EAST PEORIA, Ill. (March 5, 2020) — With the score deadlocked at 77-77, Illinois Central College had the ball with just seconds left in regulation. But strong ball pressure from Courtland Soll led to a steal. The steal led to a fast break. And the fast break led to a 79-77 road win for the Warriors to start postseason play.

Full-court pressure was a main theme for the Warriors on Wednesday night. It was a stingy defensive effort in the second half that helped erase the 21-point deficit Rend Lake College men’s basketball team faced after a slow start in the first half. But the Warriors battled back, cutting the Cougar’s lead to 43-35 by halftime. RLC did not see a lead for most of the game until late in the second half when they jumped ahead 70-69. Then it was back and forth in the waning minutes until a last-second three-point heave by ICC missed the mark and time expired.

Keith Kiner led the way in scoring for the Warriors with 22 points. Soll added 17 and Nasan Ayala posted a 15 point effort. Joshua Rivers grabbed a team-high 13 rebounds while also contributing 8 points off the bench. RLC held the No. 5 seed in the opening round of the National Junior College Athletic Association Division II Central District Tournament while ICC was the No. 4 seed.

Who’s up next?

The Warriors head back on the road to take on the No. 1 seed John Wood Community College in the semifinal at 1 p.m. Saturday, March 7 in Quincy. John Wood Community College is the host of the Central District Tournament and finished the regular season with a record of 16-14.

RLC faced the Blazers twice during the regular season and lost both contests. The Warriors fell to JWCC 100-83 on the road in November and 86-69 at home in February. With a win on Saturday, RLC would advance to the Central District championship game on Sunday, March 8 at John Wood Community College in Quincy. They would face the winner of the No. 2 Danville Area Community College vs. No. 3 Parkland College matchup.