Basketball Recap: Illini West's Run of Seven Straight Wins Now Over

Despite a phenomenal run in the regular season, Illini West couldn't carry that success into this playoff game. They fell to the Williamsville Bullets 47-43. While losing is never fun, the Chargers can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Illinois basketball rankings (they are ranked 241st in Illinois, while the Bullets are ranked 47th in Illinois).

Several Chargers players turned in solid performances despite ultimately coming up short. Perhaps the best among those players was Wesley Robertson, who went 9-for-11 to rack up 19 points. Robertson is also on a roll when it comes to shooting accuracy, as he's posted one of at least 50% in the last seven games he's played. Tre Neiderman was another key player, putting up 12 points and five assists.

Multiple players turned in solid performances to lead Williamsville to victory, but perhaps none more so than Jackson Sanders, who went 7-for-9 on his way to 14 points and eight boards. That's the most rebounds Sanders has posted since back in December of 2024. The team also got some help courtesy of Carson Doran, who had 11 points.

Chargers

Previous 5 Games

02/26/25 vs Williamsville	43-47
02/24/25 vs Pittsfield	51-36
02/19/25 vs Rushville-Industry	57-40
02/15/25 @ Monmouth-Roseville	52-44
02/14/25 @ Bushnell-Prairie City	47-26

Illini West moved to 23-9 with that defeat, which also ended their seven-game winning streak. Those victories came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 50.4 points over those games. As for Williamsville, the victory was the third in a row for them, bringing their record for this year to 28-3.

Illini West does not have any more games scheduled as of now. As for Williamsville, they will face off against Quincy Notre Dame at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. One thing working in Quincy Notre Dame's favor is that they have posted at least 55 points in their last four matchups.