To subscribe, please click here
Want a copy of today’s edition? Here’s a map of single-copy locations
Sports Editor Matt Daniels with a look at what’s going on around the area:
Champaign Central senior Chris Bush will try to lead the Maroons’ boys’ basketball team to its first regional championship since 2019 on Friday night.
Three reasons we love sports today
➜ 1. Regional championship night in high school boys’ basketball offers up environments rarely seen throughout the year. On Friday night, 14 teams in The News-Gazette’s coverage area play in 11 regional title games, from Champaign to Westville and plenty of locales in between.
➜ 2. The Mahomet-Seymour and Unity boys’ wrestling teams continue their quest for an IHSA dual team state championship on Friday at Grossinger Motors Arena in Bloomington. M-S wrestles Crystal Lake Central at 5 p.m. in Class 2A, with Unity tangling with Oregon at 7 p.m. in 1A.
➜ 3. The IHSA girls’ wrestling state finals also begin on Friday in downtown Bloomington, with 10 area wrestlers trying to win a state title this weekend.
Dusty May will coach against Illinois for the first time as the Michigan coach on Sunday.
Numbers game: 8
straight wins the Illinois men’s basketball program has against Michigan under Brad Underwood, with all of those coming when Juwan Howard coached the Wolverines. The streak will be put to the test at 2:45 p.m. Sunday when the Illini (18-11, 10-8 Big Ten) tip off against the 15th-ranked Wolverines at the Crisler Center in Ann Arbor, Mich. The Wolverines, who hosted Rutgers late Thursday night, are thriving under first-year coach Dusty May.
The Illinois women’s track and field team celebrates after winning the 2024 Big Ten indoor title in Geneva, Ohio.
Crowd control
Three events I’m paying attention to
➜ 1. Michigan at Illinois women’s basketball. The Illini (21-7, 11-6) try to avoid a three-game losing streak and stay in contention for a double bye at the Big Ten tournament when the Wolverines (19-9, 10-7) visit for a 12:30 p.m. tip on Sunday at State Farm Center in Champaign.
➜ 2. Illinois vs. No. 15 Texas baseball. The Illini (5-2) start their stay in Las Vegas on Friday against Texas Tech (1-5), but the marquee game of the weekend for Dan Hartleb’s program is against the Longhorns (6-1) at 1 p.m. Sunday.
➜ 3. Big Ten indoor track and field championships. The Illini women are the reigning champs, with the two-day event starting Friday in Indianapolis.
Gabby Zeedyk with her husband, Caleb, and their son, Dean.
Coach’s corner
Three questions with Prairie Central girls’ basketball coach Gabby Zeedyk:
âžœ 1. My favorite sports team is … the Illinois men’s basketball team.
âžœ 2. Three coaches I’d like to have dinner with are … Debbie Coffman, Geno Auriemma and Pat Summitt.
âžœ 3. My biggest pet peeve is … locker rooms without whiteboards in them or locker rooms that have nowhere for the whole team to sit together.