Basketball Game Preview: Rantoul Eagles vs. Prairie Central Hawks

Rantoul is 1-6 against Prairie Central since February of 2018 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Friday. It'll be a Battle of the Birds when the Rantoul Eagles duke it out with the Prairie Central Hawks at 7:00 p.m. Rantoul will be strutting in after a victory while Prairie Central will be coming in after a loss.

Last Friday, Rantoul earned a 50-42 win over Paxton-Buckley-Loda.

Meanwhile, Prairie Central came up short against Fieldcrest on Tuesday and fell 54-45. While losing is never fun, the Hawks can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Illinois basketball rankings (they are ranked 425th, while the Knights are ranked 129th).

Rantoul has been performing well recently as they've won three of their last four matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 8-8 record this season. The wins came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 57.3 points per game. As for Prairie Central, they have traveled a rocky road recently having lost eight of their last ten contests, which put a noticeable dent in their 6-11 record this season.

Things could have been worse for Rantoul, but things could have been a whole lot better as they took a 59-40 loss to Prairie Central in their previous matchup back in February of 2024. Will Rantoul have more luck at home instead of on the road? Come back here after the game to get an analysis of the match and other basketball content.