Josh Morrissey and Mark Scheifele each scored twice in the third period as the Winnipeg Jets rallied for a 4-2 win against the St. Louis Blues on Monday night.

Saku Maenalanen and Kyle Connor each had two assists for the Jets, who snapped a three-game skid. Connor Hellebuyck stopped 24 shots.

Jake Neighbours had a goal and assist and Nikita Alexandrov also scored for the Blues, who have lost five straight. Jordan Binnington had 34 saves and picked up an assist on Neighbours' goal.

After the Blues came up empty on the game's first power play, the Jets were handed a four-minute man advantage when Alexandrov was dinged with a double minor for high-sticking Jets forward Kyle Connor in the face. The lengthy power play was a bust, with the Jets only getting one shot on Binnington. The goalie then foiled shots by Pierre-Luc Dubois and Maenalanen.

The Jets had two more power plays in the first half of the second period, but a total of six shots couldn't get by Binnington.

The Blues got on the board with 5:24 left in the second on its next power play. Binnington sent the puck to Nick Leddy, who made a stretch pass to Neighbours that he used for a backhand shot to beat Hellebuyck for his fourth goal.

Alexandrov made it 2-0 at 2:02 of the third period before the Jets began their comeback.

Morrissey scored 40 seconds later to get Winnipeg on the scoreboard with an exuberant celebration.

Scheifele tied it 2-2 at 9:32 as the Jets took advantage of a Blues giveaway and Morrissey put Winnipeg ahead with his 10th just 21 seconds later when his shot went off St. Louis' Brayden Schenn.

Scheifele scored his 31st of the season into an empty net with 24 seconds remaining.

The Blue Ridge Knights defeated the Heritage Hawks by a score of 51-50 on Saturday.

The Knights were led by Corbin Colbert with 12 points.

Heritage was led by Timmy Wilson with 17 points.

Blue Ridge next play Decatur LSA at home on Tuesday, January 31.

Illinois forward Luke Goode could be an instrumental component to a run through the Big Ten tournament and NCAA tournament as he gets back to full health but an Illini journalist wonders if it is worth it, or if he should just redshirt.

Bob Asmussen from IlliniHQ.com says Goode continues to make progress towards a return as the final leg of the regular season is about here. 

Asmussen believes it could be a difficult decision because once he plays just one game, he loses the option of taking a redshirt year.

Illinois has plenty of opportunity to still secure a first-round bye in the March Big Ten tournament and even a second-round bye. The Illini take on Nebraska at the State Farm Center Tuesday night before a road showdown at Iowa on Saturday. 

 Duke Deen had 21 points to lead Bradley to an 83-76 win over Illinois-Chicago on Sunday.

Deen shot 5 for 10 from the floor (4 for 6 from 3-point range) and 7 of 8 from the free-throw line for the Braves (15-8, 8-4 Missouri Valley Conference). Malevy Leons added 19 points and seven rebounds. Rienk Mast pitched in with 15 points and eight boards. Zek Montgomery finished with 15 points and seven rebounds.

Jace Carter tallied 25 points, 10 rebounds and two blocks for the Flames (9-14, 1-11), who lost for a ninth straight time. Jalen Jackson added 15 points and Filip Skobalj scored 14.

Bradley took the lead with 10:45 to go in the first half and never looked back. The score was 36-28 at halftime.

Seneca Knight scored 24 points and Kendall Lewis secured the victory with a jump shot with 37 seconds remaining as Illinois State took down Southern Illinois 72-66 on Sunday.

Knight shot 6 for 8, including 3 for 4 from 3-point range, and 9 of 10 from the free throw line for the Redbirds (9-14, 4-8 Missouri Valley Conference). Lewis scored 18 points and added 10 rebounds. Luke Kasubke shot 4 for 9, including 4 for 7 from beyond the arc to finish with 12 points.

Marcus Domask led the way for the Salukis (17-6, 9-3) with 32 points, six rebounds and four assists. Lance Jones added 15 points and two steals for Southern Illinois. Xavier Johnson also had six points and four assists. The loss ended a five-game winning streak for the Salukis.

In a game heard on WEZC and at dewittdailynews.com, Ty Pence and Logan Smith led St. Joseph-Ogden over Monticello 66-53 in Illini Prairie Conference boy's basketball action from St. Joseph Friday night.

St. Joe scored the first eight points of the game and led 17-3 with just over three mintues to go in the first quarter. 

The 6-foot-6 Pence went to the bench with his second foul late in the first quarter but Monticello missed an opportunity to significantly cut into the deficit and Smith scored 13 points in the second quarter to help the Spartans' offense without Pence on the floor.

St. Joe led 35-23 at the intermission and Ty Pence hit back-to-back three-pointers to start the third quarter the Spartans went up 41-23 and led by 20 at a couple of points, never letting the Sages get closer than the final deficit of 12. 

Drew Sheppard scored 13 of his 16 points in the first half and Trey Welter scored 18 of his 23 points in the second half. 

Sheppard recorded his 3rd double-double this season grabbing a game-high 11 boards and shooting 12-for-17 from the foul line providing most of Monticello's offense on second-chance opportunities in the first half. 

Sheppard was the ServPro of Piatt/DeWitt Counties Player of the Game.

St. Joe shot 49 percent from the floor to Monticello's 33 percent and the Spartans had 32 points in the paint. 

The Spartans move to 18-4 overall and 3-2 in the Illini Prairie while the Sages drop their second straight to go to 13-9 and 2-3 in the IPC.

Monticello visits Rantoul Tuesday night at 7 pm. Hear the action on 95.9 FM WEZC and online at dewittdailynews.com.

PORTA slowed down Maroa-Forsyth to roll to a 50-37 win in Sangamo Conference high school boy's basketball action from Petersburg Friday night.

The Trojans jumped ahead 17-14 after the first quarter but a slow second and third quarter allowed the Blue Jays to go 39-27 at the end of the third. 

Maroa-Forsyth could not recover as PORTA held off the Trojans the rest of the way. 

Mitch Williams was the only Maroa-Forsyth player to score in double-figures with 11 points. 

Kaden Maurer had nine.

PORTA is 16-4 overall and 2-0 in the Sangamo. Maroa-Forsyth 11-12 overall and 1-2 in league action. 

The Trojans hit the road Tuesday for more Sangamo play with Illini Central. 

In a game heard Thursday night on WHOW, the Clinton Lady Maroons held off the Sullivan Lady Redskins, 40-36, to take the Consolation Championship at the CIC Tournament.  
 

Clinton jumped out to an early lead off a couple of three pointers from freshman Clara Dempsey.  However, things would cool off for both teams. Clinton led 12-6 after the first, but were outscored 8-6 & 8-7 over the next two quarters to cut the lead to 25-22 after three.  The Redskins managed to take their first lead with 4:45 to go in the game, but Clinton came through at the free throw line down the stretch.  The Lady Maroons were 12 of 13 at the line in the fourth; led by Dempsey's 8 of 9. They were able to hold on for the four point win.  
 

Dempsey was named the WHOW / Serv Pro of Piatt/DeWitt County Player of the Game.  She led all scorers finishing with 18.  Sophomore Reagan Filkin added 9, and junior Heidi Humble had 7. 
 

Sullivan was led by senior Alaina Moore with 10, while sophomore Addison Minor added 8. The Lady Redskins fall to 9-17 with the loss. 
 

Clinton improves to 13-15 with the win. They'll next travel to Central A&M next Thursday night.  Hear varsity action from that contest beginning around 7:30 that night on all WHOW platforms. 
 

Decatur LSA, Prairie Central, St. Joseph-Ogden, Metamora, Decatur MacArthur, and Springfield Sacred Griffin are among the teams in the latest high school basketball top 10 boys' basketball polls. 

Prairie Central and Columbia swapped spots for no. 2 and no. 3, respectively, in the latest Class 2A high school boy's basketball poll.

Prairie Central was dropped by Tuetopolis Saturday, who re-enters this week's rankings at no. 8. 

Princeton is the top team in Class 2A this week. St. Joseph-Ogden moves up a spot to No. 7 and Pontiac dropped to No. 10 this week from no. 9 last week giving the Illini Prairie Conference three teams in the top 10 of the polls this week and Bloomington Central Catholic received votes this week.

Decatur LSA remains No. 2 in the latest Class 1A poll. Jacksonville Routt remains No. 1 overall followed by Altamont, Centralia Christ Our Rock, and Waterloo Gibault. 

Tuscola and Lexington received votes in this week's poll.

In Class 3A, Chicago Simeon remains No. 1 overall followed by Metamora, Hillcrest, Springfield Sacred Heart-Griffin, and Decatur MacArthur. 

Mt. Zion just missed this week's top 10.

Benet Academy is the unanimous No. 1 in Class 4A after being ranked No. 3 last week. Last week's No. 1 - Chicago Whitney Young - dropped to No. 5 this week. 

In the girl's high school basketball rankings, Tuscola remains No. 2 in this week's poll in Class 1A. Galena is No. 1 and after Tuscola, Okawville, Brown County and Mendon Unity round out the top 5. 

In Class 2A, Quincy Notre Dame is the unanimous No. 1. Dee-Mack enters this week's 2A rankings coming in at No. 7.

In Class 3A, Lincoln moved up a spot to No. 2, receiving a first-place vote. Nazareth is No. 1 and after Lincoln at No. 2, Peoria Central, Peoria Notre Dame, and Washington round out the top 5.

Normal Community moves up a spot to No. 5 in the Class 4A polls. Alton is this week's No. 1 in 4A.

Due to the inclement weather, tonight's (Wed.) games at the girls CIC Conference tournament have been postponed to Thursday night.

The Clinton Lady Maroons will now take on Sullivan for the Consolation Championship Thursday night at 7:30p at Warrensburg-Latham High School.  Hear coverage of the game on all WHOW platforms!

Four players scored in double figures and Maroa-Forsyth overcame a slow start to roll Olympia 71-47 in Sangamo Conference High School boy's basketball action from Maroa-Forsyth High School Tuesday night.

The Spartans jumped out to an 18-10 lead after the first quarter thanks to Easton Nowiskie scoring seven of his eight points in the frame. The Trojans were able to cut it down to a 32-27 deficit at the break but outscored Olympia 20-7 to go up 40-34 and pulled away with a 24-8 fourth quarter.

Zayn Giles led the Trojans with 17 points, scoring ten of those in the fourth quarter. Grant Smith added 16 points with seven in the third quarter. Mitch Williams added 15 points and AJ Massey added 12 points. 

The Trojans are back to .500 at 11-11 overall and 1-1 in the Sangamo Conference. They will travel to Petersburg-PORTA Friday for another Sangamo Conference til.

