Basketball Game Preview: Arthur-Okaw Christian Conquering Riders vs. Arcola Purple Riders

The Arthur-Okaw Christian Conquering Riders will challenge the Arcola Purple Riders at 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.

Arcola will be up against a hot Arthur-Okaw Christian squad: the team just extended their winning streak to four. Arthur-Okaw Christian simply couldn't be stopped on Thursday as they easily beat Judah Christian 56-18. With the Conquering Riders ahead 35-13 at the half, the game was all but over already.

Arthur-Okaw Christian found their leader in freshman Avery Herschberger, who went 10 of 17 en route to 24 points and five steals. Herschberger is on a roll when it comes to steals, as she's now grabbed three or more in the last three games she's played. Annabelle Haskins was another key player, putting up 12 points.

Meanwhile, you can't lose the game if you win every quarter, and that was precisely Arcola's strategy against Villa Grove on Monday. Given that consistent dominance, it should come as no surprise that Arcola blew Villa Grove out of the water with a 50-17 final score. Given the Purple Riders' advantage in MaxPreps' Illinois basketball rankings (they are ranked 299th, while the Blue Devils are ranked 675th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Arthur-Okaw Christian pushed their record up to 16-4 with the victory, which was their 22nd straight at home dating back to last season. Those victories came thanks to their defensive effort, having only surrendered 27.4 points per game. As for Arcola, they have been performing well recently as they've won four of their last five contests, which provided a nice bump to their 13-7 record this season.

Arthur-Okaw Christian was able to grind out a solid win over Arcola in their previous meeting back in January of 2024, winning 51-44. Does Arthur-Okaw Christian have another victory up their sleeve, or will Arcola turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.