Championship Game Preview

The Showdown… #1 Southwestern Illinois vs. #3 John A. Logan… Steve Harrington vs. Mark Imhoff… The two longest tenured coaches in the Great Rivers Athletic Conference square off Sunday night in Ina for an epic matchup. Hutchinson, Kansas is the dream, the destination, the summit which all Junior College programs look to conquer. The dreams of 12-15 young men rest on Sunday’s matchup. Who will rise to the challenge and handle any adversity that may be thrown at them to move on, loading the buses to head to Kansas. Both have been tested to get to the championship, both will be tested in the championship.
Southwestern Illinois derailed the Ford E-350’s off the momentum tracks Friday night in Ina. The Warriors battled from the top, but ran out of steam. A tough stretch of games in the final weeks of the season finally took its toll on Coach Sparks’ troops. They were battle tested and had came out victorious most of the time. However, four overtime games in the final six games of the regular season spelled disaster in round two of the Region 24 Tournament. The Warriors were riding high after demolishing IECC equal Olney Central College. While the Blue Knights couldn’t match what Wabash Valley had to offer, IECC peer Wabash Valley couldn’t withstand the fierce resources the Blue Storm is blessed with. Even with Cleveland going down in the second half for the Blue Storm the Warriors couldn’t get over the hump to put them in the championship game. The Blue Storm extend their winning streak to 14 and look to make it 15 against the Volunteers of John A. Logan.
In the second matchup, the so-called stepchild of the IECC Lincoln Trail battled and hung tough through most of the game but couldn’t hold off the Volunteers of John A. Logan. While Lincoln Trail was riding high after their overtime upset of the Falcons of Southeastern Illinois, their just wasn’t room in the Chevy Express for anymore momentum. Coach Cotton and the boys did as they had all season, fought till the end and just fell short. With the loss, the Statesmen join their IECC foes in parking the Chevy Charters in the barns to be serviced and cleaned ready for baseball and softball season. John A. Logan goes into the championship game against Southwestern Illinois looking to earn Coach Imhoff a trip to Hutchinson.

Sundays Matchup:

#1 Southwestern Illinios, 30-2 (15-1, 2-0) Vs. #3 John A. Logan, 21-9 (11-5, 2-0)

Last Outing:
Southwestern Illinois 77 Vs. Wabash Valley 71
John A. Logan 69 Vs. Lincoln Trail 61

Season Series (Southwestern Illinois 2, John A. Logan 0)
John A. Logan 76 @ Southwestern Illinois 82 (1-21-09)
Southwestern 82 @ John A. Logan 80 (2-18-09)
Notes:
Sundays matchup is the type of game where the phrase, “if you can not get excited to play tonight, then you don’t deserve to play the game” was coined. Tonight’s game is the one kids dream of, in their back yard counting 3, 2, 1 and making the buzzer sound as they fire it at the rim. This is where dreams come true. The Southwestern Illinois Blue Storm, currently ranked #5 in the NJCAA polls, looks to extend their winning streak and earn a trip to Hutchinson, Kansas. The Volunteers of John A. Logan have different plans. Both coaches have been around this league for a long time and will have their players ready to go. Emotions will be running high as some of the most exciting basketball across the country will be seen at Rend Lake College at 8 o’clock Sunday night. One of the best matchups of the season will provide a great representative of the Great Rivers Athletic Conference for Hutch. Either one of these teams will make the conference proud and will show the rest of the country the exciting brand of basketball produced twice a week in gyms throughout southern Illinois. Sit back and enjoy the action and see which team will be loading up the charters and heading to Hutch. Check the blog for final results along with score updates, and national tournament information regarding the winner. Best of luck to Coach Harrington, Coach Imhoff and the rest of their staffs and players.