In a game heard on WEZC and at dewittdailynews.com, Monticello hung with second-ranked Prairie Central but senior Dylan Bazzell took things over in the fourth quarter lifting the Hawks past the Sages 65-56 in Illini Prairie Conference High School boy's basketball action Tuesday from the Sievers Center at Monticello High School.

The Hawks opened up a 24-16 lead after a tight first quarter, looking like one of the favorites to get to Champaign in Class 2A  might start to pull away but the Sages closed the frame on a 17-9 run to go up 34-33. 

Trey Welter was fouled from beyond the arc twice in the final 3:05 of the second and made all six free throws to spark the rally for Monticello.

The third quarter went back and forth as Monticello went ahead 40-37 on a nifty Drew Sheppard sweeping left-handed layup but the Hawks retook the lead on a 7-0 run, 44-40 at the 5:20 mark of the third. 

A pair of Raiden Colbert threes sandwiched a Will Ross layup to put Monticello back in front 48-46 and Monticello led 51-50 headed to the fourth quarter but Bazzell took over.

He scored the first eight points for the Hawks to put Prairie Central up for good 58-52. Prairie Central led by as many as 11 points in the fourth.

Each team shot over 50 percent from the floor in a clean first half but regressed slightly in the second half. Monticello shot 46.5 percent to Prairie Central's 45.8 percent.

Bazzell tied a Sievers Center facility record with 29 points. Drew Fehr added 13 points and Camden Palmore scored 12.

Sheppard led a balanced Monticello attack with 17 points and was the ServPro of Piatt/DeWitt County Player of the Game. Welter added 15 points and Colbert scored 12 for the Sages.

Monticello had 13 assists on its 20 field goals and turned the ball over only 11 times. The Hawks meanwhile committed just eight turnovers for the game.

Prairie Central held the rebounding edge 32-24.

The Hawks moved to 19-2 overall and are 5-0 in the Illini Prairie. Meanwhile, Monticello drops to 13-8 overall and 2-2 in conference action.

The road through the Illini Prairie doesn't get much easier for the Sages who will battle No. 8 St. Joseph-Ogden on the road Friday night. Tip time is 7 pm, hear the action on 95.9 FM WEZC and online at dewittdailynews.com. 

Terrence Shannon Jr. scored 12 of his 17 points in the first half, Jayden Epps added 14 points in his second career start and Illinois beat Ohio State 69-60 on Tuesday night.

Illinois scored six straight points, spanning halftime, to build a 38-26 lead early in the second half. Ohio State scored the next five points before Epps opened and closed a 10-0 run with 3-pointers to extend it to 48-31. The Buckeyes wouldn't get closer than eight points the rest of the way.

Matthew Mayer had 12 points and eight rebounds and Coleman Hawkins added 11 points, nine rebounds, six assists and three blocks for Illinois (14-6, 5-4 Big Ten), which has won five of its last six games. Shannon made all nine of his free-throw attempts, grabbed seven rebounds and dished out three assists.

Illinois ranks third in the country in blocked shots at 6.1 per game and finished with six against Ohio State. Illinois shot 41% despite making just 5 of 28 from 3-point range and Ohio State was 22 of 60 (37%). The Illini outrebounded Ohio State 44-30 and had a 16-1 advantage in fast-break points.

Brice Sensabaugh scored 14 points and Justice Sueing added 13 for Ohio State (11-9, 3-6). Sensabaugh was coming off a season-high 27 points in a win over Iowa on Saturday before being named the conference's freshman of the week for a fourth time this season. Sensabaugh has led the Buckeyes in scoring in 11 consecutive games.

Illinois travels north to face Wisconsin Saturday.

The Clinton Maroons boy's basketball team has secured the top overall seed in the upcoming Central Illinois Conference boy's basketball tournament at Decatur St. Teresa High School.

The Maroons open tournament play Saturday taking on Central A&M at 3 pm.

Shelbyville is the No. 4 seed and takes on Warrensburg-Latham at 4:30 pm following the Clinton/Central A&M matchup at 3 pm.

Second-seeded Tuscola will take on Sullivan at 6 pm followed by third-seeded Decatur St. Teresa and Meridan at 7:30 pm to finish off the opening day of the tournament.

The winner's bracket moves on for games on Tuesday at 6 pm and 7:30 pm and the consolation bracket plays Monday at 6 pm and 7:30 pm. 

The consolation championship game is Wednesday at 7:30 pm and the 3rd/4th place game is Friday at 6 pm and the tournament championship game is a 7:30 pm on Friday. 

Stay tuned for upcoming Clinton boy's basketball broadcast coverage of the CIC tournament on WHOW and its digital platforms.

In a game heard on WEZC and online at dewittdailynews.com, the Rantoul Eagles took advantage of Monticello miscues to clip the Sages 45-32 in Illini Prairie Conference high school girl's basketball Monday night from the Sievers Center at Monticello High School.

Ta'Niya Poke led the way for the Eagles with 15 points but was active all over the defensive end to help disrupt Monticello's offense. 

Tashay Jackson-Roper scored ten points for Rantoul.

Monticello was led by Maia High's 10 points. High's offensive effort as well as her relentless work on the boards earned her the ServPro of Piatt/DeWitt County Player of the Game.

The Eagles pick up its first Illini Prairie Conference win to go to 1-4 in league action and 3-11 overall. Monticello falls to 7-17 overall and 1-4 in Illini Prairie play.

Monticello is back in action Thursday for the Illini Prairie Conference/Sangamo Conference shootout at Monticello High School.

In a game heard on WEZC and at dewittdailynews.com, Monticello overcame a sloppy first half to put together a strong third quarter and rolled Paxton-Buckley-Loda 52-34 in Illini Prairie Conference boy's basketball action Friday night in Paxton. 

Drew Sheppard scored 12 of his 18 points in the second half, Raiden Colbert had another solid game with 11 points and Trey Welter battled through second-half foul trouble to score 11 points for the Sages.

Monticello led 26-18 at the half and outscored PBL 17-5 in the third quarter holding on from there.

The Sages committed 12 first-half turnovers but managed to shoot 7-for-14 in the first half. 

Sheppard's 18 points and work on the glass earned him the ServPro of Piatt/DeWitt Counties Player of the Game. 

Kayden Snelling led the Panthers with 14 points.

PBL falls to 3-17 overall. Monticello goes to 13-7. It's a tough week ahead for the Sages who host the second-ranked Prairie Central Hawks Tuesday night and travel to the eighth-ranked St. Joe-Ogden Spartans next Friday night.

Both games are set for 7 pm tip times and can be heard on 95.9 FM WEZC and online at dewittdailynews.com. Also, join us Monday night for Monticello girls' basketball action hosting Rantoul at 7 pm on WEZC.

The Tuscola Warriors held off the Clinton Maroons 39-35 in Central Illinois Conference high school boy's basketball action Friday night in Tuscola.

Clinton led 10-5 after the first quarter but the Warriors rebounded to take an 18-13 lead into the intermission. 

Maroons juniors Dawson Graves and Brooks Cluver were the only players to reach double figures with 10 points apiece. Mason Walker added eight points and Colton Walker scored six points. 

Kam Sweetnam and Jordan Quinn had eight points apiece for the Warriors. Tuscola moves to 17-3 overall and 3-1 in the  CIC. 

The Maroons drop to 18-6 and suffer their first conference loss to go to 3-1. 

Clinton hosts Edinburg Monday night at 7:30 pm. 

Villa Grove used a fourth quarter rally to get by Blue Ridge 48-43 in Lincoln Prairie Conference High School boy's basketball action Friday night from Villa Grove.

Blue Ridge led 29-25 after three quarters but Robert Fancher scored all 13 of his points in the final frame and Layne Rund scored six of nine in the fourth to propel the Blue Devils to its second Lincoln Prairie win of the season. 

Colin Michaels had a game-high 19 points to pace the Knights. Corbin Colbert pitched in with 11 points. 

Villa Grove moves to 8-12 overall and 2-3 in the Lincoln Prairie. 

Blue Ridge falls to 7-15 overall and 1-5 in the Lincoln Prairie. The Knights host Bethany-Okaw Valley Tuesday night. 

Three players scored in double-figures and St. Joseph-Ogden sank nine three-pointers in a 52-23 route of Monticello Thursda night in Illini Prairie Conference high school girl's basketball action from the Sievers Center at Monticello High School.

The Trojans drained a trio of threes in each of the first two frames and built their lead to as many as 32 early in the fourth quarter.

Addy Martinie scored 12 points to lead all scorers. Taylor Hug scored 11 points, eight came in the second half. Addison Frick scored all ten of her points in the first half. 

Jobi Smith led Monticello with nine points and was the Serv Pro of Piatt/DeWitt County Player of the Game.

Monticello drops to 7-15 overall. They return to action Monday hosting Rantoul Hear Monday's action on 95.9 FM WEZC and online at dewittdailynews.com. 

In a game heard Thursday night on WHOW, the Clinton Lady Maroons fell at home to Warrensburg-Latham, 47-43, in CIC conference play.  
 

The Cardinals started strong, doubling up Clinton 14-7 in the first quarter.  They built a ten point lead by half, and led by twelve after three.  However, the young Lady Maroons battled back in the fourth to make a game of it.  Clinton had the ball down two points in the final minute, but a turnover and some key Cardinal free throws ended the hopes of a comeback.  

Sophomore Brenna Dutcher led the Cardinals with 14 points, including 5 of 6 shooting at the free throw line in the fourth quarter. Senior Morgan Jones added 10 for Warrensburg. They improve to 16-9 on the year, and 3-2 in conference.  
 

The Maroons were led offensively by Freshman Clara Dempsey with 15 points, which included going 6 of 6 at the line.  Junior MaKayla Koeppel was named the WHOW / Serv Pro of Piatt/DeWitt County Player of the Game. She added 8 points, several steals, and also led the Lady Maroons in rebounds.  Sophomore Reagan Filkin and Freshman Avery Smith each added 8 points for Clinton as well.  Clinton falls to 11-14 on the season, and also 3-2 in conference. 
 

These two teams will next play each other Saturday in the opening round of the CIC tournament.  That game takes place Saturday afternoon at 4:30 in Warrensburg. 
 

Be listening for details on our next Lady Maroons broadcast on WHOW, as we'll pick up their final game at the tournament either next Wednesday or Thursday evening. 
 

The Maroa-Forsyth Lady Trojans edged Clinton 47-46 in non-conference high school girl's basketball action Wednesday night from Maroa-Forsyth High School.

Leah Adlaf scored a team-high 14 points to lead Maroa-Forsyth. Maggie Ravenscraft and Savanna Moody scored nine points apiece. 

Clara Dempsey scored a game-high 18 points to lead the Lady Maroons. MaKayla Koeppel added 11 points.

