Basketball Recap: Bloomington Comes Up Short

Bloomington was not able to break out of their rough patch on Thursday as the team picked up their 12th straight defeat. The matchup between them and the Normal West Wildcats didn't end well, with the Bloomington Purple Raiders falling 57-42. Sadly, that's the second time they've come up short against the Purple Raiders this season, as they also lost their prior matchup 36-34 back in November of 2024.

Normal West's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Maliq Givens-Smith led the charge by putting up 11 points in addition to seven steals and five assists. Givens-Smith is on a roll when it comes to steals, as he's now grabbed two or more in the last five games he's played. Michael Zaleski was another key player, almost dropping a double-double on 12 points and nine rebounds.

Bloomington's loss dropped their record down to 1-19. As for Normal West, their victory ended a six-game drought at home dating back to last season and bumped them up to 5-15.

Bloomington will venture away from home to square off against Mahomet-Seymour at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday. As for Normal West, they didn't take long to hit the court again: they've already played their next contest, a 50-42 win against Pontiac on the 25th.