Saturday, February 21 Preview

Overtime anyone???? Wednesday night’s action was loaded with extra time. Possibly the wildest night of the year saw three of four road teams win, a 4 point win, two overtime games and a double overtime thriller. Rend Lake traveled to Kaskaskia and returned with a four point win. Southwestern Illinois fought off a tough John A. Logan team in Carterville, Wabash Valley knocked off #8 ranked Southeastern Illinois and Olney Central’s Jared Rehmel hit a game winning three in double overtime.
Hopefully Saturday night can bring as much excitement to the GRAC as we head into the final three nights of conference play. Who will finish where and who will get hot going into the Region tournament.

Saturday’s Matchups:
Kaskaskia, 11-16 (3-10) @ Wabash Valley, 18-9 (6-7)
Last Outing:
Rend Lake 72 @ Kaskaskia 68 (2-18-09)
Southeastern Illinois 83 @ Wabash Valley 91 OT (2-18-09)
Last Meeting:
Wabash Valley 91 @ Kaskaskia 78 (1-24-09)
Notes:
Kaskaskia travels to Mt. Carmel coming off of a tough loss at home to the Warriors of Rend Lake. The Blue Devils look to get off their current two game skid against a team that is battling hard despite fatigue. Three of the Warriors last four games have gone into overtime, including a double overtime loss at home against John A. Logan. The Warriors leave their vans in the barns for their third straight home game. Can the Warriors build off of their overtime win over Southeastern and keep reeling into the tournament?

Lincoln Trail, 6-19 (2-11) @ #8 Southeastern Illinois, 22-3 (10-3)
Last Outing:
Olney Central 112 @ Lincoln Trail 109 2OT (2-18-09)
Southeastern Illinois 83 @ Wabash Valley 91 OT (2-18-09)
Last Meeting:
Southeastern Illinois 67 @ Lincoln Trail 63 (1-24-09)
Notes:
Lincoln Trail loads up the Chevy Charters and travel to Harrisburg to try to end their current 3 game skid. The Statesmen have been one of the toughest cookies in this second half of the league. Their last three losses have included a 5 point overtime loss against Southwestern Illinois, a one-point buzzer-beating loss at Rend Lake, and a double overtime thriller with the Blue Knights of Olney Central. Southeastern looks to find their way back into the win column. Losers of two straight, the Falcons look to regain their composure and fight off the Volunteers who are not far behind in the standings.

Rend Lake, 14-14 (4-10) @ #6 Southwestern Illinois, 26-2 (13-1)
Last Outing:
Rend Lake 72 @ Kaskaskia 68 (2-18-09)
Southwestern Illinois 82 @ John A. Logan 80 OT (2-18-09)
Last Meeting:
Southwestern Illinois 66 @ Rend Lake 64 (1-25-09)
Notes:
The Warriors look to avenge an early season loss to the Blue Storm. Southwestern barely came out of Ina on January 25th with a 2-point win. The Warriors coming off a big road win at Kaskaskia hope to be the first team to knock off the Storm in Belleville. Campo’s boys are still creeping up the standings and have now found themselves in the #6 spot.

Game of the Night:
Lake Land, 15-11 (5-8) @ Olney Central, 17-10 (7-6)
Last Outing:
Lake Land 74 @ Southwestern Illinois 88 (2-16-09)
Olney Central 112 @ Lincoln Trail 109 2OT (2-18-09)
Last Meeting:
Olney Central 78 @ Lake Land 88 (1-24-09)
Notes:
A huge game for both teams as the Blue Knights and Lakers compete for the #4 spot in the region tournament. The Lakers smacked the Blue Knights in Mattoon in January, and the Knights look to avenge that loss. The Blue Knights currently hold a one game lead over Wabash Valley and a two game lead over Lake Land. The Lakers are looking to get back on the winning track as they load up the charter and head south to Olney. Coach Brown has dealt with some mid-season injuries that have hindered the Lakers. With the return of Player of the Year Candidate, Huzie Hambrite, the Lakers hope to find the win column and calm Blue Knight Nation.