The Lady Maroons fall to 11-13 overall. Maroa-Forsyth is 14-10.

Clinton takes on Warrensburg-Latham tonight in Central Illinois Conference action and then will play the Lady Cardinals again on Saturday to open the CIC tournament in Warrensburg.

A trio of Illini Prairie Conference teams is in the top 10 of the latest Class 2A High school boy's basketball state rankings.

At 17-1 overall, Prairie Central received two first-place votes staying put from last week's poll at no. 2 overall. Princeton is the top team in 2A. 

Columbia, Breese Central, and DePaul College Prep rounds out the top 5.

Rockford Christian is No. 6 this week followed by Beecher. 

St. Joseph-Ogden is No. 8 followed by Pontiac which is new to the rankings at no. 9 and Massac County rounds out the top 10 in Class 2A.

In Class 1A, Jacksonville Routt is no. 1 followed by Decatur LSA, unchanged from last week's rankings. 

Altamont and Waterloo Gibault move up a spot each to No. 3 and No. 4, respectively.  Centralia Christ Our Rock rounds out the top 5.

Illini Bluffs, Casey-Westfield, Pecatonica, Augusta Southeastern, and Salt Fork rounds out the top 10. 

Chicago Simeon is the No. 1 team in Class 3A followed by Metamora, Springfield Sacred Heart-Griffin, Hillcrest, and Decatur MacArthur to round out the top 5.

Chicago Mt. Carmel, East St. Louis, Hyde Park, Grayslake Central, and Burlington Central rounds out the top 10 in 3A.

Mt. Zion was just a few points shy of making the top 10 in 3A.

In Class 4A, Chicago Kenwood is No. 1 overall this week. 

In the latest high school girl's basketball rankings, Tuscola is the No. 2 team in Class 1A. 

Lincoln High School tied for third in Class 3A with Peoria Notre Dame. Peoria Central is no. 2 in the latest poll in 3A.

In the latest Class 4A rankings, Normal Community is no. 6. 

Trey Campbell had 20 points in Northern Iowa’s 65-63 victory against Illinois State on Wednesday night.

Campbell also contributed five rebounds for the Panthers (10-9, 6-3 Missouri Valley Conference). Bowen Born scored 11 points.

The Redbirds (8-12, 3-6) were led in scoring by Seneca Knight, who finished with 16 points and seven rebounds. Luke Kasubke added 15 points for Illinois State. Darius Burford had 14 points, six rebounds and two steals.

Campbell put up 14 points in the first half for Northern Iowa, who led 33-30 at the break. Northern Iowa took the lead for good with 4:52 left in the second half on a 3-pointer from Campbell to make it a 57-55 game.

Illinois State hosts Valparaiso Saturday.

Rienk Mast scored 18 points to help Bradley defeat Indiana State 78-67 on Wednesday night.

Mast also contributed 13 rebounds for the Braves (13-7, 6-3 Missouri Valley Conference). Zek Montgomery scored 18 points. Ja'Shon Henry recorded 11 points and shot 5 of 10 from the field.

The Sycamores (13-7, 6-3) were led in scoring by Courvoisier McCauley, who finished with 12 points and eight rebounds. Cameron Henry added 11 points, seven rebounds, nine assists and two steals for Indiana State. In addition, Jayson Kent finished with 11 points.

The Braves host Belmont Saturday.

In a game heard on WEZC and at dewittdailynews.com, Raiden Colbert matched a career-best with 21 points to lead Monticello over Olympia 58-47 in non-conference high school boy's basketball matchup Tuesday from the Sievers Center at Monticello High School.

Monticello had to rally from behind twice. Olympia came out strong opening up a 9-4 lead with 5:05 to play in the first quarter but the Sages finished the frame on a 10-1 run to lead 14-10. 

Olympia put together a rally of its own. Owen Alford made back-to-back three sandwiched by a Trey Welter layup to go up 25-23 at the intermission. 

Colbert scored the first five points for Monticello and Welter added another layup in transition and Will Ross made a layup to put the Sages up 32-25 at the 6:07 mark of the third quarter. 

The Spartans would tie the game at 34 with 4:16 to play in the third and Keaton Peifer's six straight points for Olympia put them up 38-34 with 3:12 to go.

But it was all Monticello the rest of the way. Colbert scored five of the Sages final 11 points in the frame to put the Sages up 45-40 after three quarters.

Colbert's 21 earned him the ServPro of Piatt/DeWitt County Player of the Game. He scored 21 points on Jan. 7 at the Christie Clinic St. Joe-Ogden Shootout against Newton.

Tuesday night's win was Monticello's 11th straight over Olympia.

Tylor Bundy added 12 points for the Sages. Drew Sheppard had seven points and seven rebounds. Ross finished with six points and a team-best nine rebounds.

Olympia falls to 5-14 overall. 

The Sages dished out 14 assists on its 25 field goals and shot 52-percent from the floor.

Three points shooing helped Olympia stay ahead in the first half, finishing the half 6-for-12 from distance but shot 3-15 from beyond the arc in the second half.

Monticello goes to 12-7 overall.

It was announced Tuesday the Sages will take on Petersburg-PORTA at 1:30 pm in the Illini Prairie/Sangamo Shootout on February 4 at Williamsville. 

Monticello travels to Paxton to take on PBL in Illini Prairie Conference action Friday night. Hear the action on 95.9 FM WEZC and online at dewittdailynews.com.

Four players scored in double figures and the Argenta-Oreana Bombers used balanced scoring to roll Blue Ridge 75-55 in Lincoln Prairie High School boy's basketball action Tuesday night in Argenta.

Jamario Barbee led the way with 14 points for Argenta-Oreana followed closely by Jalynn Flowers 13 points. Chase Logue added 11 points.

The Bombers gradually increased its lead throughout the game, stretching an eight points advantage to 13 by the half and 14 at the end of three.

Isaac Price ppaced the Knights with 14 points. Zach Lewis added ten points and Wyatt Pearl chipped in with eight points.

The Bombers go to 9-10 overall and 4-1 in the Lincoln Prairie. 

The Knights drop to 7-14 overall and 1-4 in the Lincoln Prairie. Blue Ridge hosts Decatur LSA Tuesday, Jan. 31.

Seth Jones scored two goals, including the winner 2:24 into overtime, and the Chicago Blackhawks rallied for a 4-3 victory over the Buffalo Sabres on Tuesday night.

Philipp Kurashev had a goal and two assists for Chicago, which was coming off an ugly 8-5 loss to Seattle on Saturday. Connor Murphy also scored, and Petr Mrazek made 30 saves.

The Blackhawks (12-26-4) won for the fourth time in five games, closing out a 4-3-0 homestand.

Buffalo (21-19-3) lost for the fifth time in six games. Tage Thompson, Victor Olofsson and Peyton Krebs scored for the Sabres, and Craig Anderson stopped 22 shots.

Chicago trailed 3-1 after two periods, but Jones rallied the Blackhawks in the third. Kurashev got a piece of Jones' shot for his sixth goal at 1:34, and Jones tied it at 3 with a long wrist shot from the from the point with 56 seconds left.

Anderson was screened by Blackhawks forward Tyler Johnson on Jones' third goal of the season, and the goaltender felt there should have been an interference call.

A streaking Jones took a pass from Johnson in overtime, and his backhand got under Anderson before sliding over the line. Jones yelled and pumped his arm after the puck went in.

Chicago jumped in front on Murphy's fourth of the season. The defenseman got a nice pass from Kurashev and beat Anderson with a wrist shot from the right circle 8:41 into the first.

Olofsson tied it at 1 when he knocked in a loose puck in front at 12:15, and Buffalo grabbed the lead on Thompson's goal with 6.9 seconds left in the first. Jeff Skinner passed it over to Thompson, who eluded Jones before poking it in.

It was Olofsson's third goal in his last four games and No. 18 on the season. He has five goals in five career games against Chicago.

Thompson scored his 32nd goal in 43 games after he had a career-best 38 in 78 games last season. He had no goals and two assists in his previous five games.

The Sabres opened a 3-1 lead 6:21 into the second when Krebs converted a slick backhand on a breakaway. Blackhawks forward Max Domi set up Krebs' first career short-handed goal with an ugly turnover.

Blackhawks goaltender Alex Stalock was in the mix to start, but he was placed in concussion protocol before the morning skate. Jaxson Stauber was recalled from the minors to back up Mrazek.

Stalock sustained a concussion Nov. 1 against the Islanders, and then returned on Dec. 23 against Columbus. Chicago coach Luke Richardson said Stalock was ''bumped in practice'' on Monday.

The Blackhawks are at Philadelphia on Thursday night.

In a game heard Tuesday night on WHOW, the Clinton Maroons dropped the Meridian Hawks, 65-33, in boys CIC action. 
 

Clinton jumped out to a quick lead on a Colton Walker three pointer, and never looked back.  The Maroons were up by 10 after the first, and then a late second quarter surge pushed the lead to 31 at halftime.  
 

Junior Mason Walker paced the Maroons at both ends of the floor.  His defense and sharp shooting led to a game high 25 points, and being named the WHOW / Serv Pro of Piatt/DeWitt County Player Of The Game.  Junior Dawson Graves contributed 12 points, while Sophomore Colton Walker added 10, and Junior Brooks Cluver had 7.  
 

Meridian was led by Senior Roy Ralston with 11 points.  Senior Brett Brown had 7 for the now 1-17 Hawks. 
 

Clinton improves to 18-4 on the season, and 3-0 in the CIC.  They'll next travel to Tuscola Friday night for another conference matchup.
 

A reminder - join us Thursday night for this week's Clinton Lady Maroons Game of the Week as they host Warrensburg-Latham with varsity action around 7:30pm on all WHOW platforms. 
 

The Mt. Pulaski Lady Hilltoppers used a fast start to roll Clinton 60-44 in non-conference high school girl's basketball action Monday night from Mt. Pulaski High School.

The Lady Hilltoppers jumped out to a 14-5 lead after the first quarter and increased that advantage to 32-18 at the break. The Lady Hilltoppers gradually pulled away from there.

Clinton was led by Reagan Filkin's 13 points. Clara Dempsey added 11 points.

Clinton falls 11-12 overall while Mt. Pulaski moves to 17-6. 

The Lady Maroons have home games Wednesday and Thursday opposite Maroa-Forsyth and Warrensburg-Latham, respectively, before heading to the Central Illinois Conference tournament starting Saturday Warrensburg-Latham High School.

The Clinton Lady Maroons received the no. 4 seed in the upcoming Central Illinois Conference Tournamanet from Warrensburg-Latham High School.

That means Clinton will take on fifth-seeded Warrensburg-Latham at 4:30 pm.

