Basketball Game Preview: Coal City Coalers vs. Manteno Panthers

Coal City is on a three-game streak of home wins, while Manteno is on a five-game streak of away wins: one of those streaks is about to end. The Coal City Coalers will host the Manteno Panthers at 7:00 p.m. on Monday. Both come into the matchup bolstered by wins in their previous matches.

Coal City is headed into the contest after thoroughly thrashing Reed-Custer: they outscored them in every quarter. Coal City blew past Reed-Custer 48-28 on Friday. For those keeping track at home, that's the biggest win the Coalers have posted since December 5, 2024.

Meanwhile, Manteno won against Newark on Monday with 51 points and they decided to stick to that point total again on Thursday. Manteno enjoyed a cozy 51-36 victory over Herscher. Given the Panthers' advantage in MaxPreps' Illinois basketball rankings (they are ranked 164th, while the Tigers are ranked 341st), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Coal City has been performing incredibly well recently as they've won six of their last seven games, which provided a nice bump to their 12-5 record this season. As for Manteno, their win bumped their record up to 15-0.

Coal City couldn't quite finish off Manteno when the teams last played back in February of 2024 and fell 30-27. Will Coal City have more luck at home instead of on the road? Check MaxPreps after the action for a full breakdown of the game and more basketball content.