Basketball: It’s tourney time in the Big Northern

When the IHSA announced at the end of January that winter sports could finally start, a cheer went up around high schools in Illinois. It didn’t even matter that there would be no state tournaments.

But the athletic directors in the Big Northern Conference got together and found a way around that. If there wasn’t going to be any basketball regionals or sectionals, then why not create a postseason conference tournament to fill that postseason void?

“It’s a great idea the ADs came up with,” Dixon girls coach Luke Ravlin said. “I’m a big proponent of the conference regular season being really important, and we emphasize that with our team. But we also emphasize that the reward for a good regular season is a chance to experience the feeling of success in the postseason, and giving them a chance to play in a conference tournament this year is a great way to do that.”

While that was the plan at the beginning of the season, some coaches were wary about dangling that carrot as a way to motivate their team. Especially in the era of COVID-19, when plans were changing almost daily, the idea that something else might be taken away from the kids was in the back of some coaches’ minds.

“Quite honestly, we’ve been trying to focus on the regular season up to now, and haven’t talked a ton about it,” Dixon boys coach Chris Harmann said. “With info changing from time to time throughout the season, we didn’t want to talk something up too much because maybe it doesn’t happen, and then there’s that disappointment.

“But I’m anxious to see how the kids respond to it, and I know they’re excited to get the chance to play a couple more games.”

The tournament bracket guarantees that all 11 BNC teams will get three or four more games. In addition to the championship bracket, there’s a consolation bracket as well as a three-team round-robin portion for the teams that lose in the opening round.

Those first-round games are tonight, with the winners advancing to the quarterfinals on Saturday. The semifinals in both the championship and consolation brackets are Monday, followed by the championship, third-place, fifth-place and seventh-place games on Tuesday. All games will be hosted by the higher seed.

“I’m excited for it,” Rock Falls boys coach Zach Sandrock said. “The regular season was fun, and then having that regular-season champ as the No. 1 seed in the conference tournament really simulates the NCAA and Big Ten tournaments. It’s always fun to watch, it’s always great competition, and you always see teams that hit their stride at the right time that make the tournament fun. I think it’s a great way to end what’s been a crazy year.”

That lure of the unknown, of the Cinderella making a late run, is what makes the concept of a conference tournament so intriguing to coaches, players and fans alike.

“It’s something to play for, especially when there’s no IHSA postseason,” Rock Falls girls coach Eric Wolf said. “Come tournament time, things change, the mood changes, everything changes. You could play eight or 10 bad games in the regular season and still get a chance to win the title. Anything can happen, and that’s the fun part about it.”

On the boys side, Rockford Lutheran earned the top seed, followed by Genoa-Kingston and Rockford Christian. Those three teams receive a Friday bye and await the winners of the three first-round games on Saturday. No. 4 Byron and No. 5 Stillman Valley play each other, also on Saturday.

In this evening’s games, No. 6 Winnebago hosts No. 11 Mendota, No. 7 Dixon hosts No. 10 Oregon, and No. 8 Rock Falls hosts No. 9 North Boone. All three of those games are at 6 p.m.

For the Dukes and Hawks, it will be a rematch of a game played at the Blackhawk Center in Oregon on Wednesday.

“Each game and matchup are always unique, and anytime you play a team a couple of times – especially so close together – you obviously make adjustments,” Harmann said. “Whoever we get to play is who we focus on, and we’ll do our best to get ready to play Oregon again.”

For the Rockets, it’s a chance to keep building the program under their first-year coach, and do so in a playoff atmosphere.

“I was talking to the guys about the opportunity they have for a fresh start,” Sandrock said. “This season has been a struggle, with young kids and a new coach and a new program, and playing three games a week doesn’t give you any prep time and makes it tough to put new things in, especially while trying to keep fresh legs and staying fresh for the next game.

“But this is it, the final stretch of games, and everybody is in the same boat with not much time between games. My guys are excited and ready to go out and show what they can do.”

In the girls bracket, Dixon is the No. 1 seed, with Winnebago at No. 2 and Byron at No. 3. The Duchesses will host the winner of Friday’s first-round game between Rockford Christian and Mendota at 6 p.m. Saturday.

Fourth-seeded Rock Falls also plays at 6 p.m. Saturday, hosting No. 5 Stillman Valley. Oregon earned the 10th seed and will visit No. 7 Genoa-Kingston at 6 p.m. tonight.

“I think the strength of the conference is really evident this year,” Ravlin said. “No matter who you end up playing, you’re going to be playing a high-quality opponent, and it will get tougher the deeper you advance. Honestly, I think there are five or six teams that could win this tournament, and you better be ready and bring everything you’ve got.”

