2025 Tournament Preview

The 79th annual Macomb-Western Holiday Tournament bracket is now set for games to begin on the campus of Western Illinois University. The first round will take place on Saturday, December 27. After a one-day break, the final rounds will be played on Monday Dec. 29 and Tuesday, Dec. 30.

The West Hancock Titans have earned the top seed for the second year in a row, followed by #2 seed, Brown County, #3 Abingdon/Avon, and #4 Eureka.

That the Titans are seeded No. 1 with three losses, when five other squads come into the tournament with either one or two losses, is a nod to the strength of schedule West Hancock has played.

The Titans have won five consecutive games since weathering a 1-3 start to the campaign at the Tournament of Champions in Washington, Ill. where they took on teams from Texas, South Carolina, and Georgia. More locally, they have posted impressive victories over tournament members Monmouth-Roseville and Macomb.

It’s quite remarkable that Brown County earned the #2 seed for this year’s tournament. Not that the Hornets lack ability, but just that it has been a race against the clock to get up to speed after the BC football team’s march to the state championship game the Friday after Thanksgiving. None of the current players were alive the last time Brown County was a top 4 seed in the MWHT, but don’t underestimate these guys, who avenged both regular season losses in their football playoff run.

No. 3 A-Town is seeded for the first time since 2019 when the #2 Tornadoes last advanced to the semifinal round. Abingdon/Avon leads all teams with 10 pre-tournament wins, including an undefeated 5-0 run in the B-PC Spartan Tip-Off Classic.

Eureka’s overtime win over 6-1 Williamsville in the Eureka College Shootout solidified the Hornets’ place among the top 4 seeds. Eureka checks in at #4, the first time they have been seeded since 2022. That year ended in the Hornets’ second straight tournament title, topping Illini Bluffs in the finale.

The first round matchup with the best combined records is actually in the opening game between the 8-1 Liberty Eagles and 6-2 Mercer County Golden Eagles. The first ever tournament matchup between these schools kicks off the tournament at 9:00 am on Saturday Dec. 27.

Champions of the Pittsfield Saukee Turkey Tournament, Liberty will look to end a 3-game first round losing streak. The Eagles are led by a strong junior class, including forward Reed Sparrow, who averaged 16 points in three tournament games as a sophomore. At over 62 points per game thus far, the Eagles are the highest scoring team coming into the tournament.

The good news for Mercer County is that Orion is not in the tournament field. The Chargers are responsible for the Golden Eagles’ two losses on the year, one coming in the Orion Tip-Off Tournament, and the other on the same floor during Three Rivers Conference play. Mercer County returns five of their top six in their rotation from last year’s 14-18 squad, including the backcourt of junior Brady McPeek and senior Holden Demuth.

Top seeded West Hancock takes the floor at 10:30 am in the first round against Farmington. The Titans boast two members of the 2024 All-Tournament team in frontcourt members 6-9 senior Cooper Knowles and 6-4 junior Hunter Froman, who popped off for 30 points the championship game loss to Rockridge. The Titans will look to extend their current 5-game winning streak with their fourth consecutive first round victory. They hope to repeat what happened in 2018, when West Hancock last won the tournament. Coincidently, that was the last time the #1 seed went on to win the tournament also.

The Farmington Farmers have struggled to get things going this basketball season, thanks to several injuries lingering from the football team’s undefeated run to the Class 2A quarterfinals. While facing the No. 1 seed is a tall task, Farmington has actually knocked out the top seed twice recently, doing so in consecutive tournaments in 2019 and 2021. The upset in 2019 was coincidently the last time Farmington and West Hancock played in tournament action, with the Farmers ousting #1 West Hancock in a semifinal blowout 61-30.

No 4 seed Eureka battles Camp Point Central in the Noon first round game. Eureka is the only other team besides Rockridge to win the tournament over the last 6 years, capturing back-to-back titles in 2021 and 2022. The Hornets are coming in hot, to say the least. This year’s outfit enters tournament play on a 5-game winning streak, with the last three wins coming over opponents with a combined 20-5 record. Returning frontcourt starters 6-6 senior Brock Monk and 6-4 junior Jack Blunier could well improve on the Hornets’ impressive 13-3 record in tournament play since 2021.

The Central Panthers are facing Eureka for the first time in the tournament since a consolation game in 2019. Central’s best showing this year might well have come in a loss, when they took Brown County down to the wire in a 48-44 defeat. So it goes for the Panthers, who have just one senior and two juniors on their roster. Senior Kadin Niekamp and juniors Corbyn Hoosier and Kruze Miles are seeing expanded roles this season.

Canton and Rockridge wrap up the first session with a 1:30 scheduled tip-off. Canton has not won a first round game since 2016, but the Little Giants come into the holidays with a lot more positive momentum than in recent years. Canton began 3-0, taking the Fulton County Tournament title, and have since won Mid-Illini Conference games over Metamora and Dunlap. The senior backcourt of Lakon and Gavin Otto provide a veteran presence on the court, while the addition of Sivante Stokes has added a physical threat to the Little Giants’ attack.

