Basketball Game Preview: Clifton Central Comets vs. Manteno Panthers

The Clifton Central Comets and the Manteno Panthers will face off at 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday without much rest having both just played. One thing working in Clifton Central's favor is that they have posted at least 55 points in their last four matches.

On Tuesday, everything went Clifton Central's way against Grace Christian Academy as Clifton Central made off with a 67-43 win. The Comets pushed the score to 51-24 by the end of the third, a deficit the Crusaders cut but never quite recovered from.

Meanwhile, Manteno unfortunately witnessed the end of their five-game winning streak on Tuesday. They came up short against Bishop McNamara, falling 73-48. While losing is never fun, the Panthers can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Illinois basketball rankings (they are ranked 286th, while the Fightin' Irish are ranked 130th).

Clifton Central is on a roll lately: they've won nine of their last 12 contests, which provided a nice bump to their 12-6 record this season. The wins came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 55.8 points per game. As for Manteno, their defeat dropped their record down to 11-7.

Clifton Central ended up a good deal behind Manteno in their previous matchup back in December of 2024, losing 71-54. Will Clifton Central have more luck at home instead of on the road? Check back here after the action for a full breakdown and analysis of the contest.