Wolf and his Rockets defeated Stillman Valley on the road on just last Friday, and expect another battle like the two have waged over the past several years of this budding rivalry.

“It comes down to little things winning ballgames,” Wolf said. “Turnovers, free throws, attention to detail, that’s so important. If you have breakdowns, it goes against you and favors the other team. On any given night somebody in this conference can get upset, can knock off a higher seed, and it’s because everybody knows everybody. It’s not like you saw them once way back in November and have to remember what they bring to the table; this year, we’ve just seen everybody in the last four weeks, so it’s going to be a good challenge, a lot of fun, and the kids are looking forward to it.

“It’s just exciting to say that it’s tournament time.”

As far as this being something the conference will do again in the future, the coaches see pros and cons. On one hand, it adds a little spice and some bragging rights at the end of the regular season, even if there is an IHSA state series to look forward to. On the other hand, those would be more games on the schedule, which could take away the opportunity to play Thanksgiving or Christmas tournaments.

“I don’t know if it will stick around moving forward,” Harmann said. “There’s a lot that goes into it. But I do know that this year it’s a really good thing, and it definitely provides a little something extra for the kids to look forward to.”

No matter what happens over the next five days, or even if this tournament is a one-COVID-year-and-done concept, the coaches all agree that it will be competitive, exciting, fun – and most of all, a way for their teams to experience that postseason flavor in a time where it looked like there might not even be a regular season, and certainly no March Madness.

“We always talk about the girls being on this journey together, and you want to take a step forward everyday,” Ravlin said. “Obviously things go up and down during the course of the season, but I like where we’re at, I know a lot of coaches like where their teams are at, and it’s really going to be a lot of fun.”

Big Northern Conference Tournament

BOYS

Championship bracket

Friday’s first round

Game 1 – No. 11 Mendota (0-10 BNC) at No. 6 Winnebago (6-4)

Game 2 – No. 10 Oregon (1-9) at No. 7 Dixon (6-4), 6 p.m.

Game 3 – No. 9 North Boone (2-8) at No. 8 Rock Falls (3-7), 6 p.m.

Saturday’s quarterfinals

Game 4 – Game 3 winner at No. 1 Rockford Lutheran (10-0)

Game 5 – Game 2 winner at No. 2 Genoa-Kingston (8-2)

Game 6 – Game 1 winner at No. 3 Rockford Christian (7-3)

Game 7 – No. 5 Stillman Valley (6-4) at No. 4 Byron (6-4)

Monday’s semifinals

• Game 4 winner vs. Game 7 winner, 6 p.m.

• Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner, 6 p.m.

Tuesday’s games

Championship – Semifinal winners, 6 p.m.

Third place – Semifinal losers, 6 p.m.

Consolation bracket

Monday’s semifinals

• Game 4 loser vs. Game 7 loser, 6 p.m.

• Game 5 loser vs. Game 6 loser, 6 p.m.

Tuesday’s games

Fifth place – Consolation semifinal winners, 6 p.m.

Seventh place – Consolation semifinal losers, 6 p.m.

Round-robin

Saturday – Game 2 loser at Game 1 loser

Monday – Game 3 loser at Game 2 loser

Tuesday – Game 1 loser at Game 3 loser

GIRLS

Championship bracket

Friday’s first round

Game 1 – No. 11 North Boone (0-10) at No. 6 Rockford Lutheran (4-6)

Game 2 – No. 10 Oregon (2-8) at No. 7 Genoa-Kingston (4-6), 6 p.m.

Game 3 – No. 9 Mendota (2-8) at No. 8 Rockford Christian (3-7)

Saturday’s quarterfinals

Game 4 – Game 3 winner at No. 1 Dixon (9-1), 6 p.m.

Game 5 – Game 2 winner at No. 2 Winnebago (9-1)

Game 6 – Game 1 winner at No. 3 Byron (8-2)

Game 7 – No. 5 Stillman Valley (7-3) at No. 4 Rock Falls (7-3), 6 p.m.

Monday’s semifinals

• Game 4 winner vs. Game 7 winner, 6 p.m.

• Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner, 6 p.m.

Tuesday’s games

Championship – Semifinal winners, 6 p.m.

Third place – Semifinal losers, 6 p.m.

Consolation bracket

Monday’s semifinals

• Game 4 loser vs. Game 7 loser, 6 p.m.

• Game 5 loser vs. Game 6 loser, 6 p.m.

Tuesday’s games

Fifth place – Consolation semifinal winners, 6 p.m.

Seventh place – Consolation semifinal losers, 6 p.m.

Round-robin

Saturday – Game 2 loser at Game 1 loser

Monday – Game 3 loser at Game 2 loser

Tuesday – Game 1 loser at Game 3 loser