Basketball Game Preview: Cary-Grove Trojans vs. Central Rockets

Cary-Grove is 2-8 against Central since February of 2021 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Tuesday. The Cary-Grove Trojans will challenge the Central Rockets at 7:00 p.m. Both come into the matchup bolstered by wins in their previous matches.

Cary-Grove will head into Saturday's contest on the come-up: they were handed a 31-point loss in their previous outing, but that didn't affect their clutch gene on Saturday. They had just enough and edged Vernon Hills out 49-47. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest win the Trojans have posted since December 4, 2023.

Meanwhile, Central waltzed into their game on Monday with two straight wins... but they left with three. They took down the Pretzels 72-53. Given the Rockets' advantage in MaxPreps' Illinois basketball rankings (they are ranked 109th, while the Pretzels are ranked 397th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Cary-Grove better keep an eye on Jacob Johnson. He was instrumental in Central's win, going 9 of 18 on his way to 22 points and eight rebounds. The team also got some help courtesy of Patrick Shell, who posted 13 points in addition to six rebounds and three steals.

Cary-Grove is on a roll lately: they've won five of their last six matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 13-5 record this season. As for Central, their victory bumped their record up to 12-5.

Cary-Grove beat Central 57-50 in their previous meeting back in February of 2024. One of the biggest obstacles the team faced in that game was Johnson, who went 7 of 12 on his way to 18 points along with seven boards and three steals. Now that he's got a second chance to win this matchup, will Cary-Grove still be able to contain Johnson? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.