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Sports Editor Matt Daniels has this to say about what’s happening in the area:
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Shannon Monahan, front row, second from right, is surrounded by her St. Thomas More volleyball teammates after signing to play college volleyball with Lindenwood in Champaign on Monday.
3 reasons why we love sports today
➜ 1. A win over a Top 25 team and then more quality wins? The Illinois women’s basketball team finished 23rd in an Associated Press poll released Monday. It’s the results. The Illini State men’s basketball team also has a 2-0 record, but has not yet been ranked. Illinois State received the most votes of any other team, ranking it No. 26 in Monday’s AP Top 25.
➜ 2. Illinois football advances to the class of 2026 with the entry Sunday night of Michael Clayton, a four-star quarterback from Sanford, Florida.
➜ 3. Congratulations to St. Thomas More volleyball player Shannon Monahan, who signed with Lindenwood University, a DI program in St. Charles, Missouri, on Monday.
Isaiah Williams helped Illinois defeat Northwestern in Illinois’ final home game of 2021.
Number game: .200
Illinois football winning percentage over the past 10 seasons in Illinois’ final home game of the season played at Memorial Stadium in Champaign. Illinois (6-3, 3-3 Big Ten) hosts Michigan State (4-5, 2-4) this Saturday at 1:30 p.m. They have won only two games during that span: a 47-14 win over Northwestern in 2021 and a 16-14 win over Penn State in 2014.
From left, Kasparas Jaksionis, Tre White and Tomislav Ivicic look to help the Illinois men’s basketball team improve to 3-0 as Illinois hosts Oakland on Wednesday night at State Farm Center in Champaign. I will try.
crowd control
3 events I’m paying attention to
➜ 1. Oakland vs. Illinois Men’s Basketball. The Golden Grizzlies are a lot different than the team that upset Kentucky in the NCAA Tournament last season. Coach Greg Campe’s team is 1-1 after a 75-52 win over NAIA foe Defiance College and a heartbreaking 87-43 loss to Boise State before Wednesday’s 8 p.m. It is a loss.
➜ 2. Alabama vs. Purdue Men’s Basketball. The second-ranked Crimson Tide, who will play the Illini on Nov. 20, defeated McNeese on Monday night and now have three wins ahead of Friday night’s showdown with the No. 13 Boilermakers in West Lafayette, Indiana. They improved their game with 0 losses.
➜ 3. Eastern Illinois, Illinois Women’s Basketball. The Illini’s next game will be Thursday at State Farm Center at 6 p.m.
Halle Kearns, Tuscola softball coach
coach corner
Three questions for first-year Tuscola softball coach Halle Kearns:
➜ 1. My favorite sports teams are…the St. Louis Cardinals and the San Francisco 49ers.
➜ 2. There are three coaches I would like to have dinner with… Patti Gasso, Kim Mulkey, and Mike McDaniel.
➜ 3. My biggest complaint…I repeat.