The Pekin boys basketball team turned a tightly contested conference matchup into a decisive road victory, defeating Louisa-Muscatine 67–46 on Friday, December 12th. The win improves the Panthers to 3–1 overall and 2–1 in conference play.
Pekin set the tone early, racing out to a 12–2 advantage in the opening minutes and carrying a 14–10 lead after the first quarter. The Panthers maintained control through the second period, heading into halftime with a 30–21 edge.
Louisa-Muscatine made its push early in the third quarter, trimming the deficit to just one point. With 5:27 remaining in the period, the Falcons had completed the comeback and trailed only 30–29. From that moment on, Pekin seized control. The Panthers locked in defensively and sparked a dominant scoring run, holding Louisa-Muscatine to just two points for the rest of the third quarter and into the early stages of the fourth. The Falcons remained stuck at 31 points with 6:50 left in the final period as Pekin extended its lead to 44–31 by the end of the third quarter.
That extended scoring drought proved to be the turning point, as Pekin continued to pull away in the fourth to secure the 21-point victory.
The Panthers received a balanced offensive effort led by Cole Millikin, who scored 20 points while adding three assists and five steals. Alijah Brock posted a strong double-double with 13 points and 15 rebounds, along with an assist, three steals, and a block. Henry Adam came close to a quadruple-double, finishing with 11 points, seven rebounds, 10 assists, and seven steals. Nolan Glick narrowly missed a double-double with 11 points and nine rebounds, while also contributing two assists, two steals, and a block. Riley Smith chipped in eight points and two steals.
Off the bench, Henry Eubanks added two points, three rebounds, and two assists, while Brogan Spray scored two points. Carson Comstock, Brody Sobaski, and Mason Dahlstrom also contributed minutes in the conference win.
Adam’s 10 assists matched the second-highest single-game total of his career, falling just short of his career-high 12 assists, which he recorded in the 2024–25 season opener against Wapello in a 72–42 win. He has reached double-digit assists on multiple occasions, including a 10-assist performance against Lone Tree in a 61–50 victory during that same season when he was a sophomore. Now a junior, Adam continues to serve as a key facilitator for the Panthers.
Following the game, Pekin head coach John Swanson praised his team’s collective effort.
“Balanced scoring effort tonight,” Swanson said. “We broke the game open with a 19–2 run in the third quarter carrying into the fourth.”
Pekin will continue conference play on the road Tuesday, December 16th, traveling to Lone Tree for its next matchup.
