Basketball Game Preview: Central Rockets vs. Cary-Grove Trojans

The Central Rockets will take on the Cary-Grove Trojans at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday. Central has been dominant on offense recently, having racked up an incredible 195 points over their last three contests.

Central is headed into the matchup having just suffered their closest defeat since December 30, 2024 on Friday. They fell just short of Cary-Grove by a score of 63-60. The loss was a bit of a surprise, as the Rockets came into the game with a sizable advantage in MaxPreps' Illinois basketball rankings (they are ranked 86th, while the Trojans are ranked 200th).

Jacob Johnson

Points

02/21/25 vs Cary-Grove	19
02/19/25 vs Hampshire	15
02/14/25 vs Jacobs	19
02/11/25 @ Prairie Ridge	16

Central's loss shouldn't obscure the performances of Jacob Johnson, who posted 19 points and six rebounds, and Patrick Magan, who went 5-for-11 on his way to 12 points and seven boards. Johnson's evening made it four games in a row in which he has scored at least 15 points. The team also got some help courtesy of LJ Kerr, who earned seven points and three steals.

Central's defeat ended a six-game streak of wins at home and dropped them to 22-9. Those victories came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 65.2 points over those games. As for Cary-Grove, they have been performing well recently as they've won three of their last four contests. That's provided a nice bump to their 18-13 record this season.