On Friday, Mendota honored its 1995-96 boys basketball team that finished 28-2 and advanced to the Class A state tournament.

The Trojans beat Elgin St. Edward 77-64 in the supersectional before losing 53-52 to Shelbyville in the quarterfinals. Shelbyville went on to win the state title, beating Breese Mater Dei 58-45 in the championship game.

“It was great seeing all of those guys back,” said Mendota coach Steve Wasmer, who was a sophomore on the state team. “It was a special team that really kind of got robbed of a state championship. I think if they played some man-to-man defense in that game, they probably would’ve won. Starting four guards at that time was unheard of, so they were kind of ahead of the game in that respect. They were all very unselfish and played a fun brand of basketball.”

BRUINS LOOK TO LEARN FROM TIGHT GAMES

St. Bede fell behind by 17 points in the fourth quarter against Marquette on Friday, but the Bruins didn’t just pack it in.

Alec Tomsha drained three 3-pointers in the fourth quarter, and the Bruins rallied within four points twice in the final minute before losing 65-60.

“It’s a great group of guys,” St. Bede coach Brian Hanson said. “They play their butts off. We were real positive at the end. I know the game didn’t go our way, but we’re proud of our guys because they fought and stayed in it.”

Hanson said he hopes playing in tight games will pay off toward the end of the season, including in the Tri-County Conference Tournament. The Bruins are the No. 4 seed and open the conference tournament at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 27 against No. 5 Dwight.

“We told them at the end of the game, this was a tournament atmosphere game,” Hanson said. “It was a great crowd tonight. These are games we want to play. We’ll keep learning from it, and hopefully we’ll pull out some of these games.

“We’re 19 games in and close to the Tri-County Conference Tournament and regional time. Hopefully, we’re kicking on all cylinders at that time. That was a good step.”

HEADING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION

Jared Sale led the Putnam County girls basketball program for 10 years before moving over to the boys program this season.

He took over a program that went 1-29 last season and 7-25 the year before.

Sale has coached the Panthers to six wins so far this season. Putnam County has won four of its last eight games.

“I think the biggest thing is our guys have just really bought into how we want to do things and have trusted what we’re asking them to do is for the better of the team and them as individuals as well,” Sale said. “Like anything new, it hasn’t come without roadblocks, and I think the easiest way to continue to build this is being honest with ourselves on what has worked so far and what hasn’t and just a willingness to reflect on those type of things.”

GRAND BROTHERS

Mendota brothers Aden and Cole Tillman are both closing in on 1,000 career points.

Aden, a senior, needs 31 points to reach the milestone, while Cole, a sophomore, is 78 shy of the feat.

Cole Tillman leads the area in scoring at 20.2 points per game.

FRESHMEN MAKING AN IMPACT

Several freshman have made an impact on their teams this season.

Gavin Stokes is a starter for La Salle-Peru.

At Princeton, Julian Mucha has been a sharpshooter, connecting on 39.5% of his 3-point shots. He’s averaging 9.7 points per game.

Bureau Valley’s Carson Gruber is one of the top scorers in the area, as he ranks fifth at 13.8 points per game. He also averages 3.3 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.5 steals per game.

DOING IT ALL

Mendota senior Dane Doyle has brought a well-rounded game to the Trojans this season, averaging 9.5 points, 5.3 rebounds and 5.1 assists per game, which leads the area.

“It’s pretty amazing for a player in high school to be averaging more than 5 in those three categories,” Wasmer said.

GETTING BETTER

Earlville has a young roster this year. The Red Raiders start two seniors, two juniors and a freshman, but sometimes are playing three freshmen at once.

With an inexperienced team, Earlville has taken its lumps this season and has won just one game - a 50-29 win over LaMoille on Jan. 9 - but coach Gerald Fruit said the Red Raiders are getting better.

“We are improving as the year goes on,” Fruit said.

Junior Colton Fruit has led the team, averaging 9.4 points, 5.4 rebounds, 2.1 steals, 1.8 assists and 1.1 blocks per game.