Basketball Game Preview: Hall Red Devils vs. Illinois Valley Central Grey Ghosts

The Hall Red Devils will head out on the road to take on the Illinois Valley Central Grey Ghosts at 6:00 p.m. on Monday. Given that both suffered a loss in their last games, they both have a little extra motivation heading into this game.

Hall easily dispatched Erie-Prophetstown last Thursday, but unfortunately both the margin and the ultimate result were a different story in this one. Hall fell just short of Kewanee by a score of 35-32 on Thursday. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest loss the Red Devils have suffered against the Boilermakers since January 6, 2022.

Meanwhile, Illinois Valley Central unfortunately witnessed the end of their five-game winning streak on Saturday. They took a blow against Pleasant Plains, falling 59-22. While losing is never fun, the Grey Ghosts can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Illinois basketball rankings (they are ranked 200th, while the Cardinals are ranked 44th).

Illinois Valley Central's defeat dropped their record down to 18-7. As for Hall, they have traveled a rocky road recently having lost four of their last five matches, which put a noticeable dent in their 15-10 record this season.

Hall was able to grind out a solid win over Illinois Valley Central in their previous matchup back in November of 2024, winning 51-41. Does Hall have another victory up their sleeve, or will Illinois Valley Central turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.