jordan Perry and Jordan Kerley all scored 14 for the J-Hawks, who trailed by seven at halftime before finishing off the comeback victory.
Hoops for Healing
BELVIDERE — The Bucs scored just six points in the first quarter and never regrouped, falling 56-36 to Cary-Grove. The Bucs were led by Andrew Eck’s 12 points and Austin Burns’ eight.
RRSTAR.COM
MUNDELEIN — Four players scored in double figures to lead Jefferson to a 61-47 win over Maine West at the Mundelein Holiday Tournament Monday.
Thaddeus Perry led the way with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Mario Manns followed with 12 points, while Jordan Kerley and Mershon Wilkes each added 10 points.
By the time David Brown finishes his senior year, the Hononegah standout should be the team’s all-time leading scorer and second among all-time leading rebounders.
He’ll break records, earn all-state honors and possibly become a back-to-back conference MVP winner.
“He has a chance to achieve a lot of individual things, but the only thing he cares about is the success of the team,” Hononegah coach Mike Miller said.
“He’s been really great, and when you have a superstar who is more concerned about the team than himself, you have a chance.”
BELVIDERE — Last year was just a warm-up. Now Belvidere North can really compete.
“We’re hoping to build on the foundation we laid down last year in the inaugural season,” North coach Darrin Sisk said.
Bringing back the leading scorer in the conference is a good start.
After finishing 8-20 (1-15 NIC-10) in the team’s first year, North and senior Jack Adams will try to bring the program up a level.
Adams, a first-team all-conference player, led the NIC-10 in scoring last season with 22 points a game. The 6-6 senior forward is one of four returning starters.
BELVIDERE — Tyler Barr and Andrew Eck return to lead an athletic Belvidere team under second-year coach Aaron Pearson.
Barr (6-2 Sr. G) is the lone returning starter from last year’s team that finished 13-16 (6-10 NIC-10), while Eck (6-2 Sr. G) joins him as a leader.
“Those are our two captains who have been with us every day all summer,” Pearson said. “They’ve been the leaders for us from day one, and we’re going to look to them to do a lot for us. If they go, we’ll be on.”
ROCKFORD — Jefferson is turning to first-year coach Todd Brannan to bring new life to the J-Hawk program that has struggled the past three years. And so far, it’s working.
After winning last summer’s RVC Basketball League, Jefferson is off to a 2-0 start.
“It’s a long season, and there are going to be a lot of ups and downs,” Brannan said. “I think we have got a long way to go, but I like where we’re at right now.”
ROCKFORD — There is potential at East.
But E-Rab coach Roy Sackmaster said it could take a little while to see it.
“We will be much better at the end of the season,” said Sackmaster, who begins his fourth season leading East.
East starts the season with two returning starters, seniors D’Wan Horton (5-7 G) and George Barron (5-8 G). Horton was a transfer student from Georgia who became eligible to play for East for the final seven games. He scored 51 points in his first three games and finished with an average of 13 points, three assists and three steals.
FREEPORT — With a small roster and not a lot of height, Freeport will rely on its speed and athleticism this season.
That won’t be a problem with this group, seven-year coach Jeff Lawfer said.
“They’re a very athletic group of men,” said Lawfer, who led Freeport to a 16-13 (10-6 NIC-10) record last season. “They have the ability to mesh together and be a very good team.”
ROCKFORD — For the first time in as long as he can remember, Boylan coach Steve Goers didn’t have a fixed starting lineup when the season started.
“I don’t know if that’s ever happened,” Goers said.
It’s because so many of the players are new. The Titans, defending conference and regional champs, graduated six full-time players last season. Senior guard Shane Zackery is the lone returner after averaging eight points last year.
The only other player who saw significant time last season is 6-6 senior Chris Ogilby, who averaged two points.
ROCKFORD — Casey Kilduff had to start from scratch when he took over Guilford’s program last year.
So returning six players this year must be sheer bliss.
“Absolutely,” said Kilduff, who returns for his second year as Vikings head coach. “We’re fortunate we have six guys returning, as well as some young talented players coming up in the program.”
MACHESNEY PARK — With two of the top rebounders in the conference returning at Harlem this season, it’s easy to see why the Huskies will be tough for anyone to match up with this year.
“Our post play should definitely be our strength,” Harlem coach Mike Moore said. “We’re excited about it.”
Chaz Winters (6-2 Sr. F) and Casey Beck (6-7 Jr. F) combined to average 20 rebounds a game last season. Throw 6-6 senior forwards Dario Savic and Drazen Savic into the mix, and the Huskies have depth in the post that few other teams will.
ROCKFORD — Goals haven’t changed from a year ago.
Auburn is still chasing a conference title, its first since 1977-78.
Regional, sectional and supersectional titles also remain elusive goals.
Everything is the same, because even though Auburn had its best season in 16 years last year, there’s nothing to show for it but a winning record.
“There’s an expectation, on their part, that we have unfinished business,” Auburn coach Bryan Ott said.
Heartsick after the way last season ended without conference or regional titles, Auburn is determined this year will be different.
MUNDELEIN — Four players scored in double figures to lead Jefferson to a 61-47 win over Maine West at the Mundelein Holiday Tournament Monday.
Thaddeus Perry led the way with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Mario Manns followed with 12 points, while Jordan Kerley and Mershon Wilkes each added 10 points.
