Basketball Game Preview: Proviso East Pirates vs. Willowbrook Warriors

The Proviso East Pirates will head out to face off against the Willowbrook Warriors at 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Willowbrook took a loss in their last contest and will be looking to turn the tables on Proviso East, who comes in off a win.

On Saturday, even if it wasn't a dominant performance, Proviso East beat Schaumburg 45-39. Given the Pirates' advantage in MaxPreps' Illinois basketball rankings (they are ranked 220th, while the Saxons are ranked 450th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Proviso East's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Zulema Montoya led the charge by putting up nine points and five steals. That's the most steals Montoya has posted since back in November of 2024. Another player making a difference was Amyiah Dunbar, who posted five points and ten boards.

Proviso East smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 13 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least nine offensive boards in 15 consecutive games.

Meanwhile, Willowbrook was not able to break out of their rough patch on Saturday as the team picked up their fourth straight defeat. They fell 62-49 to Glenbard East.

Proviso East is on a roll lately: they've won eight of their last nine matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 18-8 record this season. As for Willowbrook, their loss dropped their record down to 5-19.

Proviso East didn't have too much breathing room in their contest against Willowbrook when the teams last played back in January, but they still walked away with a 38-32 victory. The rematch might be a little tougher for Proviso East since the team won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.