Tuscola is the top-seed and will take on Meridian at 3 pm Saturday afternoon. Central A&M is the second-seed of the tournament and battles Shelbyville at 6 pm and first-round action concludes Saturday night with third-seeded Decatur St. Teresa battling Sullivan at 7:30 pm.

A win for the Lady Maroons moves them to a Tuesday night matchup at 6 pm against the winner of Tuscola/Meridian while the losers meet Monday night at 6 pm in the consolation bracket.

The consolation championship is Wednesday night at 6 pm while the tournament championship is Thursday night at 7:30 pm.

Jake Neighbours and Noel Acciari scored first-period goals and Jordan Binnington made 31 saves to lead the St. Louis Blues over the Ottawa Senators 2-1 on Monday night.

St. Louis broke a two-game skid and beat the Senators for the seventh time in nine meetings.

Tim Stutzle scored for Ottawa, which has lost four of five.

Acciari pounced on a miscue by Senators goalie Cam Talbot to make it 2-0. Talbot partially fanned on a clearing attempt, giving Acciari an open net.

Acciari began the play by poking the puck away in his own zone. Then he zipped down the ice and was there when Talbot made the miscue.

Neighbours scored from close range 5:30 in off a pass from Calle Rosen, who broke loose on the right wing.

Ottawa ended a four-period scoring drought when Stutzle converted from the slot in the second off a pass from Brady Tkachuk, a St. Louis native. Stutzle leads the Senators with 19 goals.

St. Louis, which is 9-10-2 at home, managed just 12 shots over the first two periods.

Binnington, who lost two of his three previous starts, improved to 17-14-3. He stopped a backhander from Claude Giroux from close range with 5:37 left.

The Blues take on Nashville on Thursday in their fifth successive home game.

Matthew Mayer had 19 points and 10 rebounds and Illinois used a big second half to beat Minnesota 78-60 on Monday night for its fourth straight victory.

Illinois pulled away in the opening five minutes of the second half with a 12-0 run to build a 47-36 lead. The Illini extended it to 55-41 after nine minutes as Minnesota made just 3 of 13 shots to start the half.

Illinois dominated the paint with a 54-28 edge in points and 50-29 in rebounds. The Illini held Minnesota to 36% shooting, including 3 of 13 from 3-point range. The Gophers were also 15 of 25 at the free-throw line.

Illinois has won five consecutive games in the series — and three straight at Minnesota.

Dain Dainja and Terrence Shannon Jr. each added 11 points for Illinois (13-5, 4-3 Big Ten), which hosts Indiana on Thursday. Freshman Jayden Epps scored 10 points and Mayer, a super senior, recorded his first career double-double.

Mayer made an open 3-pointer from the corner in the closing seconds of the first half to give Illinois a 35-32 lead. Minnesota is now 0-8 this season when trailing at halftime.

Dawson Garcia had 17 points and Ta’lon Cooper scored 16 points for Minnesota (7-9, 1-5).

Illinois hosts Indiana Thursday night.

The Chicago White Sox agreed to contracts with seven international free agents on Monday, including pitching prospect Luis Reyes and infielder Juan Uribe Jr.

The 6-foot-2 Reyes, the top prospect in the bunch, is due $700,000. The 17-year-old right-hander from Las Terrenas, Dominican Republic, is rated by MLB Pipeline as the No. 4 international pitching prospect and No. 41 overall.

The 16-year-old Uribe ($700,000), who was born in Chicago, is a 5-10 second baseman who bats and throws right-handed. His father, Juan Uribe, was an infielder who played 16 seasons in the majors and won World Series championships with the 2005 White Sox and 2010 San Francisco Giants.

The White Sox also agreed to deals with right-hander Denny Lima ($10,000), outfielders Abraham Núñez ($700,000) and Albert Alberto ($50,000), and infielders D’Angelo Tejada ($350,000) and Rafael Álvarez ($350,000).

Nikola Vucevic matched a career high with 43 points and the Chicago Bulls snapped an 11-game losing streak against Golden State, beating the Warriors 132-118 on Sunday

Vucevic last scored 43 points on Feb. 2, 2021, against the Bulls as a member of the Orlando Magic.

Chicago beat Golden State for the first time since March 2, 2017.

Zach LaVine added 27 points despite shooting 1 for 8 from 3-point range as the Bulls (20-24) snapped a three-game losing streak. They won without leading scorer DeMar DeRozan, who missed his third consecutive game due to a right quad strain.

Klay Thompson scored 26 points and Stephen Curry added 20 for Golden State (21-22), which has dropped four of its last five games. The Warriors committed 23 turnovers that led to 31 points.

Vucevic shot 18 for 31 overall, including five 3-pointers. He hit consecutive 3's that gave the Bulls a 100-88 lead less than two minutes into the fourth quarter.

The Bulls withstood a 42-point second quarter by the Warriors, who used a 19-5 spurt to take a 62-59 lead at halftime. It was the eighth time this season the Warriors scored at least 40 points in a quarter.

DaMar DeRozan's injury isn't considered a long-term ailment, and the next three days off could help him return as soon as Thursday, coach Billy Donovan said.

The Bulls face Detroit Pistons on Thursday at Paris.

Green Bay Packers linebacker Quay Walker was fined $13,261 by the NFL for the shove that led to his ejection from a 20-16 loss to the Detroit Lions last Sunday.

Packers cornerback Rasul Douglas was fined $11,139 for his unsportsmanlike-conduct penalty in that game and Lions running back Jamaal Williams was fined $18,566 for his two touchdown celebrations. Williams wasn’t penalized during the game for either celebration dance.

NFL Network first reported the fines.

Walker was ejected during Detroit’s go-ahead touchdown drive midway through the fourth quarter of the Packers’ loss. He was close behind two Lions staffers as they attended to Detroit running back D’Andre Swift, Walker’s former Georgia teammate.

Lions team physician Sean Lynch put his left hand on Walker’s right elbow to move him away from the staffers so he could check on Swift. Walker then shoved Lynch in the back.

It was Walker’s second ejection during the first-round draft pick’s rookie season. He was tossed from an Oct. 30 loss at Buffalo after shoving Bills practice squad tight end Zach Davidson on the sideline.

Money collected from fines goes to programs for former NFL players in need.

Trey Mancini and the Chicago Cubs have agreed to a two-year contract.

Mancini, a cancer survivor, helped the Houston Astros win the World Series last season after arriving Aug. 1 from Baltimore in a three-team trade that included Tampa Bay.

He struggled at the plate with Houston and finished the season batting .239 with 18 home runs, 63 RBIs and a .710 OPS overall for the Orioles and Astros.

Mancini, who turns 31 in March, brings a right-handed bat with power and could be a primary option at designated hitter for the Cubs. He plays first base and the corner outfield spots, also giving Chicago a potential platoon partner for new first baseman Eric Hosmer, a left-handed hitter.

Mancini would become the latest free-agent addition for the active Cubs this winter after they went 74-88 last year for their second consecutive losing season. They also added Gold Glove shortstop Dansby Swanson, right-hander Jameson Taillon, outfielder Cody Bellinger, reliever Brad Boxberger and catcher Tucker Barnhart.

In five-plus major league seasons, Mancini is a .265 career hitter with 125 home runs and a .787 OPS.

He finished third in 2017 AL Rookie of the Year balloting with Baltimore, then batted .291 with 35 homers, 97 RBIs and an .899 OPS in 2019. But he was diagnosed with colon cancer the following year and missed the 2020 season while undergoing treatment.

Mancini returned in 2021 and won the AL Comeback Player of the Year award after hitting .255 with 21 homers, 71 RBIs and a .758 OPS in 147 games for the Orioles.

After the Astros acquired him last year, Mancini batted just .176 with eight homers, 22 RBIs and a .622 OPS, becoming a part-time player for Houston in October. He was in and out of the lineup and finished 1 for 21 with one RBI and eight strikeouts in his first postseason, managing a single in the World Series clincher against Philadelphia.

But he was pressed into service late in Game 5 when Gold Glove first baseman Yuli Gurriel sprained his right knee, and Mancini — playing in the field for the first time in a month — turned in a terrific defensive play that helped the Astros hold on for a 3-2 victory.

After the season, Houston declined a $10 million option on Mancini’s contract in favor of a $250,000 buyout, making him a free agent.

Dain Dainja was an inside force Michigan State had no answer for and Matthew Mayer hit clutch 3s in the second half as Illinois ended the Spartans seven-game win streak with a 75-66 win on Friday night.

Dainja powered inside and scored with both hands to put up 20 points and lead the Illini. Mayer hit 3 of 6 from distance and scored 15 of his 19 points in the second half.

Illinois went on a 9-2 run to tie the game at 54-54, then took the lead on two free throws by Dainja, going in front for the first time since taking a 27-26 first-half lead. Mayer added a pull-up 3 to complete a run of 10 straight points.

Michigan State (12-4, 4-2, Big Ten) rallied to tie the game on a Tyson Walker jumper with 5:47 left, but Coleman Hawkins answered with a 3 to put Illinois (12-5, 3-3) back on top for good.

Terrence Shannon Jr. scored 17 points for the Illini. Hawkins scored all nine of his points in the second half and pulled down a team-high eight rebounds. Mayer blocked six shots.

A.J. Hoggard scored 20 points to lead Michigan State. Walker had 14 and Joey Hauser contributed 11 points and grabbed 11 rebounds.

In a game heard on WEZC, Joe Certa scored 29 points and propelled Bloomington Central Catholic over Monticello 79-61 in Illini Prairie Conference high school boy's basketball action from the Sievers Center Friday night at Monticello High School.

Certa went 15-for-15 from the foul line as the two teams combined to shoot 62 free throws and attempted a combined 37 field goals.

Monticello jumped out to a 16-12 first-quarter lead but BCC turned up the defense in the second quarter and led 29-24 at the break. 

Monticello got within 53-50 at the 6:444 mark of the fourth quarter but that was as close as the Sages would get the rest of the way. Certa hit back-to-back three pointers to open up a 59-50 lead and free throws would take BCC the rest of the way.

Monticello continued its balanced scoring Friday led by Trey Welter's 19 points. Drew Sheppard added 17 points and eight rebounds. Will Ross was a rebound shy of a double-double with 11 points and nine rebounds.

Sheppard's efforts again Friday earned him another Serv Pro of Piatt/DeWitt County Player of the Game award.

BCC is now 12-6 overall while Monticello drops to 11-7. They are 1-1 in the Illini Prairie Conference.

The Sages return home Tuesday night to host Olympia. Hear the action on 95.9 FM WEZC and online at dewittdailynews.com. 

