5 biggest high school basketball games in the Rockford area this week

Matt Trowbridge, Rockford Register Star
·2 min read
Boylan's J'Mar Johnson, shown scoring against Guilford on Friday, Dec. 16, 2022, at Boylan, gets a second shot at Guilford on Wednesday. Boylan can tie the Vikings for the conference lead with a win after losing their first matchup.
Boylan's J'Mar Johnson, shown scoring against Guilford on Friday, Dec. 16, 2022, at Boylan, gets a second shot at Guilford on Wednesday. Boylan can tie the Vikings for the conference lead with a win after losing their first matchup.

It’s a big week in the high school basketball season, with boys teams down to their final two weeks before the playoffs begin and the girls in their final week.

Here is a look at the five biggest games of this week:

BOYS

Boylan at Guilford 6:30 p.m. Wednesday

Records: Boylan (18-9, 11-3 NIC 10), Guilford (19-7, 12-2)

Why it matters: Guilford hasn’t won the NIC-10 title since 2000 but is currently in first place by a game over Boylan and Auburn with four games to play. A Boylan win at Guilford could create a three-way tie for first. A Guilford win could set up a huge season finale Feb. 15 at Auburn.

Boylan at East 3 p.m. Saturday

Records: Boylan (18-9, 11-3), East (17-10, 10-4)

Why it matters: After getting off to a slow start, East is now contending for the NIC-10 title. A win here would give East a rare season sweep of Boylan and a shot at a share of the title.

Hononegah at Belvidere 7:30 p.m. Friday

Records: Hononegah (5-21, 3-11), Belvidere (6-21, 4-10)

Why it matters: Hononegah is trying to finish avoiding last in the conference for the first time in 30 years while Belvidere has a chance to win its 5th conference game after going 1-67 the previous four years.

Dixon at Rockford Christian 7 p.m. Friday

Records: Dixon (17,10, 4-2 Big Northern Conference), Rockford Christian (25-1, 5-0)

Why it matters: Rockford Christian needs a win to stay on track with Rockford Lutheran (18-8, 6-0) to have a shot at winning the conference. The Royal Lions last four games are against the other top four teams in the BNC, with a Winnebago-Dixon-Lutheran-Stillman Valley stretch run.

GIRLS

Byron at Seneca 7 p.m. Tuesday

Records: Byron (26-2), Seneca (21-8)

Why it matters: The regular season finale will serve as a final tune-up for Byron before they attempt to head back down to the state finals.

Contact: mtrowbridge@rrstar.com, @matttrowbridge or 815-987-1383. Matt Trowbridge has covered sports for the Rockford Register Star for over 30 years, after previous stints in North Dakota, Delaware, Vermont and Iowa City.

This article originally appeared on Rockford Register Star: Five biggest Rockford boys and girls basketball games of the week