Illinois
Illinois basketball makes cut for class of 2025 4-star forward
As the Illinois basketball team heads into the 2024-25 season, some positive news has come down the pipeline on the recruiting front.
The class of 2024 is one that will be hard to live up to for any future recruiting classes. This was a top 10 class in the country led by some powerhouse players who are projected to be in the 2025 NBA Draft.
While that mammoth class was impressive, the class of 2025 is starting to round into shape. Illinois already has two commitments for 2025. Brandon Lee and Keaton Wagler are both four-star backcourt players who can really help build quality depth on the roster.
Many Illinois fans felt the wrath of the transfer portal and graduation after the Elite 8 run this past season, so having more talent waiting in the wings is optimal. On Tuesday, the Illini got one step closer to adding a third member to the 2025 class.
Joe Tipton of On3.com reported that Spencer Ahrens is now down to just six teams. The six programs he has on his top list include San Francisco, Boise State, Stanford, Gonzaga, Washington, and Illinois.
NEWS: 4⭐️ Spencer Ahrens is down to six schools, he tells @On3Recruits.
The 6-9 Power Forward discusses his finalists (On3+): https://t.co/B8HeDKIwPt pic.twitter.com/i0tSxgk2tI
— Joe Tipton (@TiptonEdits) October 29, 2024
Ahrens would be a nice addition to the Illinois roster. He is a 6-foot-8, 216-pound power forward out of Bella Vista Prep in Arizona. He is rated as a four-star recruit and ranked as the No. 121 player in the class of 2025. Ahrens is also the No. 27 power forward in the country and the No. 9 player coming out of Arizona.
College sports is a wild place right now with the transfer portal in full swing. Heading into the new season, Illinois only has two scholarship players left over from the Elite 8 run.
This trend isn’t slowing down anytime soon either. You can’t predict transfers, but you can see who might head to the NBA early and who is going to be graduating.
Ben Humrichous is going to be a big part of the Illinois squad this season. He is a graduate player, so he is done after the 2024-25 season. He is a 6-foot-9 forward.
Illinois has Will Riley in the program. As a freshman, the 6-foot-8 forward is projected to be a first-round NBA Draft pick. That means he is likely gone after this season too.
That means two players in the front court who are easily going to average over 20 minutes per game are both departing. Illinois needs someone who can fill some of those minutes. Ahrens might be a decent option as a reserve.
Next. Impressive AP Top 25 streak ends for the Illinois basketball team. Impressive AP Top 25 streak ends for the Illinois basketball team. dark
People ran out of their homes into the cold overnight Tuesday into Wednesday after a fire broke out in an apartment building in the western Chicago suburb of Woodridge.
The fire broke out in a multi-family building at 7900 Janes Ave., near Forest Drive.
Smoke was seen billowing as firefighters stood on the roof.
One firefighter suffered minor injuries fighting the blaze, according to the Lisle-Woodridge Fire Protection District.
Fire officials said several units have major damage, and the families who reside in them have been displaced.
The American Red Cross was assisting the displaced residents Wednesday morning.
STICKNEY, Ill. (WLS) — The future of racing at Hawthorne Race Course in south suburban Stickney is in jeopardy.
The Illinois Racing Board suspended its harnesses racing license. In a letter sent Monday to Hawthorne’s president and general manager, the state agency said the track failed to prove its financial integrity.
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Jeff Davis, president of the Illinois Harness Horsemen’s Association, says the past two months have been rough.
“We don’t really know details, but what we do know is people have not been paid since before Christmas,” Davis said.
Davis says checks started bouncing, which led to races being canceled over the past few weekends.
SEE ALSO | Hawthorne Race Course not offering window betting for Kentucky Derby amid Churchill Downs dispute
“Six weeks ago, they couldn’t cash a $400 check to a trainer,” Davis said.
The remaining three races left this season are unlikely unless Hawthorne owners can prove financial stability. Hawthorne officials have not returned messages seeking comment on the issue. But it is just one of many issues facing the track. There has been an effort for nearly six years to get an approved casino up and running, but the owners cannot find a partner.
“Horse racing in every state now only survives because it has additional forms of revenue from casinos, slot machines,” said Paulick Report Publisher Ray Paulick.
Hawthorne is the only racetrack in the Chicago area and has the right to veto another one built within 35 miles. But those in the industry hope a bill before the state legislature will repeal that.
“The harness horsemen are asking the state legislature to take away that exclusivity, because Hawthorne isn’t in a position to build another track if they can’t keep the one they have going,” Paulick said.
READ MORE | Hawthorne Race Course, Illinois’ oldest horse racing track poised to be first with casino
In the meantime, Davis says he hopes the season can be salvaged.
“It really is sad. It’s a 100-year-old business. They’ve been trying, but I don’t know if they have the ability to actually get done what they’ve been awarded to do,” Davis said.
The Illinois Racing Board will hold its monthly meeting on Wednesday, and Hawthorne’s owner is scheduled to give an update on the track.
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Police pursued suspects wanted in an armed 7-Eleven robbery in Cicero, Illinois, on Tuesday morning.
According to police, officers responded to a call for an armed robbery at 35th Street and Austin Boulevard around 3:30 a.m.
Staff told police several armed and masked individuals came into the store, possibly from two vehicles, and fled with cash.
Police identified and pursued one of the vehicles onto 290, but the chase was terminated on 290.
No injuries were reported.
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