In a game heard on WEZC and at dewittdailynews.com, Monticello used balanced scoring and a big second half to rally past Paxton-Buckley-Loda in 53-44 in Illini Prairie Conference high school girl's basketball action from the Sievers Center at Monticello High School Thursday.

PBL jumped out early 10-4 lead but Monticello closed the quarter on an 8-0 run to go up 12-10 after the first.

PBL jumped back out in front 24-21 at the break.

From there, Monticello took advantage of an aggressive zone defense played by the Lady Panthers. 

Monticello stormed to a 40-33 lead at the end of the third and ran away with it from there.

Freshman Maia High had another terrific game for Monticello scoring 18 points and grabbing nine rebounds. High was named the ServPro of Piatt/DeWitt County Player of the Game. Tavey Young scored 11 points and grabbed eight boards while Lydia Burger came off the bench to score 10 points.

 PBL was led by Trixie Johnson's 23 points. She scored the first ten for the Lady Panthers.

PBL drops to 8-11 overall and 1-3 in the Illini Prairie Conference while Monticello moves to 7-13.

Monticello is at Maroa-Forsyth on Saturday. Hear more Monticello girls' basketball action on WEZC next Thursday when they host St. Joseph-Ogden in Illini Prairie Conference action.

It was a rough December for the Illinois Fighting Illini with disappointing losses to Penn State, Mizzou, and then into the new year with a loss at Northwestern.

Bob Asmussen watches the Illini for IlliniHQ.com and says things are starting to look much better for the team heading into its matchup with Michigan State tonight.

Illinois dug itself into an early 0-3 start in Big Ten play. Asmussen believes with 20 conference games, they can dig themselves out of that early hole.

While Illinois lost Skyy Clark to the transfer portal mid-season, he says forward Luke Goode should be back by the end of the month and once he gets in game shape will provide a real shot in the arm for Illinois in a lot of facets of the game. 

The Cardinals hired Joe McEwing as their new bench coach Thursday to replace longtime star Matt Holliday, who took the job in November but quit to spend more time with his family.

The 50-year-old McEwing, who was originally drafted by the Cardinals in 1992 and played two seasons for St. Louis, has spent the past 15 years with the White Sox, where he served as bench coach from 2017-20 under Rick Renteria and this past season as third base coach for Tony La Russa and acting manager Miguel Cairo.

McEwing also served as third base coach in Chicago from 2012-16 under Robin Ventura, along with stints coaching and managing with Class A Winston-Salem and Triple-A Charlotte in the White Sox system.

Holliday, a fan favorite who helped St. Louis win the World Series in 2011, was hired Nov. 6 to replace Skip Schumaker as manager Oliver Marmol’s bench coach. The 42-year-old slugger, and a seven-time All-Star during his 15-year major league career, had been coaching at Oklahoma State in his hometown of Stillwater.

The Cardinals went 93-69 and won their second NL Central title in the past four years this season. They were swept by the eventual National League champion Philadelphia Phillies in their two-game, wild-card series.

The Chicago Bears hired Big Ten Commissioner Kevin Warren as their president and CEO on Thursday, bringing him back to the NFL to help lead a founding franchise after three years running one of college athletics’ marquee conferences.

Warren, who replaces the retiring Ted Phillips, becomes Chicago’s fifth president and the first from outside the organization. He goes from becoming the first Black president of a Power Five conference to the first for the Bears. He is the team’s second president that was not part of the Halas-McCaskey family tree, joining Phillips.

Warren’s biggest task would be helping the Bears construct a new enclosed stadium, assuming they finalize the purchase of a 326-acre tract of land in suburban Arlington Heights and decide to move.

He also is joining an organization with the No. 1 pick in the draft following one of the worst seasons in franchise history. The Bears went 3-14 and set a franchise record for losses.

Chairman George McCaskey called Warren “a man of integrity, respect and excellence.”

It wasn’t immediately clear how the team’s chain of command would be structured. General manager Ryan Poles, who was hired a year ago, currently reports directly to McCaskey. Previous GMs reported to Phillips.

Poles said he looks forward to working with Warren.

Warren had spoken with several professional teams going through transitions at the top, including the Denver Broncos, Phoenix Suns and Minnesota Timberwolves during his tenure as Big Ten commissioner.

Warren was hired as Big Ten commissioner in June 2019 out of the Minnesota Vikings’ front office to replace the retiring Jim Delany. Now, the conference is searching for a new leader again.

With the Bears’ headquarters in Lake Forest about a 25-mile (40-kilometer) drive from the Big Ten’s offices in Rosemont, Warren won’t have to move.

He worked in the NFL for more than two decades, doing stints with the St. Louis Rams and Detroit Lions before settling in with Minnesota in 2005. He was the Vikings’ chief operating officer from 2015 to 2019.

Warren played a big role in their construction of U.S. Bank Stadium, which opened in 2016. The Bears see it as a model for their potential new home, assuming their deal to purchase the site of the shuttered Arlington International Racecourse from Churchill Downs Inc. is completed and they decide to leave their longtime lakefront home at Soldier Field.

The Bears want to turn the Arlington Heights site, once a jewel of thoroughbred racing, into a different kind of gem, anchored by an enclosed stadium and bursting with year-round activity.

They envision restaurants, retail and more on the plot of land some 30 miles (48 kilometers) northwest of Soldier Field — all for about $5 billion, with some taxpayer help. The Bears plan to pay for their stadium but want taxpayer dollars to cover infrastructure costs such as roads and sewers to develop the site.

Soldier Field has been the Bears’ home since 1971. The team played at Wrigley Field from 1921 to 1970, and if a new stadium is constructed, the franchise would have its name on the mortgage for the first time since arriving in Chicago.

Phillips, an accountant by trade, joined the Bears as their controller in 1983. He became team president in February 1999.

Warren drew sharp criticism early in his tenure with the Big Ten when the league called off the 2020 fall football season because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Player parent groups sent letters demanding the conference reverse course. A petition that got 280,000 signatures in three days was started by Ohio State star Justin Fields, now the Bears’ quarterback. There were rumblings that some schools, including Nebraska and Ohio State, would create their own schedules for the fall. The conference ultimately reversed course and played an abbreviated schedule.

There also have been some big wins for the Big Ten in recent months.

In July, the Big Ten announced that Southern California and UCLA will join the conference in 2024, giving it a coast-to-coast footprint in the nation’s largest markets. A month later, the conference landed about $7 billion in media rights deals with FOX, CBS and NBC to share the rights to football and basketball games. The contracts go into effect in 2023 and expire in 2030.

Taylor Raddysh snapped a tie in the third period, and the lowly Chicago Blackhawks beat the Colorado Avalanche 3-2 on Thursday night for their third straight victory.

Sam Lafferty and Andreas Athanasiou also scored for Chicago (11-25-4), and Petr Mrazek made 31 saves.

The Blackhawks had a 2-20-1 stretch before their win streak.

Cale Makar and Evan Rodrigues scored for Colorado (20-17-3), and Nathan MacKinnon had two assists. Pavel Francouz had 27 stops for the defending Stanley Cup champions.

The slumping Avalanche dropped to 1-6-1 in their last eight games.

Raddysh gave Chicago a 3-2 lead with a tip-in of Tyler Johnson's perfect feed 6:36 into the third. It was Raddysh's 11th goal of the season.

Colorado's Alex Newhook appeared to score with 4:51 remaining, poking in a rebound in the slot. But the Blackhawks challenged for goaltender interference, and the goal was disallowed by referees Kelly Sutherland and Jake Brenk.

The Avalanche tied it at 2 on Makar's screened wrist shot with 8:13 left in the second. Mrazek never saw it coming.

The Blackhawks opened the scoring on Lafferty's 20-foot wrist shot 3:24 into the game. The Avalanche then tied it at 1 on Rodrigues' rebound backhand off MacKinnon's shot at 11:40.

Chicago made it 2-1 when Athanasiou beat Francouz from the left slot after skating in from the deep right wing early in the second.

Mrazek picked up his first assist of the season and fourth of his career by starting the play. He also helped the Blackhawks kill all five Colorado power plays in his third win of the season.

Newhook was hit in the nose by the deflected shot of teammate Devin Toews late in the second period. He went to the locker room for repairs, and then returned for the third.

Blackhawks star Patrick Kane, who has missed three games with a lower-body injury, was placed on injured reserve. He could play Saturday against Seattle if he's ready. He skated on his own Thursday morning but didn't participate in the team skate. Chicago activated MacKenzie Entwistle off injured reserve to fill Kane's roster spot.

The Blackhawks continue their seven-game homestand against Seattle on Saturday night.

Walker Duehr's first career NHL goal for Calgary on Thursday night broke a scoreless tie in the second period, and the 23-year-old winger who was born in Sioux Falls became the first South Dakota-born player to score in the NHL.

Dillon Dube scored twice in the third period and Dan Vladar made 25 saves, helping the Flames to a 4-1 win over the St. Louis Blues.

Dube broke a 1-all tie, scoring with 9:10 left in regulation and added an empty-netter in the final minutes. Blake Coleman pushed the lead to 3-1 with his eighth goal of the season with 3:56 left.

Calgary has recorded points in 16 of its last 19 games.

Duehr took a pass from Nazem Kadri late in the second period and wristed a shot past goalie Thomas Greiss, who had stopped 61 successive shots over his last three games. Nazem Kadri set up the goal with a pinpoint pass on a 2-on-1 breakout.

Duehr was called up over the weekend and made the second start of his career on Tuesday. He played in one game for the Flames in 2021.

Duehr's goal seemed to ignite his teammates. Calgary scored three third-period goals in a span of 5:49.

Vladar, who wears No. 80, improved to 7-4-4 this season.

Jake Neighbours scored for St. Louis, which had won eight of its last nine against the Flames, including a 4-3 overtime decision on Tuesday.

Dube picked up a loose puck in the slot and broke a 1-all tie with his eighth goal of the season. He scored into an empty net with 3:21 left.

The Blues are without Vladimir Tarasenko (hand) and Ryan O'Reilly (foot) for four to six weeks.

Greiss made 36 saves and kept his team in the game over the first three periods.

The Blues face Tampa Bay on Saturday in the third of seven successive home games.

In a game heard Thursday night on WHOW, the Clinton Lady Maroons suffered their first CIC conference loss of the season, 57-49, at Tuscola.  
 

The Warriors entered the game unbeaten and ranked 3rd in Class 1A.  They jumped out to a 20-14 lead after one quarter thanks to a flurry of three's from senior Ella Boyer.  She would lead Tuscola with 21 points; 18 in the first half.  
 

Tuscola extended their lead to 15 at half, and looked poised to pull away. However, the young Lady Maroons turned up the defense, and only allowed 20 second half points. Clinton outscored Tuscola 27-20 over the final half, but the early deficit proved too great.  
 

