Basketball Preview: Arthur-Okaw Christian Conquering Riders vs. Sangamon Valley/Tri-City Storm
The Arthur-Okaw Christian Conquering Riders will look to defend their home court on Thursday against the Sangamon Valley/Tri-City Storm at 6:00 p.m. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (Arthur-Okaw Christian has five straight victories, the Storm have 27 straight defeats), but none of that matters once you're on the field.
Arthur-Okaw Christian posted their closest victory since November 24, 2023 on Monday. They sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 45-42 win over Chrisman. Given Arthur-Okaw Christian's advantage in MaxPreps' Illinois basketball rankings (they are ranked 260th, while the Cardinals are ranked 610th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Arthur-Okaw Christian found their leader in underclassman Avery Herschberger, who scored 21 points along with seven steals and six rebounds. Another player making a difference was Addisyn Erwin, who scored 13 points along with four steals.
Meanwhile, it's never fun to lose, and it's even less fun to lose 61-10, which was the final score in Sangamon Valley/Tri-City's tilt against the Redskins last Monday. Sangamon Valley/Tri-City was in a tough position after the first half, with the score already sitting at 29-8.
Arthur-Okaw Christian's victory was their 12th straight at home, which pushed their record up to 23-3. As for Sangamon Valley/Tri-City, their defeat dropped their record down to 0-22.
Arthur-Okaw Christian didn't have too much breathing room in their matchup against the Storm when the teams last played back in February of 2023, but they still walked away with a 52-48 victory. Will Arthur-Okaw Christian repeat their success, or do the Storm have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
