Ironmen boys basketball (15-1) face off against Richwoods Knights (12-3) in high-stakes Big 12 battle [preview]

Jeffery Woodard, Senior Staff Reporter • Jan 12, 2024

The Ironmen (15-1) boys basketball team looks to extend their eight-game win streak Friday when they host the Peoria Richwoods Knights (12-3) in Big 12 action.

The 7:30 p.m. matchup has large conference title implications as both the Ironmen (5-0) and the Knights (5-0) are undefeated in Big 12 competition.

Winning the conference, head coach Mr. Dave Witzig said, is one of the team’s top priorities this season, despite a schedule that boasts some of the state’s toughest opponents.

“The conference games are the most important games to me,” Witzig said. “The goal is to win [the] conference and keep getting better to see [what] we need to work on to have a run in March.”

The Ironmen enter the contest coming off Tuesday’s 69-41 victory over the Champaign Centennial Chargers (11-6). Community handed the Chargers their first conference loss of the season; Centennial sits third in the Big 12 standings with a 3-1 record.

In the contest, the Chargers had no answer for the Community’s big men. With Centennial’s tallest player listed at 6-foot-4, the Ironmen were able to do what they do best–put up a plethora of points in the paint.

Friday’s contest won’t quite look the same.

Jaheem Webber, Community’s 6-foot-10 senior center, will match up against 6-foot-10 Rutgers commit Lathan Sommerville, a transfer from The-Skill-Factory Prep High School in Atlanta.

Before committing, Somerville, a four-star recruit and Illinois third-ranked player, fielded offers from Villanova, Wake Forest, Virginia Tech and Xavier.

Noah Cleveland, the Ironmen’s 6-foot-8 forward and State Farm Holiday Classic All-Tournament selection, is well aware of Sommerville’s capabilities and the Richwoods team’s talent.

“Richwoods is a really good team this year and will be a challenge for us,” Cleveland said. “The Rutgers commit is talented, but we’ve prepared well for him in order to get a win.”

Richwoods’ three losses this season have come to quality opponents, two by one basket: a 67-65 loss to Harvey Thornton (14-2) and 49-46 loss to Hyde Park (13-5). The Knights’ largest loss this season was a 86-60 defeat at the hands of Missouri’s Vashon (21-5), a nationally ranked team out of St. Louis.

The Knights are coming off a 69-52 rout over the Rams of Peoria Manual.

In the teams’ last meeting, last season on Jan. 13, 2023, Community came out victorious as Braylon Roman’s 22 points led the Iron to a 55-42 win.

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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."