Clinton was led by sophomore Reagan Filkin with 21 points.  She was named the Serv Pro of Piatt/DeWitt County Player of the Game.  Freshman Clara Dempsey added 9, and junior Heidi Humble had 8 for Clinton.  
 

Tuscola improved to 21-0 overall, and 4-0 in the CIC. Clinton falls to 10-11 on the season, and 3-1 in conference.  They'll next play Saturday at Illini Central.  
 

Our next WHOW Maroons Game of the Week broadcast is Tuesday night when the boys host Meridian. Hear live varsity action around 7:30p on all WHOW platforms. 
 

The Maroa-Forsyth Trojans used balanced scoring to rally past Decatur St. Teresa 52-49 in non-conference high school boy's basketball action Tuesday night from Maroa-Forsyth High School.

The Trojans held a 15-11 lead after the first quarter where MItch Williams scored seven of his 12. The Bulldogs rallied to a 28-26 lead at the intermission and held a 39-37 lead after three quarters.

But the Trojans outscored St. T 15-10 to rally to the victory late.

Kaiden Maurer led the Trojans with 14 points. Williams added 12 points while Grant Smith scored 11 points. Zayn Giles also scored eight for the Trojans.

Ryheem Tyus led the way for St. T with 14 points. Billy Guyse added ten points.

The Bulldogs drop to 13-5. Maroa-Forsyth is 9-9 overall. 

The Trojans host St. Joe-Ogden Saturday night.

Terrence Shannon Jr. scored 25 points and grabbed 11 rebounds to lead Illinois to a 76-50 win over Nebraska on Tuesday night.

Jayden Epps scored seven points of his 13 points in an 13-0 game-ending run for the Fighting Illini (11-5, 2-3 Big Ten). Coleman Hawkins had 12 points and five assists and Matthew Mayer and RJ Melendez scored 10 points each. Dain Dainja had three of Illinois’ seven blocks.

Sam Griesel scored 12 points and Wilhelm Breidenbach scored all 11 of his points consecutively midway through the second half to keep the Cornhuskers (9-8, 2-4) within range. Derrick Walker, coming off a career-high 22 points in a win over Minnesota, scored five. Starting forward Juwan Gary suffered a shoulder injury late in the first half and didn’t return.

Nebraska cut an 11-point halftime deficit to five to start the second half but Hawkins hit a 3-pointer and added four more points in a 17-4 run that included Mayer’s two 3-pointers. Breidenbach’s run brought the Cornhuskers back but they had only one more field goal after that in the final eight minutes.

Shannon scored 17 points in the first half when Illinois took a 34-23 lead.

The Illini scored 16 points off 17 Nebraska turnovers, including 12 steals, in beating the Cornhuskers for the sixth straight time.

Illinois is home against Michigan State Friday.

Robert Thomas' goal 28 seconds into overtime capped a St. Louis comeback as the Blues beat the Calgary Flames 4-3 on Tuesday night.

Thomas' game-winner came on a one-timer on an odd man rush with Jordan Kyrou.

Thomas appeared to give the Blues the lead just over five minutes in the third period, but the goal was waved off for an offside on Kyrou after a Calgary challenge.

Kyrou had a goal and two assists, Pavel Buchnevich had a goal and an assist, and Nikita Alexandrov also scored for the Blues, who won their fourth in their last five games. Jordan Binnington made 28 saves.

St. Louis, which kicked off a season-long seven game homestand, improved to 8-8-2 this season at Enterprise Center.

Andrew Mangiapane had a goal and an assist for the Flames to record his first multipoint game since Dec. 10. He had scored just four points in his previous 13 games.

Milan Lucic and Mikael Backlund also scored for the Flames, who lost their third game in their last four. Jacob Markstrom made 23 saves.

The Blues erased a 3-1 deficit with two goals in a 28 second span early in the third. Alexandrov got the rally started by banging home a rebound off a Steven Santini shot at the 2:20 mark and Kyrou followed with a wrister from the high slot.

Buchnevich's power-play goal gave the Blues the lead at the 3:50 mark of the first period. Buchnevich's shot deflected off the stick of Flames defenseman Chris Tanev.

Lucic evened the game with his fourth goal of the season with 6:16 left in the first, tipping in a perfect feed from Kadri.

Backlund gave the Flames a 2-1 lead less than two minutes later, tipping in a Nikita Zadorov shot.

Mangiapane added to the Calgary lead 62 seconds into the second period, snapping an 11-game goal scoring drought.

The Blues placed D Robert Bortuzzo (lower body) on injured reserve and recalled D Dmitri Samorukov from Springfield, their AHL affiliate, on Monday.

The Blues and the Flames will square off again at Enterprise Center on Thursday.

As heard on a special simulcast presentation on WHOW and WEZC, the Clinton Maroons fell to the Monticello Sages 58-62 by a score of on Tuesday night. The Maroons were led by ServPro Piatt/DeWitt Counties Player of the Game Dawson Graves with 22 points. Junior Brooks Cluver had 16 and junior Mason Walker added 11.

The Sages were led by the SerfvPro Player of the Game Drew Sheppard with 28 points. Senior Will Ross chipped in with 10.

With the loss, the Maroons drop to 15-4. The Sages improve to 11-6.

Tune in Thursday, January 12, as the Lady Maroons travel to Tuscola. You can hear the game live on all of WHOW's many platforms.

The Lady Sages take on Paxton-Buxley-Loda Thursday as well. You can catch that game live on Your Easy Choice 95.9 FM WEZC and streamed live at dewittdailynews.com.

The Heart of Illinois Conference and the Central Illinois Conference made a football merger official Monday.

The agreement begins for the 2024 high school football season and will be called the Heart of Central Illinois Conference. In a release Monday, the conferences say this will create stability for 11-man football and keep scheduling consistent for its member schools.

Divisions and schedules will be worked out later, leading to the 2024 season. There will be a large school and small school division with a cutoff of approximately 290-300 student enrollment, with eight schools in each.

The Central Illinois Conference will bring Clinton, Meridian, Central A&M, Shelbyville, Tuscola, and Warrensburg-Latham to the new conference while the Heart of Illinois brings Dee-Mack, El Paso-Gridley, Eureka, Fieldcrest, Fisher, GCMS, Heyworth, LeRoy, Lexington-Ridgeview, Tremont, and Tri-Valley. 

The Heart of Illinois Conference also features Flanagan-Cornell, however, they play eight-man football and Ridgeview-Lexington plays as a co-op.

Jayson Tatum scored 32 points and Jaylen Brown added 19 as the Boston Celtics beat the Chicago Bulls 107-99 Monday night and reached the midway point of their season with the NBA's best record.

Grant Williams added 20 points and Al Horford had seven rebounds and eight points, including a clutch 3-pointer with 24 seconds to play that helped seal the win for the defending Eastern Conference champions, who are 29-12 after the first 41 games.

Chicago also lost star forward DeMar DeRozan to an injury in the third quarter, yet managed to trim Boston's 16-point lead to two points with two minutes left to play.

Malcolm Brogdon scored 20 points for Boston, which played without injured point guard Marcus Smart.

Zach LaVine led Chicago with 27 points, scoring 15 in the fourth quarter while leading the Bulls' furious comeback bid.

Chicago, which had won three straight, lost DeRozan in the third quarter with a strained right quadriceps. Nikola Vucevic had 21 points and 13 rebounds for Chicago. DeRozan finished with 13 points in 23 minutes.

A 3-pointer by LaVine pulled Chicago within 99-97 late in the fourth, but the comeback stalled when he missed a jumper in the final minute and the Celtics got the rebound to Tatum, who dribbled about 20 seconds off the clock before getting the ball to Horford for a 3-pointer. Horford's shot bounced off the rim, then found its way through for a 104-99 lead with 24 seconds left.

LaVine missed again for the Bulls and Tatum broke free for a two-handed dunk, drawing a foul and converting the free throw to seal it with 12 seconds remaining.

Down 11 points entering the fourth quarter, a layup by LaVine pulled Chicago within 89-84. But the Celtics answered the surge with Brown's back-to-back jumpers and a three-point play by Williams.

The Celtics led 59-50 at halftime, matching their largest lead of the game after the Bulls committed three of their six turnovers in the final few minutes and the Celtics capitalized with a 9-2 run to close the period.

The Bulls visit Washington on Wednesday night.

It was a record-setting afternoon for Monticello in an 80-58 win over Newton from the Christie Clinic St. Joe-Ogden Shootout Saturday afternoon in neutral site non-conference high school boy's basketball action.

Trey Welter scored a career-best 32 points and set a Shootout record with seven three-pointers made and tied a school record for three-pointers made in a single game with Zach Fisher and Clint Brubaker. Monticello's 18 three-pointers made set a team record, breaking the mark set by last year's state-runner-up team, also at the Christie Clinic Shootout against Manteno.

Monticello shot 57 percent from the floor for the game and 70 percent from distance.

Raiden Colbert scored a career-best 21 points for the Sages. 

Welter's efforts earned him the ServPro of Piatt DeWitt County Player of the Game award. 

Newton falls to 12-5 overall while Monticello wins its second straight to go to 10-6 overall.

The Sages visit Clinton Tuesday night. 

Game time is 7:30 pm. Hear the action on 95.9 FM WEZC, at dewittdailynews.com, and on the WHOW digital platforms. 

The Blue Ridge Knights used a balanced scoring attack to get by Toledo-Cumberland 55-50 in Lincoln Prairie Conference high school boys' basketball action from Blue Ridge High School Friday night.

Colin Michaels paced three Knights in double figures with 17 points. 

Zach Lewis added 14 points and Isaac Price scored 12.

Blue Ridge overcame a slow start to rally to a lead in the second quarter and held Toledo-Cumberland at bay the rest of the way.

The Knights go to 6-9 overall. They will battle Peoria Heights in the Clinton New Year's Shootout Saturday at Clinton High School. 

Matt Swartz helped fuel a 5-0 run to finish the third quarter and put Monticello ahead against IVC on the way to a 57-47 victory in the Illini Prairie Conference opener from Chillicothe Friday night.

Monticello fell behind 19-10 early in the second quarter and went ahead 22-21 at 3:03 of the second quarter however, IVC quickly took the lead back and kept Monticello at bay until Swartz hit a wing three with 18 seconds left in the third to tie the game at 36-36. 

On the next possession, Swartz was fouled on a layup to give Monticello a 38-36 advantage going to the fourth.

IVC opened the fourth with a 3 to go up 39-38 but that would be the last advantage the Grey Ghosts would have. Monticello gradually pulled away thanks to active defense and excellent ball movement. 

Trey Welter led the Sages in scoring with 12 points. Jack Weidner, Drew Sheppard, and Swartz each added eight while Will Ross scored seven points and Eli Craft and Tylor Bundy each added six points.

