Basketball Game Preview: Manteno Panthers vs. Clifton Central Comets

Having just played yesterday, the Manteno Panthers will head out on the road to face off against the Clifton Central Comets at 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday.

Manteno is probably headed into the matchup with a chip on their shoulder considering Bishop McNamara just ended the team's five-game winning streak on Tuesday. They came up short against the Fightin' Irish, 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).

Meanwhile, Clifton Central waltzed into their contest on Tuesday with three straight wins... but they left with four. They blew past the Crusaders 67-43. The Comets pushed the score to 51-24 by the end of the third, a deficit the Crusaders cut but never quite recovered from.

Clifton Central is on a roll lately: they've won nine of their last 12 games, 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.

Manteno strolled past Clifton Central when the teams last played back in December of 2024 by a score of 71-54. Does Manteno have another victory up their sleeve, or will Clifton Central turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.