The Mt. Vernon Rams had already won two in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 10.5 points), and they went ahead and made it three on Saturday. They strolled past Mater Dei with points to spare, taking the game 62-45. Given Mt. Vernon's advantage in MaxPreps' Illinois basketball rankings (they are ranked 49th, while Mater Dei is ranked 174th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Navontae D nesbit jr. was his usual excellent self, scoring 21 points along with seven rebounds and six assists. He is on a roll when it comes to points, as he's now scored 15 or more in the last 11 games he's played. The team also got some help courtesy of David Barnes, who scored 15 points along with six rebounds.
Drake Wagner and Luke Haake certainly did their best on Saturday to try and avoid the loss. Wagner scored 22 points along with two blocks, while Haake scored 11 points. That's the first time this season that Wagner posted two or more blocks.
Mt. Vernon has been performing incredibly well recently as they've won six of their last seven matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 19-6 record this season. As for Mater Dei, this is the second loss in a row for them and nudges their season record down to 12-14.
Mt. Vernon will head out on the road to face off against Jersey at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday. As for Mater Dei, they will be playing at home against Salem at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Salem is coming into the contest on a four-game losing streak.