Swartz's second-half spark earned him the ServPro of Piatt/DeWitt County Player of the Game.

IVC falls to 3-12 overall and 0-1 in Illini Prairie action. 

Monticello is 9-6 overall and 1-0 in league play. The Sages travel to the St. Joe-Ogden Christie Clinic Shootout tomorrow afternoon to take on Newton at 3:30 pm. Hear the action on 95.9 FM WEZC and online at dewittdailynews.com.

In a game heard Friday night on WHOW, the Clinton Maroons topped the Sullivan Redskins, 54-35, in the Central Illinois Conference opener for both teams. 
 

Clinton jumped out early, and never trailed.  The Maroons were up 31-16 at half, and then held Sullivan to only 4 third quarter points to pull away to a 28-point lead after three.  A running clock fourth quarter made for an early end to the night. 
 

The Maroons were paced by Junior Mason Walker with 14 points.  Junior Dawson Graves added 10.  Junior Brooks Cluver earned the WHOW / Serv Pro of Piatt/DeWitt County Player of the Game for the Maroons.  He added 10 points, several of which were made on acrobatic shots, including a first half alley oop lay-in. 
 

Sullivan was led by Sophomores Cooper Christensen and Schafer Ogle, who each had 8 points for the now 3-11 Redskins.  Sullivan hosts Cerro Gordo-Bement Saturday. 

The Maroons improve to 14-3 with the win, and 1-0 in conference.  They'll next play Saturday at home against Calvary Christian as part of the New Year's Showdown at Clinton High School.  
 

Our next Maroons broadcast on WHOW comes your way Tuesday night when Clinton hosts Monticello in non-conference action.  Hear varsity action around 7:30pm on all WHOW platforms. 

In a game heard Thursday night on WHOW, the Clinton Lady Maroons fell to Tri-Valley, 58-53, in non-conference girls basketball action. 
 

It was the first game for the Lady Maroons since their second place finish December 28th at the Monticello Holiday Hoopla.  Clinton came out of the gate a little slow, trailing the Vikings 13-10 after one.  The Lady Maroons then outscored Tri-Valley, 16-9, in the second quarter to take a 26-22 lead into the half.  That lead was short lived though, as the Vikings rallied to 41-36 lead after three.  From there they survived a late Lady Maroons rally to hold on for the five point win.  
 

Tri-Valley was led by Junior Cadence Geiser with 17. Junior Kelsey Bartels (Bar-tells) added 16 for the now 8-6 Vikings. 
 

Clinton was led by Freshman Clara Dempsey with 15. Sophomore Regan Filkin added 14 points.  Avery Smith was named the WHOW / Serv-Pro of Piatt/DeWitt County Player of the Game. The freshman center contributed 13 points, which included 9 in the 4th quarter while playing with four fouls.  
 

Clinton falls to 10-9 with the loss.  They next travel to Leroy Tuesday night.  Our next Lady Maroons Game of the Week broadcast on WHOW is next Thursday when Clinton travels to Tuscola in CIC conference play. 
 

A reminder - Join us Friday night for our next WHOW Maroons Game of the Week broadcast as the 13-3 Maroons open CIC play against the 3-10 Sullivan Redskins.  Varsity action is slated to tip around 7:30 Friday night on all WHOW platforms. 

Chase Audige scored 21 points and added four steals and Northwestern won for the sixth time in seven games, defeating Illinois 73-60 on Wednesday night.

Northwestern (11-3, 2-1 Big Ten) added to what has been its best start in seven seasons. The Wildcats got 15 points from Boo Buie and 13 from Ty Berry. Buie was 2-for-13 from the field but made 11 of 12 free throws.

The Wildcats shot 32% for the game and made 7-of-18 3-pointers. Three of those makes were consecutive 3-pointers by Audige, Brooks Barnhizer and Berry that gave them a 47-43 lead with 11 minutes remaining in the second half.

While Illinois was mired in a 1-for-9 shooting slump, the Wildcats’ run reached 22-2 for a 60-45 lead with 5:53 remaining. The Wildcats would not make another field goal but went 13-for-16 from the line to close out the win.

Northwestern made 32 of 40 free throws for the game.

Matthew Mayer scored 17 points and went over 1,000 career points for Illinois. Jayden Epps had 11 points off the bench and Coleman Hawkins scored 10. Terrence Shannon Jr., third in the Big Ten at 17.8 ppg, had nine points and seven assists.

The Illini (9-5, 0-3) have lost four of their past five games against Power 5 teams, the lone win an 85-78 overtime decision over then-No. 2 Texas on Dec. 6. Illinois had won the past eight games in the series with Northwestern.

Two free throws and a pullup jumper by Audige followed by Robbie Beran’s three-point play put Northwestern up 23-17 with 6:50 remaining in the first half. Illinois bounced right back with an 8-2 run to tie it, then Northwestern edged ahead to lead 31-27 at halftime.

The Wildcats wore their “Chicago’s Own” By the Players uniforms from Under Armour for the second time this season.

Illinois plays at home against No. 14 Wisconsin on Saturday. 

Julian Larry had 18 points in Indiana State’s 76-67 victory against Illinois State on Wednesday night.

Larry had five assists for the Sycamores (12-4, 5-0 Missouri Valley). Cameron Henry scored 18 points while finishing 9 of 11 from the floor, and added three steals. Robbie Avila went 6 of 9 from the field to finish with 14 points, while adding six rebounds.

Darius Burford led the way for the Redbirds (6-10, 1-4) with 22 points and two steals. Liam McChesney added nine points for Illinois State. Malachi Poindexter also had nine points and two steals.

The Redbirds travel to Evansville Saturday.

Damiree Burns scored 16 points as Murray State beat Bradley 67-58 on Wednesday night.

Burns added 10 rebounds and three steals for the Racers (9-6, 4-1 Missouri Valley Conference). Jacobi Wood scored 10 points while going 2 of 9 from the floor, including 0 for 4 from distance, and 6 for 7 from the line, and added six rebounds. Rob Perry recorded 10 points and was 3-of-12 shooting, including 1 for 4 from distance, and went 3 for 3 from the line.

The Braves (10-6, 3-2) were led by Zek Montgomery, who recorded 11 points. Ja'Shon Henry added 10 points and seven rebounds for Bradley. Malevy Leons also put up nine points, eight rebounds and two steals.

Murray State took the lead with 5:22 to go in the first half and never looked back. The score was 34-27 at halftime, with Burns racking up eight points. Murray State turned a one-point second-half lead into a 13-point advantage with a 13-1 run to make it a 59-46 lead with 5:02 left in the half. Burns scored eight second-half points in the game.

Bradley hosts Valparaiso Saturday.

Three players scored in double figures and the Maroa-Forsyth Trojans used a big second quarter to roll Sullivan 56-32 in non-conference high school boy's basketball action from Sullivan Tuesday night.

The Redskins jumped out to a quick 17-13 lead after the first quarter but the Trojans went to work on defense and held Suullivan to 15 points the rest of the way, including a 20-3 second quarter, to open up a 33-20 halftime lead and stretched to 45-27 after three quarters.

Kaiden Maurer led a balanced scoring attack for Maroa-Forsyth with 14 points. Mitch Williams added 13 points and Grant Smith chipped in with ten points. 

The Trojans go to 7-8 overall. They host Tolono Unity Friday night.

In a game heard on WEZC and at dewittdailynews.com, James Niebrugge scored 13 of his game-high 17 points in the second half, Brendan Niebrugge scored 11 points in the first half to lead Teutopolis over Monticello 47-29 in non-conference high school boy's basketball action Tuesday night from the Sievers Center at Monticello High School.

Brendan Niebrugge scored the first eight points for the Wooden Shoes who jumped out to a 10-0 start. Monticello's offense again sputtered through the first half, although a quick 5-0 run late in the first quarter cut its early ten-point deficit in half.

The Sages managed just four second-quarter points, trailing 19-9 at the intermission.

Drew Sheppard scored six of his team-best eight points in the second half as Monticello's offense picked up but could keep up with T-Town.

The Sages held the Wooden Shoes to 35 percent shooting and T-Town made just 6 of its 21 three-point attempts. 

Monticello shot just 27.5 percent from the floor and went 3-for-14 from distance.

The Wooden Shoes outrebounded Monticello 37-26.

Sheppard fell a field goal shy of another double-double for him this season, grabbing 12 rebounds to go with his eight points and earned the ServPro of Piatt DeWitt County Player of the Game.

Caleb Siemer had 10 points and eight rebounds for T-Town. James Niebrugge grabbed eight rebounds as well. 

The JV game was interrupted with 6:01 to play in the game as a tornado warning was issued for Piatt County. The crowd was ushered to the storm shelter just behind the gym floor near the locker rooms. Play resumed after about a 45 minute delay.

The Wooden Shoes move to 11-2 overall while Monticello falls to 8-6. The Sages open Illini Prairie Conference play Friday night at IVC in Chillicothe. Game time is 7 pm. Hear the action on 95.9 FM WEZC and online at dewittdailynews.com.

The Arcola Purple Raiders rolled Blue Ridge 51-22 in Lincoln Prairie High School boy's basketball action Tuesday night in Arcola.

The Knights were led by Colin Michaels six points while Zach Lewis added ten points.

The Knights fall to 6-9 overall. They resume Lincoln Prairie action Friday night hosting Toledo-Cumberland.

Donovan Mitchell set a Cleveland record with 71 points, most by any player in 17 years, and the Cavaliers rallied from 21 down to beat the Chicago Bulls 145-134 in overtime.

Mitchell's total matched the eighth-highest in league history and marked the most points by an NBA player since Lakers great Kobe Bryant scored 81 against Toronto on Jan. 22, 2006. Wilt Chamberlain owns the NBA record with 100 for Philadelphia against New York on March 2, 1962, at Hershey, Pennsylvania.

Mitchell scored 13 points in the extra session after forcing OT by grabbing his own intentionally missed free throw and making a circus shot with three seconds left in regulation, tying the game at 130 and breaking the Cleveland record with 58 points.

In OT, Mitchell became the seventh player in the 70-point club. Chamberlain did it six times, while Bryant, David Thompson, Elgin Baylor, David Robinson and Devin Booker reached the figure once apiece.

Mitchell also had a career high-tying 11 assists and eight rebounds in 50 minutes. He set career bests with 20 free throws made and 25 attempted. He scored five points in the first quarter, 11 in the second, 24 in the third and 18 in the fourth.

Mitchell went 22 of 34 from the field and made 7 of 15 3-pointers in carrying the Cavaliers, who were without All-Star guard Darius Garland (right thumb sprain) and forward Evan Mobley (right ankle soreness) for the second straight game.