Thanks to a 3-6 start, the Rockridge Rockets are flying under the radar coming into tournament play. This is despite them winning three of the last five tournaments, with an unbelievable 18-2 combined tournament record since 2019. The two-time defending champs return just two players that appeared in their 66-59 win in the 2024 championship game over West Hancock. But one of those is Wade Richhart, who led the Rockets with 17 points and eight rebounds in that title game win.

Abingdon/Avon and Pittsfield meet in the first round for the second time in three years, beginning the evening session at 4:00 pm. In 2023, A-Town upset the #4 Saukees 42-34. The No. 3 Tornadoes will look to avoid a similar fate as the ranked team this go-round. It has been quite the rebuilding project by A-Town head coach Cory Link, whose squad entered the 2022 tournament at 0-10. Three years later, they are 10-1, already having banked a tournament title over Thanksgiving. Sophomore Ryker Darst and senior Alex Foutch made the all-tournament team at Bushnell, but the Tornadoes have a balanced attack, including sophomore Tre Kenon and senior Ayden Stromson, who averaged 18 points in three tournament games played last year.

Pittsfield has had an up-and-down start to the season, but might have saved their best performance in their most recent effort, a 55-54 victory over Mendon Unity. The Saukees return three starters in seniors Hayden Gratton, Taylor Graham, and Riggston Bonds, but they have gotten big contributions from a host of underclassmen as well. This Pittsfield team is a bit undersized, but they are not afraid to fire away from three-point range.

The Macomb Bombers and Peoria Christian Chargers face off in the 5:30 pm game on the opening day. These two actually met in the third place game last year, a 43-28 triumph for Macomb. The Bombers have won five first round games in a row, and have reached the semifinals in back-to-back seasons. Senior Drew Watson, who averaged 16 points en route to earning All-Tournament honors last year, leads the Macomb attack, which also includes senior starters Nolan Hoge and Isaac Leinbach. The Macomb roster has also been bolstered by transfers Kellen Martin and former Brown County Hornet, Carter Havens, who could get a shot against his former teammates on the final day.

Newcomers in 2024, Peoria Christian made a splash, earning the #2 seed and advancing to the semifinals. The Chargers would go on to have a fantastic postseason run, eventually making it to the state finals, and taking the third place game over Effingham St. Anthony, the best finish in school history. Senior Trae Brickner earned all-tournament team honors last year after averaging over 12 points in four games played. He, along with fellow seniors Jacob Walton, and Drew Gama played substantial minutes on last year’s 29-win club.

The second seeded Brown County Hornets will attempt to end a six-game losing streak in the first round when they tip-off their tournament at 7:00 pm versus the B-PC Spartans. Despite the lack of early success, Brown County has won the consolation title twice in the last four years, including last year when junior Jackson McNeff polished off an all-tournament team campaign with 11 points and eight boards in a 54-44 win over Canton. But McNeff is just one of many weapons returning for second year boss Jeff Bottorff. Sophomore Henry Ingram has stepped up to give McNeff a running-mate in the front court, while Michael Kassing and Taygen Hohenbery solidify the backcourt. Oh, and all these players will be back next year, too.

First-year head coach Shane Curry leads the Bushnell-Prairie City Spartans into their 7:00 pm matchup with Brown County after wins in two of their last four games. B-PC returned to the tournament last year for the first time in 15 years, but stumbled to an 0-2 record. The Spartans lack traditional height, but sophomore guard Braylon Griffits has the ability to initiate the offense and senior Connor Palm is a threat from the three-point line.

Let’s run this one back, shall we? Traditionally, the nightcap is a tossup affair and this year’s contest between Illini West and Monmouth-Roseville figures to be far from an exception. Moved up to a 8:30 pm tip-off thanks to some shuffling to the tournament schedule, hoops fans will want to stay up for this one. In 2023, these squads dueled in the first round finale, which ended in an epic comeback by Monmouth-Roseville, which overcame a 13-point deficit to win 43-36.

Illini West and M-R have met in the last three tournaments, including a 48-43 IW win in the 5th place bracket last year. Not surprisingly, Wesley Robertson was the key figure in the Chargers’ win, producing 21 points and 10 rebounds against the Titans. Robertson was named to the all-tournament team last season and is surely a marked man on any opponent’s scouting report at this point. With some luck at the right time, Illini West would be undefeated as their three loses have been by a combined 8 points.

Monmouth-Roseville has played just one game versus a team with a losing record, and that won’t change in this one. The Titans got off to a late start, bowing out of the Orion Tip-Off Tournament due to their football team’s march to the quarterfinals of the Class 3A playoffs. While the jury is undoubtedly still out on these Titans, the expectations for them being a tough out are there with the senior inside-outside threat of forward Nick Huston and guard Cee Sarcomo.


Brian Sullivan
Stats Lead & Committee Member
December 25, 2025