Taylorville Basketball Keeps Busy In Heart Of Season
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TAYLORVILLE — The Taylorville Purple Reign supported the basketball team throughout their busy weekend games.
Submitted Photo
The Taylorville Tornadoes boys and girls basketball teams have been busy this last week, facing a mix of conference opponents and some of the top competition in the area, with results ranging from gritty wins to tough lessons against elite teams.
Boys: Defense Leads Conference Win Over Charleston
The Taylorville boys basketball team leaned on defense to secure a 50–33 Apollo Conference victory over Charleston on Tuesday, completing a season sweep of the Trojans.
The game opened with both teams struggling offensively, combining for numerous turnovers and missed shots. Taylorville held a 9–5 advantage after the first quarter, despite missing leading scorer Malique Pearse, who did not play. Coach Ryan Brown praised Wyatt Younker, who stepped into the starting lineup and provided confident play on both ends of the floor.
Defensively, Brock Brown drew the difficult assignment of guarding Charleston standout Tyler Oakley, who recently became the Trojans’ all-time leading scorer. Brown limited Oakley to just three points in the first half and 11 overall.
Taylorville extended its lead in the second quarter, outscoring Charleston 14–8 to take a 23–13 halftime advantage. Maddex Havera, Younker and Brown all contributed during the run. The Tornadoes continued to build separation in the third quarter, taking a 38–22 lead, and closed out the game with a 12–11 fourth quarter.
Brock Brown led Taylorville with 15 points, while Younker finished with nine, Havera and Maddyx Owens each scored eight, and Blake Ladage and Patrick Curtin added five apiece. Oakley’s 11 points paced Charleston.
The win improved Taylorville to 11–14 on the season.
Girls: Tornadoes Snap Home Skid Against Charleston
The Taylorville girls basketball team also earned a conference win Tuesday, cruising past Charleston 50–30 to snap a seven-game home losing streak.
The Tornadoes led wire-to-wire, though Charleston battled early and briefly pulled within three points in the first quarter. From there, Taylorville found its rhythm offensively while tightening its defense, holding the Trojans to just three points in the third quarter.
Both teams struggled with ball control, but Charleston was hurt by turnovers in its own half, many of them forced by Peyton DeMichael’s defensive pressure. Taylorville overcame a difficult night at the free-throw line, where it went just 6-for-18.
Baileigh Jackson had a fantastic night with 21 points, while Grace Rogers added 13. Charleston’s offense came entirely from Sadie Phillips, who scored 20, and McKaylee Patton, who added 10.
Taylorville improved to 8–19 overall and 4–4 in the Apollo Conference.
Boys: Tornadoes Tested by Mahomet-Seymour, Lincoln
On Friday and Saturday, the Taylorville boys faced a challenging road stretch against two of the areas top teams, falling to Apollo Conference rival Mahomet-Seymour on Friday and former Apollo Conference team Lincoln on Saturday.
Against Mahomet-Seymour, Taylorville struggled to contain Jackson Bohm, who erupted for 32 points. The Tornadoes trailed 22–19 after the first quarter despite 13 combined points from Blake Ladage and Brock Brown. Bohm scored 15 in the opening frame and continued his scoring surge in the second quarter, helping Mahomet build a 36–27 halftime lead.
Taylorville kept pace offensively in the second half, with Brown knocking down a pair of three-pointers and finishing strong, but the early deficit proved too much. Despite a late push in the fourth quarter, the Tornadoes fell 69–60.
On Saturday, Taylorville ran into a dominant Lincoln Railers squad that jumped out early and never looked back. Lincoln led 24–10 after the first quarter behind strong scoring from Karson Komnick and Brody Tungate, then extended the margin to 40–17 by halftime.
The game became increasingly physical in the third quarter, with technical fouls assessed to Preston Short and Malique Pearse, the latter of whom was ejected. Lincoln continued to pull away, taking a 59–29 lead into the fourth quarter under a running clock.
Komnick scored 25 points and Tungate added 17 for Lincoln. Maddex Havera led Taylorville with 11 points, Brock Brown scored nine, and Blake Ladage added seven. Ulitimately it wouldn’t be enough as Taylorville fell 73-32.
Following the Charleston win, the Taylorville boys are set to face Pana, while the girls prepared for a matchup with Mattoon before their game against Pana on Saturday.