DeMar DeRozan scored 44 points, Zach LeVine had 26 points and Nikola Vucevic added 20 points and 13 rebounds for Chicago, which did not trail in regulation.

During his postgame news conference, Mitchell was almost in disbelief when it was mentioned he joined the list of NBA legends to surpass 70 points.

The Bulls visit Philadelphia on Wednesday night.

Ryan O’Reilly and Vladimir Tarasenko are the latest St. Louis Blues players to land on the injured list, though general manager Doug Armstrong is not conceding this might not be the year for a team that was built to contend in the Western Conference.

The Blues put both their captain and their most prolific scoring winger on IR on Monday, less than a week after defenseman Torey Krug was ruled out for more than a month because of a lower-body injury. With O’Reilly missing the next six weeks because of a broken foot and Tarasenko the next four with a hand injury, big absences are piling up for St. Louis near the midway point of the season.

What the Blues have is a roster with a handful of underachieving veterans, whom Armstrong expects to raise their game down the stretch with the team sitting a few points outside a playoff position — 10th out of 16 in the West. He singled out forwards Brayden Schenn and Brandon Saad and defensemen Colton Parayko and Nick Leddy as players who “aren’t playing to the standards that they set for themselves.”

One of the next opportunities was supposed belong to big center Logan Brown, but he was injured in practice Monday morning and won’t travel with the Blues on their upcoming four-game road trip. They recalled Nikita Alexandrov from Springfield of the American Hockey League hours after bringing up fellow rookie forward Jake Neighbours.

It’s still tough to replace O’Reilly and Tarasenko, who were key parts of St. Louis’ franchise-first Stanley Cup-winning team in 2019 and still remain important years later. But each player is in the final year of his contract and could be dealt before the March 3 trade deadline if new deals aren’t done and Armstrong decides the Blues are sellers.

They haven’t been in quite some time. St. Louis has made the playoffs in 10 of the past 11 seasons and missed out by one point the only other year during that stretch.

The Clinton Maroons boy's basketball team is coming off a 3-1 third place finish at the Monticello Holiday Hoopla last week and now begins the pivotal stretch of the season where coaches and teams aim to start playing their best basketball with the postseason not that far off.

First-year Maroons Coach Vic Binkley was pleased with his team's effort at the Hoopla and even pulled back the reigns a little bit in the finale, a convincing 57-37 win in the third place game of the Hoopla. 

According to Coach Binkley, a 13-2 start to the season is a tip of the hat to the players and he sings the praises of the group of kids they are.

The Maroons travel to LeRoy for a non-conference game this evening at 7 pm before returning home Friday night vs Sullivan to open Central Illinois Conference play at 7:30 pm.

Hear Friday's action on 92.3 FM/106.5 FM WHOW as well as at the many WHOW digital platforms.

Massimo Biscardi made a 27-yard tiebreaking field goal with four seconds left, Marcus Banks returned a fumble 60 yards for a touchdown on the game's last play and No. 24 Mississippi State rallied to beat Illinois 19-10 on Monday in the ReliaQuest Bowl in the Bulldogs' first game since coach Mike Leach's death.

Banks' score came on Illinois' fifth lateral following a completed pass after the Fighting Ilini got the ball at their own 29. There was a scrum on the field as the game ended, but order was restored after a couple of minutes.

Will Rogers was 29 of 44 yards for 261 yards and one touchdown for Mississippi State (9-4, No. 22 CFP). Simeon Price had 68 rushing yards, including a key 28-yard dash on the go-ahead fourth-quarter drive, on seven attempts.

Tommy DeVito completed 23 of 34 passes for 253 yards for Illinois (8-5).

Reggie Love III rushed for 40 yards on 11 carries for Illinois. Fighting Illini running back Chase Brown, the nation's second-leading rusher in the regular season with 1,643 yards, sat out to prepare for the NFL draft.

Illinois lost all five of its games by nine points or fewer. The school hasn't had a nine-win season since the Rose Bowl team in 2007 went 9-4.

Mississippi State was held without a touchdown until the first play of the fourth quarter, when Rogers connected on an eight-yard throw to Justin Robinson that tied the game at 10.

Robinson had seven receptions for 81 yards. Illinois' Isaiah Williams picked up 114 yards on nine catches.

The Bulldogs averaged 32.7 points during the regular season.

Illinois, which entered allowing 12.3 points and held six opponents to fewer than 10 points, played without defensive backs Devon Witherspoon and Sydney Brown. Both opted out ahead of the NFL draft.

DeVito put Illinois up 7-0 on a two-yard run with 2:49 left in the second quarter.

Mississippi State responded with a 38-yard field goal by Biscardi with nine seconds to go in the first half.

IIlinois went up 10-3 on a 52-yard field goal by Caleb Griffin midway through the third.

Mississippi State was limited to 50 yards on its first three possessions, while the next two ended on interceptions by Matthew Bailey and Kendall Smith.

Illinois tops the nation with 24 interceptions.

Illinois hosts Toledo on Sept. 2 to open the 2023 season.

Erik Karlsson extended his point streak to a franchise-record 13 games, and the San Jose Sharks beat the lowly Chicago Blackhawks 5-2 on Sunday night.

Vlasic, Jonah Gadjovich and Alexander Barabanov scored in the second period for San Jose, which had dropped three in a row and six of seven overall. Timo Meier and Evgeny Svechnikov added third-period goals.

Karlsson had two assists, breaking the record he shared with San Jose forwards Rob Gaudreau (1992-93) and Jonathan Cheechoo (2005-06). The two-time Norris Trophy winner has two goals and 19 assists during his streak.

Patrick Kane and Sam Lafferty scored for Chicago in the opener of a seven-game homestand. The last-place Blackhawks have lost four straight and 12 of 13 overall.

Chicago trailed 3-2 after two, but Meier cleaned up a rebound for his 21st goal 3:52 into the third period and Svechnikov helped put it away with his fourth with 7:05 left.

The crowd at the United Center booed after the final seconds ticked off. The Blackhawks dropped to 5-13-2 at home this season.

Gadjovich was credited with his second of the season off a scramble in front at 15:12. Then Vlasic got his first goal since March 26 when Matt Benning's centering pass went off his right skate and into the net at 15:53.

Barabanov then gave San Jose a 3-2 lead when he drove to the net and beat Petr Mrazek with a backhand. Barabanov also scored during Saturday night's 5-2 loss at Dallas.

The outburst for San Jose occurred after offensively challenged Chicago scored twice in the second. Kane beat Kaapo Kahkonen from the slot after the goaltender broke his stick behind the Sharks net. Then Andreas Athanasiou made a great pass to Lafferty for the tap-in at 13:30.

Aaron Rodgers threw a touchdown pass and ran for a score, and the Packers shut down Kirk Cousins and star receiver Justin Jefferson in a 41-17 blowout of the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday.

Keisean Nixon scored on a 105-yard kickoff return and Darnell Savage had a 75-yard pick-6 of Cousins - one of four turnovers by the Minnesota QB. The Packers (8-8) will reach the playoffs if they beat the Detroit Lions at home in their regular-season finale.

A fourth straight postseason berth seemed out of the question after a 1-7 stretch dropped the Packers to 4-8, but they haven't lost since and have benefited from favorable results around the league. Green Bay's latest bit of good fortune came earlier Sunday when Washington fell 24-10 at home to the Cleveland, putting the Packers in control of their postseason fate.

Green Bay held Jefferson, the NFL's leading receiver, to one catch for 15 yards. Jefferson had nine receptions for 184 yards and two touchdowns in a season-opening 23-7 victory over the Packers.

Savage, Adrian Amos and Rudy Ford each intercepted passes by Cousins, while Kenny Clark recovered a fumble on a strip sack. The Packers converted each of Cousins' turnovers into touchdowns.

Cousins went 18 of 31 for 205 yards for the NFC North champion Vikings (12-4). His only touchdown pass came in garbage time, a 47-yarder to Jalen Nailor that cut Green Bay's lead to 41-10.

The Vikings' Dalvin Cook was held to 27 yards on nine carries.

Rodgers threw a 21-yard touchdown pass to Robert Tonyan and also scored Green Bay's final touchdown on a 2-yard scramble.

After a blocked punt by Josh Metellus gave Minnesota first-and-goal at the 1 to help the Vikings take an early 3-0 lead, the Packers scored 41 straight points.

Green Bay also got a solid game from veteran kicker Mason Crosby, who went 2 of 2 on field-goal attempts, including a 56-yarder that the crossbar before bouncing through to close the first half.

That kick gave Green Bay a 27-3 halftime lead. 

Jared Goff threw three touchdown passes, including two in the first half to Brock Wright, and Detroit routed the Chicago Bears 41-10 on Sunday to remain in the chase for an NFC wild card.

The Justin Fields-led Bears (3-13) took two leads in the opening quarter before collapsing and losing a franchise-record ninth straight game.

Goff completed passes to 10 teammates and an 11th, rookie receiver Jameson Williams, ran 40 yards on a reverse early in the third quarter to set up Jamaal Williams' 15th rushing score that gave Detroit a three-touchdown lead.

Jamaal Williams had a career-high 144 yards rushing on 22 carries and D'Andre Swift added 117 yards from scrimmage and two scores.

On the other side of the ball, rookie defensive end Aidan Hutchinson got the better of Fields by forcing two turnovers in the first half.

Fields started strong, running for 105 yards in the first quarter alone and throwing a 13-yard touchdown to Cole Kmet, before Hutchinson recovered his fumble and picked off a pass in the second quarter.

Mississippi State players and staff felt they knew what Mike Leach would want them to do following the Dec. 12 death of the Bulldogs coach due to complications from a heart condition: play in the ReliaQuest Bowl against Illinois.

Mississippi State quarterback Will Rogers is among a group of team leaders that have taken on additional roles for the 24th-ranked Bulldogs (8-4, No. 22 CFP) leading up to the matchup Monday with Illinois (8-4).

Rogers, who completed 386 of 566 passes for 3,713 yards and 34 touchdowns, faces an Illinois defense that allowed fewer than 10 points in six games this season.

Illinois lost all four of its games by eight points or fewer, including a 19-17 loss to Michigan. This is just its third bowl game since beating UCLA 20-14 in the 2011 Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl.

Illinois will be without running back Chase Brown. The nation’s second-leading rusher in the regular season (1,643 yards) has decided to enter the NFL draft and will not play in the game.

Illinois quarterback Tommy DeVito completed 69.9% of his passes (234 of 335) for the third-best completion percentage nationally during the regular season. He threw for 2,397 yards and 15 touchdowns and had four interceptions.

Mississippi State has a streak of playing in a bowl game for 13 straight years, although none before was like this one.