(ROBINSON) — It’s the matchup Little Illini Conference boys basketball fans have asked for. It’s the matchup the seeds have called for. Lawrenceville and Casey-Westfield will play for the LIC title here on Friday night.
Both sailed through semifinal challenges on Wednesday. Lawrenceville, not only the top seed in the tourney but for now the top seed in the entire state thanks to their No. 1 ranking in the latest AP Class 1A poll, used a strong third-quarter to run away and hide from Marshall, 65-37, in the first semi of the night. Casey-Westfield followed with a 68-53 victory over Mt. Carmel, though the Warriors held a 25-point lead at one point in the second half.
The tournament, reshuffled a time or two because of the weather, continues on Thursday night with two consolation semifinal games. It concludes on Friday with three, not four, placement games — no seventh-place game this year, a victim of the weather-altered schedule –beginning at 5:00 p.m., winding up at 8:00 p.m. with the title tilt.
Lawrenceville 65, Marshall 37
— The Indians moved to 20-1 on the season by outscoring Marshall, 19-7, in the third quarter to take control of what had been a seven-point game at the half. Coach Tad Shick’s team may have been at its best on defense. Lawrenceville held Marshall’s high-scoring duo of Payton McGuire and Garrett Pugh — who totaled 33 points in their first meeting on Dec. 19 — to only three points in this matchup. Zander Cessna, who scored 11 of his game-high 16 points in the decisive third period, led the way for Lawrenceville. Noah Wilson added 14 points, while Jayden Goff finished with 12. Marshall (8-11) got 14 points from Bryce Griguhn and 12 from Tucker Osborn.
Casey-Westfield 68, Mt. Carmel 53
— The Warriors had a commanding lead by halftime, 36-17, and built the cushion to as much as 25 points later. Mt. Carmel (11-11), with sharpshooter Shain Meador catching fire, did whittle the deficit to nine points at one point. Meador finished game-high with 26 points. Casey-Westfield, now 15-7 overall, placed three players in double figures. Leighton Jones was tops with 23 points, with Jack Julius next at 16 points, and Jackson High adding 11.
Here is the remaining tournament schedule:
Thursday, Jan. 29
Paris (11-12) vs. Olney (8-14), 6:00 p.m.
Robinson (6-15) vs. Newton (11-8), 7:30 p.m.
Friday, Jan. 30
5th place game (Winners of Thursday’s games), 5:00 p.m.
3rd place game (Marshall vs. Mt. Carmel), 6:30 p.m.
Championship game (Lawrenceville vs. Casey-Westfield), 8:00 p.m.
—All times CST.
This story will be updated as more information becomes available. Some of the statistics used in this story are unofficial.
