Boys basketball: Ironmen seek redemption against Rock Island Rocks after first season loss

Jeffery Woodard, Senior Staff Reporter • Dec 18, 2023

The Ironmen boys basketball team (7-1) are looking to rebound from their first loss of the season when they host the Rock Island Rocks (8-2) in non-conference action Tuesday at 7:30 p.m.

The Iron fell 44-37 to the Thornton Wildcats Saturday, Dec. 16 in the Southern Illinois Classic. Despite leading with five minutes to play, Community was unable to hold on against the third ranked team in 3A, ending their seven game win-streak.

In the Ironmen’s last matchup against the Rocks, Rock Island came out victorious, as Community fell 57-55 on the road Dec. 13, 2022.

Community point guard Braylon Roman expects the Rock Island to pose a challenge again this year.

“We know this will be a tough game,” Roman said, “but we want to bounce back after the loss to Thornton and come back with another win.”

Instrumental in starting another Iron win streak will be 6-foot-10 center Jaheem Webber, who had slow starts in his last two games. Webber recorded just one point in Community’s dominant 72-28 win over Bloomington Friday, Dec. 15 and was held scoreless in the first half against Thorton. Webber would finish the contest against Thorton with eight points.

“Rock Island is a solid team,” Webber said, “and they make a lot of shots.”

The Rocks are coming off back-to-back wins, with an emphatic win over Geneseo 91-10 on Dec. 15 and squeaking out a 70-69 victory against Pleasant Valley on Saturday at Augustana’s Iowa/Illinois Shootout.

Tuesday’s contest is a possible preview of a Holiday Classic matchup, as the Rocks enter as the tournament’s second seed behind top-seeded Normal.

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About the Contributor

Jeffery Woodard, Senior Staff Reporter

Jeffery Woodard is a senior at Normal Community High School and is involved in track & field. This is his third year working with the Inkspot, and he is a senior staff reporter. On the weekends, I enjoy hanging out with friends and going to the gym. In my free time, I enjoy watching movies of all sorts. My favorite film is "Black Panther."