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Sports Editor Matt Daniels with a look at what’s going on around the area:
News-Gazette legend Loren Tate, left, shares a moment with former Illini football standout Pat Bryant after Bryant won the second annual Loren Tate award handed out Friday evening before the Illinois men’s basketball team hosted Purdue at State Farm Center in Champaign.
Three reasons we love sports today
➜ 1. Congrats to Pat Bryant, the former Illinois football wide receiver who won the second annual Loren Tate Award handed out Friday evening before the Illini men’s basketball team hosted Purdue at State Farm Center in Champaign.
➜ 2. The honor, named after our Hall of Fame columnist whose next piece will be in Monday’s News-Gazette, goes to the Illini football player who not only is the most cooperative with local media, but also exhibits himself with professional integrity in all interactions. Isaiah Williams won the accolade in 2024.
➜ 3. Bryant is prepping for the NFL draft, which takes place April 24-26 in Green Bay, Wis., after taking part in the NFL combine last week in Indianapolis.
The Cissna Park girls’ basketball team’s bench gets into it this past Monday night when the Timberwolves beat St. Teresa 47-35 in a Class 1A super-sectional game in Farmer City.
Numbers game: 22
area high school girls’ basketball programs who have earned a top-four finish at the IHSA state tournament and taken home a state trophy. Cissna Park became the latest on Friday after the Timberwolves beat St. Edward 50-44 in a Class 1A third-place game at CEFCU Arena in Normal. Of the 22, 13 have come since the IHSA switched to a four-class format beginning in 2008.
Edmond Ruth will try to win a second straight Big Ten wrestling title for Illinois this weekend in Evanston.
Crowd control
Three events I’m paying attention to
➜ 1. Big Ten wrestling championships. Edmond Ruth will try to win a second straight Big Ten title for Illinois after he did so last season at 174 pounds when the two-day event begins Saturday in Evanston. Other Illini to keep an eye on: Lucas Byrd at 133, Braeden Scoles at 165 and Urbana graduate Luke Luffman at 285.
➜ 2. Penn State at Illinois men’s gymnastics. The fifth-ranked Illini (4-2, 1-1 Big Ten) host the sixth-ranked Nittany Lions (4-1, 1-1) at 1 p.m. Saturday at Huff Hall in their final home meet of the season.
➜ 3. Oregon at Washington men’s basketball. How Oregon (22-8, 11-8 Big Ten) fares at 2 p.m. Sunday affects what seed the Illini get for the Big Ten tournament.
St. Thomas More girls’ soccer coach and Parkland men’s soccer assistant coach Josh Stebbins.
Coach’s corner
Three questions with St. Thomas More girls’ soccer coach and Parkland men’s soccer assistant coach Josh Stebbins:
âžœ 1. My favorite sports team is … Arsenal Football Club.
âžœ 2. Three coaches I’d like to have dinner with are … Arsene Wenger, Pep Guardiola and Carlo Ancelotti.
âžœ 3. My biggest pet peeve is … in terms of coaching, it has to be effort and attitude every time you show up. You have to be able to work hard and pick your teammates up, even on your worst day.