In what was billed as a battle of the bigs, Braylon Roman was the difference maker for the Ironmen. Roman led Community with 19 points in the win over conference foe Richwoods. Photo Courtesy of: Mr. Jeff Christopherson

The Iron boys basketball team sit atop the Big 12 Conference standings after defeating the Peoria Richwoods Knights 57-49 Friday night. 

The highly anticipated “unofficial Big 12 Championship,” with Community and Richwoods each entering the contest 5-0 in conference play, lived up to fan expectations as Community hosted the Lathan Sommerville led-Knights.

The 6-foot-10 Sommerville demonstrated why he is the third highest-ranked player in Illinois; he did it all in matchup–knocking down jumpers, fadeaways and three deep balls.

But Sommerville’s all wasn’t enough to stop the Iron’s win streak. 

The Rutgers’ commit posted five points for the Knights in the first quarter, with starting guard DaQuan Little netting eight points to give Richwoods a 13-12 lead over Community.

Neither team could break away in the second quarter, with the teams exchanging leads back and forth. 

Richwoods’ largest lead of the night came with 3:55 to play in the second quarter, as the Knights hit their fifth 3-pointer to go up 23-20.  

But Community responded, with Braylon Roman sinking their Ironmen’s first shot from behind the arc to knot the score at 23 all. 

In a first half that saw eight lead changes, Community would take a 28-25 advantage into the half. 

With under a minute left in the second quarter, spurred on by Jaheem Webber’s monster block, Conner Smith knocked down the Iron’s second triple of the game. 

The Ironmen would not relinquish the lead again. 

The third quarter was all Iron, as Community came out of the half on a 12-4 run, capped off by an emphatic Jaheem Webber slam in transition.

After three, Community led 42-35 after an impressive quarter from Roman and Webber.

Roman had five points in the third, while seven of Webber’s eleven points came in the quarter.

The Iron maintained their lead in the closing minutes despite Richwoods cutting their deficit to just three with three minutes left and the possession. The Knights could not score, and the Ironmen’s blend of patience on offense and accuracy from the free throw line secured the victory.

Peoria Richwoods struggled from the charity stripe in the fourth quarter, going a mere one for nine from the line.

Sommerville led Richwoods in points as the buzzer sounded, ending the night with 15. Little, after his explosive first quarter, finished with 11. 

The Ironmen’s opposing big, Webber, had 11 points in the center showdown.

The Iron win came on the back of do-it-all guard Roman. The 6-foot-4 playmaker had 19 points, besting his season average of 12 points per game.

Noah Cleveland and Dexter Niekamp tallied eight points apiece for Community.

Niekamp did more than just score, staying incredibly active all game on offensive rebounds and demonstrating hustle to keep plays alive for Community.

Cleveland and Webber combined for seven blocks on defense; the duo was instrumental in erasing Richwoods’ scoring chances.

The Iron improved to 16-1 on the season, with Richwoods dropping to 13-4. 

The Ironmen travel to Wheaton, Saturday, Jan. 13, facing off against the Rockford East E-rabs (4-15) at 1 p.m. and the unbeaten Warriors of Waubonsie Valley (15-0) in a Wheaton-Warrenville South Martin Luther King Tournament doubleheader.